SOUTH Gloucestershire & Stroud College (SGS) has gone from strength to strength since being formed in 2011, as confirmed in the recent Ofsted inspection in November 2014.
With outstanding grades awarded for leadership and management, learning support, business and sport, and a “good” overall grade, the college is being highlighted as an excellent example of a successful merger.
The apprenticeship provision has been particularly successful, with over 1,200 apprentices per year, and both overall and timely success rates are well ahead of national averages.
Well over half of apprentices are in the outstanding faculties of business and sport.
Much of the growth is attributable to long term partnerships with key employers, both large and small.
These include public sector organisations, such as South Gloucestershire Council and the Ministry of Defence, large multinationals, such as Boeing, and equally important, local employers in all sectors.
The college’s employer engagement team is experienced in helping businesses, large and small, who can really benefit from the expanding apprenticeship programme.
For many employers, apprenticeships are a key strategy to introduce new talent and ideas, to have a structured and quality-assured training and recruitment programme, or to gain accredited training and qualifications for existing staff.
The team offer a free, effective and reliable recruitment service.
Every applicant is interviewed and screened prior to shortlisting and 87per cent of vacancies are filled first time.
They also provide a broad range of frameworks, pathways and levels, and utilise an employer portal to share learning plans and progress, which leads to strong overall and timely success rates.