Change of Leadership at Stratford College

[Lex]

Frankly, the college has been in a state of chaos for years; I'm surprised it's taken this long for the education authorities to take action: http://www.stratford-herald.com/66953-stratford-college-announces-new-principal.html

[rebbonk]

The state of 'further education' in this country is a bl**dy disgrace. Many colleges of FE are little more than a joke.

[Lex]

Stratford College seems to be a particularly bad example. I've looked into further and higher education with the college several times over the last 20-or-so years; most of the time, nobody even bothered getting back to me or courses simply didn't go ahead because of problems setting them up.
Even now, I know people who've had courses cancelled when they turned up on their 1st day.

[rebbonk]

I have a friend that works for one of the Warwickshire colleges. To say she doesn't enjoy her work is an understatement!.

To be fair, I've worked in the FE sector (3 different authorities in the UK) and they're all as bad. It's all about 'bums on seats'!

Unfortunately, Coventry is putting all its eggs in one basket with two universities. I can see it all coming crashing down.

[Lex]

To be fair, I've worked in the FE sector (3 different authorities in the UK) and they're all as bad. It's all about 'bums on seats'!

I actually nearly walked out on the 1st day of 1 course I did at Leamington college when the course leader said 'the college is no longer about education, it's about making money'. That memory is still with me 20-odd years later.

[rebbonk]

It's absolutely true Lex. When I first started an apprenticeship and attended 2 local colleges, they really cared about what they were teaching and went out of their way to ensure we understood the basics.

Just before I finished my apprenticeship, I remember sitting down with one of our senior lecturers over a pint and having a good chat. He told me he was quitting. He then showed me a proposal for a future course and every last teaching point was broken down into a time segment. It's as he said, they could get robots to teach this stuff. That was about 50 years ago now and things have gone steadily downhill. Yet the muppets actually think they're doing a good job.

In the past I've interviewed for apprentices and engineers: frankly, most candidates are unemployable. They lack so many of the basic skills.

Having attended university as a 'mature' student, I was never afraid of making my voice heard. The attitude was simply, 'take it or leave it!' Had it been my money I was spending, I would have left it.

[Lex]

The takeover of Stratford College is complete; I really do hope things improve: http://www.stratford-herald.com/81829-stratford-college-takeover-completed.html

[Lex]

£8.25 million's being thrown at the college. Hopefully this will draw a line under the college's problems: http://www.stratford-herald.com/95960-stratford-college-site-set-8-25million-overhaul.html

[rebbonk]

Any fool can throw money at a problem, but it rarely solves much. I hope the underlying issues have been addressed, but I'll not go holding my breath.

[Lex]

Plans for redevelopment of the college are afoot: http://www.stratford-herald.com/101719-plans-8-25million-college-redevelopment-submitted.html

[rebbonk]

Very nice and certainly better than the wooden huts we were offered at Coventry Technical College. But, will the education match up to the buildings?