Ofsted inspectors praise region's first university technical college

YORKSHIRE's first university technical college has been rated as good by Ofsted.
Nick Crew, UTC Sheffield's executive principal.Nick Crew, UTC Sheffield's executive principal.
Nick Crew, UTC Sheffield's executive principal.

The UTC Sheffield was the first school of this kind to open in the region in 2013 and is the first to be inspected.

UTC’s are technical schools, for 14 to 18-year-olds, which provide vocational qualilfications in a particular career area alongside GCSEs and A-levels. The UTC Sheffield offers technical qualifications either in creative and digital media or advanced engineering and manufacturing.

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Ofsted has praised it for establishing “a business-like culture and technical curriculum closely aligned to the needs of employers and universities.”

It says students at the UTC on Matilda Street develop good industry skills on highly effective study programmes that increase their chances of securing employment and apprenticeships

The school’s executive principal Nick Crew said: “Leading the establishment of Yorkshire’s first UTC in Sheffield City Region has been a real privilege. Ofsted’s validation of the strength of our provision after only two years of operation clearly shows that we are one of the best UTCs in the country.” The education watchdog examined five key areas, which have all been judged as good: effectiveness of leadership and management; quality of teaching, learning and assessment; personal development, behaviour and welfare; outcomes for students and 16 to 19 study programmes.

It said that the UTC was not outstanding because outcomes are not consistently good in all subjects. Attendance at key stage four is said to be below average and some pupils are not punctual. Ofted also says the promotion of literacy is not consistent across the curriculum.

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Paul Blomfield, Sheffield Central MP, said: “I’ve been delighted to support the UTC from the earliest stages of the project. This report confirms what I see every time I visit. It’s a stimulating learning environment which gets the very best out of its students and offers them a great start in life.”

Richard Wright, chairman of Sheffield UTC Academy Trust and executive director of Sheffield Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said: “This is a fantastic project to be involved in.

“Across further education in Sheffield we are trying to prioritise the needs of the employers and students over everything else so we make a real contribution to the future growth plans. UTCs are a very important part of that in their specific sectors and this result shows how well the UTC Sheffield City Centre campus is doing.”