Higher education Silver award for Abingdon and Witney College

Abingdon & Witney College has received a prestigious Teaching Excellence Framework Silver award for its higher education programme, it’s been announced.

The Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF), introduced by the Government and now managed by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), recognises excellent teaching and learning across the UK’s higher education sector.

In order to be in the running for a TEF rating, higher education providers have to meet demanding national quality requirements, including teaching quality, learning environment and resources, and student outcomes.

An independent panel of experts, including academics, students and employer representatives, then decide on the level of the award.

By achieving a Silver award, Abingdon & Witney College is deemed to have “high quality teaching, learning and outcomes for its students”, whilst consistently exceeding “rigorous national quality requirements for UK higher education.”

Over 350 students study a higher education course at the College each year, working towards qualifications such as Honours Degrees, Higher National Certificates or Diplomas, Foundation Degrees, and Degree Apprenticeships across a broad range of subjects and in state-of-the-art facilities.

This includes a multi-purpose gym, large sports hall and outdoor playing fields for students on a Sports programme; high quality workshops with the latest equipment for Engineering students; a fully operating theatre and a dance studio for Performing Arts, and a 60-acre working farm that hosts award-winning land-based courses.

A forthcoming £4million Advanced Skills Centre is scheduled to open in January in 2018 and will provide new resources and opportunities in the STEM sector, a direct response to the lack of these crucial skills in the local community, increasing the College’s higher education offering even further.

And a recent accommodation partnership with Ruskin College at their Headington campus will also enable students to travel from further distances to study at Abingdon and Witney.

Lee-Ann Penaluna, Head of Higher Education at Abingdon & Witney College, said:

“We are delighted to receive this TEF rating from the HEFCE. It is a clear indicator that our higher education offering is of an excellent standard – from the quality of the teaching staff to the close-knit community of students who successfully study here.

With the new investment into STEM to come, and an ongoing strong partnership with Oxford Brookes University, it really is an exciting time to be joining us for your higher education qualification.”

Madeleine Atkins, Chief Executive of the Higher Education Funding Council for England, said:
“Students invest significant amounts of time and money in their higher education. They rightly expect a high-quality learning experience and outcomes that reflect their potential. The UK already has a high bar for quality and standards, which all universities and colleges must meet. But the TEF judges excellence above and beyond this, clearly showing the highest levels across the sector.

“The TEF measures the things that students themselves say they care about: high-quality, engaged teaching and a supportive, stimulating learning environment which equips them with the knowledge and skills they need to achieve their potential, and then to progress to a good job or further study.”

TEF results and the evidence used in the assessment can be found at www.hefce.ac.uk.