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City of Bristol College
College Green Centre
Address
St George's Road Bristol, BS1 5UA England
Coordinates	51°27′03″N 2°36′20″W / 51.45091°N 2.60553°W / 51.45091; -2.60553
Information
Type	Further education
Established	1996; 28 years ago (1996)
Department for Education URN	131094 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Principal	Julia Gray
Gender	Mixed
Age	16 to Adult
Enrolment	14,178
Website	www.cityofbristol.ac.uk

City of Bristol College is a further education and higher education college in Bristol, England.

It provides courses for young people and adults aged 16 and above in areas such as: A Levels, Animal Care, Floristry, Horticulture, Applied Forensic and Medical Science, Business, Catering and Hospitality, Computing, Construction, Creative and Performing Arts, Engineering and Manufacturing, ESOL and GCSEs, Hair, Beauty and Holistic Therapies, Health and Social Care and Childcare, Motor Vehicle and Transport, Public Services, Health and Fitness, Travel and Tourism and many more.

History

City of Bristol College traces its roots back to the educational initiatives of the Society of Merchant Venturers in the sixteenth century.

The college was formed in 1996 when Brunel College merged with South Bristol College. It subsequently merged with Soundwell College and smaller establishments such as the College of Care and Early Years Education.

In 2013 the college was awarded Ofsted's lowest rating, 'inadequate'; and the quality of teaching, learning and assessment were judged to be both inadequate and very inconsistent.

In 2015 the Soundwell centre was closed and some buildings on the Ashley Down Campus sold to developers.

In February 2016, a Whistleblower from the college told the Bristol Post that the college was to be rated inadequate as a result of its January Ofsted inspection. On 10 march, OFSTED confirmed that the college had dropped from its previous 'Requires improvement' grade to 'Inadequate' - the organisation's lowest rating.

In June 2017, the college was rated by Ofsted as requires improvement, with some elements of the college being good, like adult study programmes and provisions for learners with high needs.

Also in June 2017, the college was given a Silver Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) award. This award judges the quality of teaching and the outcomes they achieve at higher education level, as well as taking into account student satisfaction, employment outcomes and retention rates.

College centres

The college currently has four centres:

• College Green Centre
• Ashley Down Centre
• South Bristol Skills Academy
• Parkway at Filton

Formerly, there was also a Soundwell centre; it closed in 2015.

Some of the buildings of the Ashley Down Centre were originally constructed, as the Muller Homes in the middle of the 19th century. In 1958 the buildings became Bristol College of Science and Technology. Muller Road, which runs near the site of the orphanage, is named after its founder. The site includes the college's university centre, classrooms and laboratories for a variety of courses.

The site was previously used long-term as the external film set for the BBC television series Casualty with permanent features such as marked ambulance bays and 'automatic' sliding front entrance doors (leading to a false corridor) and reversible 'Emergency Department' and 'Holby' signs that could be blanked off when not filming. Occasionally, interior sets would be temporarily set up for example whenever a hospital managers office needed to be portrayed. All filming now takes place at a purpose-built set in Wales.

The College Green Centre includes the sixth form centre with around 400 students undertaking A-level courses and 1,200 on vocational courses. The Advanced Engineering Centre offers engineering, aeronautical, manufacturing and automotive courses. The South Bristol Skills Academy opened in 2010 close to Hengrove Leisure Centre and South Bristol Community Hospital.

The college has a range of partnership agreements with other educational facilities. For 13 years the foundation degree dance programmes were based at the Bristol Community Dance Centre. Diploma and degree courses have also been run at dBs Music. The Skills Centre South West also provides courses to help people get into work, foundation and key skills and English for speakers of other languages. The college has also been an academic sponsor of the Bristol Technology and Engineering Academy a University Technical College.

Curriculum

City of Bristol College offers over 1,000 courses at all levels for school leavers, adult learners and international students, as well as training packages for employers.

Courses include Diplomas, A Levels, Apprenticeships and NVQs. University level courses include Foundation Degrees, HNCs and Access to HE in partnership with University of Plymouth, Bath Spa University, University of the West of England, University of Gloucestershire and University of Bristol.

References

1. "FE&S report - City of Bristol College" (PDF). OFSTED. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
2. "City of Bristol College". Independent. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
3. "City of Bristol College guide". Telegraph. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
4. "Inspection Report February 2013". Oftsed. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 April 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
5. Churchill, L. (2 November 2015). "City of Bristol College at 'crisis point' as buildings sold off and staff facing job losses". Bristol Post. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
6. Rath, Marc (23 March 2015). "Students to relocate as City of Bristol College shuts campus". Bristol Post. Archived from the original on 12 January 2016. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
7. "City of Bristol College to be rated inadequate by Ofsted in newest report". Bristol Post. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
8. Yong, Michael. "City of Bristol College dropped to lowest rating after inspection". The Bristol Post. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
9. Yong, Michael (5 June 2017). "Latest Ofsted report after inspection at City of Bristol College". bristolpost. Retrieved 18 August 2017.
10. "City of Bristol College | City of Bristol College celebrates Silver TEF Award". www.cityofbristol.ac.uk. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
11. "Ashley Down Centre". City of Bristol College. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
12. "College Green Centre". City of Bristol College. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
13. "AEC at Parkway". City of Bristol College. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
14. "South Bristol Skills Academy". City of Bristol College. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
15. "Bristol Dance Centre". Bristol Dance Centre. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
16. "Bristol". dBS Music. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
17. "City of Bristol College". Ways 2 Work. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
18. "Bristol Technology and Engineering Academy". University Technical Colleges. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
19. "Universities". City of Bristol College. Retrieved 19 December 2015.

External links

• City of Bristol College Website

• Further education colleges in Bristol
• Learning and Skills Beacons
• Higher education colleges in England
• Universities and colleges established in 1996
• 1996 establishments in England