CONNECT February 2021

Launch of the Research College Group for all staff to get involved with on page 4.

Marketing Team awarded as ‘Best of the Best’ on page 6.

What inclusion means to some of our students on page 12.

N E WS | U P DAT E S | D I A RY DAT E S | D I S CO U N TS

Artists impression of what the newly refurbished building will look like facing Cauldwell Street.

Work has now begun on site at the Bedford College campus to prepare for the development of the £4.3m Modern Methods of Construction Centre providing “off-site” construction training for students, to gain the latest skills whilst on campus, that they can take on to site. Read more on page 7.

BCS BEDFORD COLLEGE SERVICES

February 2021

Connect

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Principal’s Update

Olivia Morton

Ian Pryce CBE

Communications Executive

Editor’s Starting as we mean to go on In our first issue of 2021 read the great news from across the Group that celebrates the achievements of staff both professionally and how they are supporting their communities.

If you would like to add your staff news to the next issue of CONNECT which will be circulated at the end of February please send your article and photos to omorton@bedford.ac.uk no later than Friday 12 February 2021.

CEO The Bedford College Group

Your Diary

Aramark, set, go..

Lockdown doesn’t mean slow down We have all become used to the fact that COVID-19 and lockdown requires everyone to work even harder than normal, just to deal with the day-to-day activity. It is important though that we also have an eye on the future so we emerge even stronger.

27 January, 5.00pm-8.00pm (online)

We have seen the impact COVID-19 has had on the hospitality sector, and the College has not escaped its impact. We have sadly had to furlough many of our refectory staff as a result. However, the pandemic has allowed us to bring forward the transfer of the Aramark catering operation at Kettering, Corby and The Bedford Sixth Form into the Group. I am pleased to say that good work by the HR team and Amanda Riches has resulted in all the Aramark team agreeing to transfer to BCS Ltd. The transfer enables us to ensure a more consistent level of service across our campuses when things return more to normal.

National College for Motorsport Open Day

Staff Meeting follow up

Bedford College Open Day

04 February, 5.00pm-7.00pm (online)

05 February

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Key Dates

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Principal’s Update

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Research

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Wellbeing

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Marketing Team Wins Best of the Best

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MMC Centre

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Community eNewsletter

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Launch of the Wellbeing Group

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New Head of TBSF

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Job Opportunities

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Equality & Diversity

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Diversity Calendar

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Perks

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To that end it is pleasing to see the early progress being made on our Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) Training Centre at Bedford. The MMC Centre will gear us up for the curriculum of the future, but also makes one of our least energy efficient buildings much greener, as you can tell from this heat loss image of the current block.

At the recent staff meetings we said we were looking to increase the number of curriculum Heads and redistribute some responsibilities so that management loads were more fairly spread. The Vice Principals have reviewed workloads and you should see some internal adverts for additional roles soon. We also said we would set up a formal Bedford campus group, chaired by Karen Campbell, to resolve any campus-specific issues, and set up a regular briefing to all managers in the group to make sure we keep everyone focused on the key priorities and avoid delay and re-work. Both the campus group and briefings will commence before the end of January.

EDI Committee

Contents

Principal’s

Progress Monitoring Review 2 starts 08 February

National Apprenticeship Week 08 – 12 February

Advanced Practitioners Forum 11 February

When is an exam not an exam?

Half-Term

w/c 15 February For more diary dates visit www.bit.ly/collegecalendars

February 2021

You will have seen the government decision to cancel GCSE and A-Level exams at least this summer. A consultation on a different approach is under way, which may well include exams set by awarding bodies! The changes affect all areas of the College but particularly The Bedford Sixth Form. Our new Head of the Sixth Form, Helen Smith, is therefore having to cope with starting her role during lockdown and then responding to the exam changes, a very different start to that we envisaged at her appointment! No alternative approach will be without difficulty so the need to support our students to achieve the destination or progression of their choice is paramount.

Did you know you can follow Ian on Twitter?

@ipryce

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Sam Jones MSc (Oxon)

Caroline Biddle

Advanced Practitioner - Research and Scholarship Lead TES FE Awards - Teacher of the year 2019 sjones@bedford.ac.uk

Executive Director of Human Resources cbiddle@bedford.ac.uk

Research February sees the ‘soft launch’ to staff of the Research College Group as we begin to raise awareness in member organisations in anticipation of a ‘full launch’ when we officially unveil the group more widely in March.

The Research College Group (RCG) brings together 10 colleges and sixth forms who lead in practitioner research. Their mission is to inform and develop practice in all aspects of operations based upon research from within the post-16 education and training sector and to develop the expertise, capacity, quality and publication of research across the group of member organisations.

One way the RCG plans to achieve their mission is to collaborate on research and delivery of research projects, and this month sees the start of this inaugural project!

This project looks at the issue of digital pedagogy and the experience of the sector’s teaching staff over 2020.

It focuses on teaching, learning, assessment and the experience of supporting our students over the period March – December 2020.

Rather than broad brush approaches to teaching, this study seeks to look at the curriculum level experience and seeks to understand if teaching in an area like maths and English where centre assessed grades dominated thinking and practice looks different to areas like the arts, or if construction trades have faced different challenges to horticulturalists.

This in-depth look at the experience of teaching is led by sector staff and wishes to represent the challenges and complexity of teaching in the sector. It will be written by, and published by, sector staff in a format that is accessible and relevant to those working in post-16 education and training. In this respect the RCG feel the work is very different to other snapshots of teaching across this period. However, the sector can only paint a picture of itself if those working within it are willing to facilitate this.

Winter for many is a wonderful time of the year. However, for many others winter represents dreary weather, dull days and grey skies. Winter can be a difficult and somewhat depressing time for some, and this is attributed to a number of factors including short days, the cold weather, seasonal financial pressures and this year the challenges caused by the continuing pandemic.

Winter blues is one thing, however there is a far more severe form of the winter blues. This is called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and is classed as a form of depression that is affected by the seasons, estimated to affect half a million people every winter.

So, we are asking you to work together in your curriculum areas, using meetings or golden hours, to go through the survey as a team and reflect upon your experiences of teaching, supporting and assessing in 2020. Without your contribution, sector voices will continue to be either unheard or represented and interpreted by others, so please do get involved.

Symptoms specific to SAD may include:

The link to the survey is here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/RMQDMLS If you have any questions regarding this work, or getting more involved in the RCG, please contact sjones@bedford.ac.uk.

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Feeling depressed most of the day, nearly every day

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Losing interest in activities you once enjoyed

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Having low energy

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Having problems with sleeping

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Experiencing changes in your appetite or weight

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Feeling sluggish or agitated

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Having difficulty concentrating

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Feeling hopeless, worthless or guilty

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Having frequent thoughts of death or suicide.

As with depression, the severity of SAD symptoms can vary from person to person. For many, the symptoms usually begin mildly at the start of winter and get progressively worse through the darkest days. Then, by spring or early summer, the symptoms lift until the sufferer is in remission and feels normal and healthy again.

To be clinically diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder, you need to have experienced these cyclical symptoms for two or more consecutive years. Regardless of the timing or persistence of your symptoms, if your depression feels overwhelming and is adversely affecting your life, it’s time to seek help.

To speak to someone for support and more information, please call your Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), which is a completely confidential and a free service that is provided as a benefit of working for the Group.

The specific cause of SAD remains mostly unknown.

However, there might be a number of contributing factors such as a drop in serotonin levels, reduced sunlight (that can cause a drop in serotonin that therefore might trigger depression) or reduced melatonin levels which plays a role in sleep patterns and mood.

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February 2021

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February 2021

Marketing

Modern Methods of Construction audiences, including 16-18 year olds living in Wellingborough and East Northants, Year 10 and 11 age groups at school, adults aged 19+ in the areas and local employers as well as ensure the enrolment targets were met and supported by a major communication campaign. Using their expertise the team focused on those wards in East Northamptonshire and Wellingborough that were within a 10-15 minute drive from the campus or on a public transport route and took into account the quality of education provided in those areas and the growth in population expected from new housing developments.

As a hat trick, the team were also Highly Commended for the Group-wide Virtual Open Days that were held since the first lockdown, with one of the events having to be rearranged as it fell on the date that the March lockdown began. These events are an alternative to the face-to-face events held for prospective students and have seen some fantastic responses from prospective students and parents.

Well done to the team and it’s great to see our shelves of awards continuing to grow.

The Group has taken another national award, demonstrating how staff have risen to the challenges throughout 2020.

At the FE First Awards 2020, hosted by the College Marketing Network, the Marketing team took the title of Best of the Best 2020. This is a title decided by educational peers in the FE College Marketing sector.

Work is now underway on Bedford College’s town centre £4.3m Modern Methods of Construction Centre for “off-site” construction training, which is the future of the industry.

Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) is a common term used within the construction industry that embraces a range of off-site manufacturing and on-site techniques that provide alternatives to traditional house building.

In addition to being crowned ‘Best of the Best’ the team also won the Gold prize at the same ceremony held online at the end of November for its Targeted Recruitment Campaign which was developed for the new look £10m Wellingborough campus, part of Tresham College.

Our latest development has been supported by SEMLEP’s Getting Building Fund (where we received £2.9m of funding) and will help our students and apprentices keep up with the skills demand from the construction industry, in the upgraded existing facilities at Cauldwell Street.

The Gold award was awarded for the Targeted Recruitment Campaign which was implemented to ensure that the local community were kept fully up-to-date with the latest developments and, most importantly, that recruitment targets for the courses at the new Wellingborough campus, opening in September 2020 were met.

Pre-manufacturing homes, or at least part of them, and then shipping them to a building site, has been identified as the most efficient and cost-effective way of meeting the huge demand for housing which is expected in the future.

The teams involved in the campaign faced further challenges in March 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown. The Marketing team reacted quickly to reassure the local Wellingborough community that the redevelopment of the campus would continue, with strict adherence to government guidelines and that courses would still run from September 2020.

Our latest redevelopment will see the single storey building which sits alongside the Brundtland Building being upgraded to include a facility to construct dwellings and component parts like kitchen and bathroom “pods” as well as roofing using a Gantry Crane being delivered later in the spring. It will also allow the building to become more environmentally friendly (as shown in the Principal’s update thermal imagery).

The Wellingborough Redevelopment Recruitment Campaign was designed to reach all the target

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“We will be working closely with leading employers in the construction industry regionally to get input about the skills they need to fast-forward these modern methods,” said Director of Construction, Dave Wilkins, “There are huge opportunities here for training young people for great jobs in the future - be it 16-year-olds embarking on apprenticeships, those undertaking the new T-Levels, others progressing on to degree-level Higher Education courses, and those in the industry who want to modernise their skills.

“There will always be a demand for more traditional construction skills and we will continue to offer those courses across all levels.”

The project is due to be completed by September 2021 and we will continue to keep staff up-to-date on progress throughout the year on CONNECT intranet and features in this staff magazine.

If you know of any local businesses who may be interested in supporting this facility please contact Dave Wilkins (dwilkins@bedford.ac.uk) or Kay Rodgers (krodgers@bedford.ac.uk).

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February 2021

Community

Stronger Together Community News The Group’s very first Community e-Newsletter has been designed, filled with some of the latest news from across the Group from the Autumn term and will be sent to key stakeholders in education, local government, government, careers advisory organisations, employers and sector leaders in the Arts and STEM this month.

The first issue covers our title of TES FE College of the Year, the opening of our new look Wellingborough campus, T Levels, opportunities for those not in employment or training already and more information on how the Group is supporting businesses to access funding and the unemployed into work opportunities.

Our ‘Stronger Together’ e-newsletter will be produced termly to raise awareness of the Group’s latest developments and programmes to support young people, adults and employers across our region.

It is important for us to keep our community stakeholders informed and we welcome any ideas on how we can continue to raise the profile of the Group within our community both geographically and sector wide. If you wish to share ideas please email omorton@bedford.ac.uk

Launch of Last Spring Jo Baxter, Director of Science & Technology and Gina Bubbins, Director of Business Development carried out comprehensive research and presented ideas to Governors and the Executive with suggestions of ways to improve staff wellbeing. Soon after they held their first Wellbeing Steering Group with representatives from across the College in key departments including HR, Marketing, Professional Development and Qualified Mental Health staff. Over the year, the Wellbeing Steering Group has grown with wider

Sue Wilson

Dee Tait

Work life balance is something that is difficult to achieve for many in our sector and so I hope that by joining this group I can both offer and learn to help make real changes that the wider Group can see a benefit from.

Being part of the Wellbeing group means that I can support whole self-wellbeing by focusing on the mental, emotional, social and physical needs of my own teams and staff. I believe the group is focused on bringing about change within the organisation and wants to have staff who are well and happy.

I like being part of something that is passionate about the wellbeing of our employees and being able to make a difference. It is good to know that I was part of the group that helps and supports our employees.

Gina Bubbins

Shaun Wilson

Jo Baxter

Lauren Guiney

representation from across the Group to include a wider mix of academic and professional services staff who will be providing a monthly update in addition to the Director of HR on practical ways everyone can improve their wellbeing both relating to work and out of work hours. Meet the Wellbeing Steering Group sharing what being part of the group means to them:

Being able to make a difference to friends and colleagues wellbeing by being part of an effective group of cross college staff that are passionate about listening, researching and implementing and being in a position to make a difference to their colleagues day-to-day life by introducing positive changes.

Amanda Riches

Erica Knight

I have enjoyed being part of the Wellbeing Steering Group since it began as it is useful to discuss the different issues faced by staff and students and look for real solutions to improve mental health and wellbeing which are new to us all as we all begin to learn more about what it means to everyone.

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Mel Tew

The Wellbeing Steering Group allows me to have input into how we shape the future of the College and improve things for all our employees. I have been focusing on developing Core Skill training for line managers to support the wellbeing agenda. I am looking forward to rolling this work out soon.

February 2021

Being part of the group gives the opportunity to voice opinions on what challenges my staff are currently facing, and reassurance that we are not the only people that are in this situation. Also to hear views on how to overcome and options that are available to my team. Being part of the group and for BCS to be included in further procedures and policies that are being written brings a sense of inclusion as a subsidiary company.

Being part of the Wellbeing Steering Group has been important for me in allowing the discussions of Wellbeing and Mental Health across the Group, therefore identifying the wellbeing requirements of the staff as a whole. To action and implement strategies that can benefit the wellbeing of all concerned.

Olivia Morton

Being part of the Wellbeing Steering Group is great for sharing ideas and discussing different ways for everyone to improve their health and happiness; whether it is being more mindful, achieving goals, completing deadlines; it’s great to put it into a practice personally too. Within my communications role at the Group it is great to be able to share tips identified by the Group and research even more in the future.

I am pleased to be involved in the Wellbeing Steering Group. The group provides a forum where the Wellbeing of all staff and students is considered and strategies put in place where required. I am keen to promote an increased understanding of wellbeing and support staff and students in improving their own wellbeing and that of those around them.

Caroline Biddle As part of the group it enables me to identify the needs and wishes of our staff when it comes to their wellbeing and then work with others across the College to develop resources to support staff wellbeing in both their work and personal lives.

As part of the group I have learnt more about wellbeing as a wider issue, the things that affect it and how we can support each other every day to find aPg.9 good balance in life.

Connect

Is your area on

February 2021

Connect

New Head

Connect

Job Technician in Art and Design

Location: Kettering Salary: £18,188 per annum Application closing date: 28/01/2021

CONNECT intranet was introduced in September 2017 following the formation of The Bedford College Group.

Since then it has become one of the main sources of information, news from across the Group, documents, policies and more.

Head of English (Maternity Cover)

Location: Bedford Salary: £38,760 - £49,980 per annum, depending on experience and qualifications Application closing date: 28/01/2021

This January we began work in improving and developing CONNECT intranet to ensure that it is still a useful resource for all staff to use and contribute towards.

» View and apply for our full-time and part-time vacancies via The Bedford College Group vacancy portal which can be found on CONNECT staff intranet.

Please can all departments check that their areas documents, policies and departmental information is valid and up to date within your dedicated areas, deleting any documents that are no longer relevant. This is extremely important to ensure that when colleagues search for the documents or news only the correct information is shown.

Leila Khaldi

Position: Practical Instructor in Animal Sciences

Farzana Khan

Position: Senior Lecturer – Business

Antonella Mitchell

Position: English Tutor

Robert Samphire

Position: English Tutor

Kevin Taylor

Position: English Tutor

Hannah Taylor

Position: Work Experience Co-ordinator in Art & Design

Training

If you need any assistance in this please email omorton@bedford.ac.uk. How To Guides are also available, including the Q&A section to support the search function which is accessed via the magnifying glass icon in the top right corner of CONNECT homepage.

Quality Update The Group has welcomed new Headteacher at The Bedford Sixth Form, Helen Smith who joined us at the beginning of the year following the retirement of Paul Clarkson.

Helen is passionate about encouraging young people to progress up to degree level wherever they can and feels it is something which young people will have to embrace in the fast-changing employment environments ahead.

Helen has four degrees in: Psychology, Law, Teaching and an MA in Educational Leadership.

“I am passionate about learning and believe all people should be given the chance to achieve their potential.

The Bedford Sixth Form is a great starting place for those aged 16 plus on that journey towards the university, or employment, of their choice and to encourage them in the belief that continuing professional development is a positive pathway,” said Helen.

Helen joins The Bedford Sixth Form after previously working at the Melton Vale Sixth Form, Brooke House College and Cardinal Wiseman School, providing a combination of independent school and 16+ specialist expertise.

Progress Monitoring Reviews (PMR) offer the opportunity for Course Managers to present the current progress of their students to the Quality Department. Course Managers do this using a varying method of evidence to demonstrate that students are receiving high quality learning, teaching and assessment to achieve well. Where areas of underperformance are identified, Course Managers will evidence actions being taken to mitigate these risks. Please find the schedule and agenda here for PMR2.

The latest version of the Quality Calendar can be found here

Professional Development Update

There are many methods of Professional Development in the workplace including, training courses and joining forums, groups and networks, etc. If you’d like more information please email nmorris@bedford.ac.uk

Microsoft Class Teams A recording from the daily bite size training session on Microsoft Class Teams can be found here.

The Staff Lounge is available on Connect.

The Staff Lounge is a shared space where staff can go and watch videos and read documents in relation to their February 2021

practice. It is also a space where you can share your own findings and practice for others to see. If you have tried anything new through Risk It! or if you want to share some best practice please contact quality@bedford.ac.uk

Development Catalogue

The Development Catalogue aims to make planning your professional development easier by hosting all development opportunities in one place. Use the tabs here to find opportunities which will help you to reach the goals you have set out in your action plan.

The First Impression Survey results can be found here

Staff Lounge

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Welcome to

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Pearson Learning Hub

Pearson Learning Hub is a digital learning platform that is designed to deliver an engaging, accessible, interactive and personalised learning experience for learners, educators and employers.

On the Learning Hub you will find: •

Learner engagement - Bitesize, easy-to-digest, mobile-optimised content that can be accessed from anywhere, at any time.

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Flexibility - Deliver flexible standalone short courses or complete study programmes, to support different types of training and learning outcomes.

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Measurable impact - Visual dashboards and analytics are available to help track user performance and progress. * User support - Comprehensive user onboarding, support and guidance.

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February 2021

DIVERSITY CALENDAR

Anastassia Parsons

Diversity and Inclusion Advisor

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND WHAT DOES INCLUSION MEAN TO ME? ‘Inclusion is not bringing people into what already exists; it’s making a new space, a better space for everyone’ (Georg Dei).

In this edition, we bring the personal perspective of three of our students: “Inclusion is about feeling wanted and validated, feeling like you belong somewhere and that no one is going to judge you.

Inclusion is about being able to be your authentic self, letting your hair down and being a weirdo; but it is also about being given a chance, making everything that makes you stand out something to sell and pride yourself on.

Seeing signs at College that support the community and seeing teachers wear badges made by the LGBTQIA+ student group make me feel as though I am supported not just by individual teachers, but also by the whole College Group.”

“Inclusion is very important, especially in education. Seeing people of different ethnicities, cultures, gender expression and sexualities can really help someone who is also part of those groups feel more comfortable in themselves and encourage them to express themselves in whatever ways they want, without the fear of hateful judgement. At this point in their lives, many young people may just be coming to terms or finding out their own gender identities and sexual attractions, so it is vital to express the notion of inclusion and diversity in order to make their journey of discovery as safe and welcoming as possible.

The use of gender-neutral pronouns can make people feel included when you do not know their pronouns. This can also make people on the transgender spectrum feel happier within themselves and boost their confidence. Posters for the history of black culture, transgender safe spaces, and LGBT+ history placed around campus can help people feel safe and reassured that they are just as valid as any other student on campus.”

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Amelia Whiteley, Student Council, Bedford Sixth Form “Inclusion means making the minority heard, respected and feel comfortable expressing themselves.

It includes celebration of everyone’s differences and having spaces for those people – a space set aside for prayers and knowing when people are celebrating religious festivals. It includes having zero tolerance for homophobia, islamophobia, racism, sexism, anything that puts down a group of people, and instead having visible representations of different identities and making sure there is support for them e.g. different food options, not making people feel bad about wearing religious attire.

In my secondary school, I felt not enough was being done for Pride month, so I made a hundred badges for people to wear, all sporting different flags from the LGBT community - the badges ran out within days! The people who wore the badges displayed them the whole month, even if they were straight personally, because they wanted to show support for their LGBT classmates and friends; even some teachers wore badges. People in the LGBT+ community said it really made them feel accepted by the school community. As before, Pride Month was only acknowledged in assembly at the beginning of the month to say ‘we’re inclusive!’ while not having any actions to prove it.”

February 2021

LGBT+ History Month LGBT+ history month is a celebration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and non-binary history and rights, and the lives and achievements of the LGBT+ community. The theme for 2021 is ‘Body, Mind and Spirit’.

Sexual orientation and gender identity is only one part of people’s identity and does not define one’s interests or lifestyle. LGBT+ people may have a disability and come from diverse cultural, ethnic and religious backgrounds.

The Bedford College Group is a Stonewall School champion and February offers an opportunity to increase the visibility of LGBT+ people from all backgrounds and their experiences, and raise awareness of the dangers of homophobic, bi-phobic, transphobic and sexist language and bullying.

LGBT+ staff forum The forum is an inclusive group available to all members of staff at The Bedford College Group with an interest in LGBT+ issues, regardless of own sexual orientation or gender identity. The group provides support to LGBT+ people in the College and advice and guidance on LGBT+ issues. This is an open group and staff are invited to join in at any time. Interested? Please contact Ashley Spiers aspiers@bedford.ac.uk or Brydie Melville-Limmage bmelville-limmage@bedford.ac.uk (co-chairs of the group).

Religious Festivals

LGBT+ History Month

1 Feb - IMBOLC//CANDLEMAS Pagan 8 Feb or 15 Feb - PARNIRVANA Buddhist 12 Feb - LUNAR NEW YEAR Chinese/Korean/Vietnamese and

other East Asian cultures 16/17 Feb - SARASVATI PUJA/VASANT PANCHAMI Hindu 17 Feb - 1 Apr - LENT Christian The Inter Faith Network has a more detailed list of festivals and short descriptions.

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February 2021

OFFER

PERKS Barracudas offer holiday clubs for children and young people aged 4 ½ to 14 years old during the school holidays and are able to offer staff at The Bedford College Group this special offer:

Lynsey Travers

HR Manager - Human Resources

• • • •

£10 off the current weekly rate or £5 off the current daily rate PLUS half price extended hours Add this code in the promotions box when booking online: KEYWORKER21 Offer available on bookings made before 15th March 2021

Not to be used in conjunction with other offers.

You can find out more about Barracudas by visiting https://www.barracudas.co.uk/

This month’s offers: Marks and Spencer – Save 7% Sky – Earn £115 Clarks – Save 10% Special Savings on Apple products and many more …

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