LEARNER-CENTRED PROCESS REVIEW

Chris Lang, Director of Finance and Resources

26th April 2012

PURPOSE FOR THIS SESSION:

Chris Lang, Director of Finance & Resources, Cambridge Regional College will share first- hand experience of process review.

Trigger Points/Comments

“Is your organisation historically good at making process improvements?”

“Organisations are full of failure.”

• 80% of change projects fail to deliver; and,• 80% of failures are caused by people and

leadership issues.(Pareto Principle - "vital few and trivial many".)

College Values

LEARNER INVOLVEMENT STRATEGYBy September 2007, all organisations in receipt of LSC funding were expected to have a “Learner Involvement Strategy”, which outlined the ways in which colleges intended to enhance learner input into the programmes and services designed to benefit them. The four key aims of our strategy are:• To ensure that teaching and learning is responsive to the

needs of individuals• To strengthen learner participation and representation• To create a culture of learner involvement• To monitor and review the impact of learner involvement

strategies and practices, and continuously update and enhance our practice.

ADDITIONALITIES

• From 2009/10 loading FT programmes with additionalities not a priority;

• Academies advised to remove many/most;• Consulted through Course Reps and Academy

Boards on which ones students valued and why;• Managers took decisions heavily influenced by

this;• Kept some would have got rid of and offered

others as full-cost options.

ENGLISH AND MATHS PROVISION

Poor learner experience in first term 2010/11: • Where screening before learners arrived so they where placed in groups from first

week e.g. L2 FS Maths – lots of groups and timetable change sin first half term; and,• Where not automatically offering all learners with GCSE English or Maths D Grades

chances to seek to improve that.

Following consultation with students this was changed significantly for 2011/12 so that:• Larger generic groups from start of term, whilst screening, assessment and dialogue

with learners occurs – concluding with Learner Review Days at end of first half term so that all learners are put on most appropriate programmes for 2nd half term;

• English and Maths resit groups set up and timetabled so that available to all learners with D grades.

EARLY ENROLMENT

In 2010/11 Enrolment students in two subject areas (Arts and Sports and Public Services) , in particular , felt disadvantaged by the main enrolment process, because they had trips at the end of the first week, and students where not allowed to enrol unless they had paid the fees for these trips.

In 2011/12 Early (week before term) special Enrolment sessions where set up for full-time students in these two academies. They where all able to pay fees, set up payment plans, submit LSF applications and therefore be enrolled and embark on their trips with no problems.

SMOKING POLICY

• Used the learner routes to get lots of views;• SMT decided on no-smoking site apart few

specific shelters at the perimeter;• However, got feedback live that was not

working;• This time went out and did a student survey

on a few proposals;• Agreed to a shelter by C Block.

OTHER LEARNER EXAMPLES

• Cash machine on site and free of charge;• Branded Costa coffee outlet and prices;• College closure process and Edutext;• Register process; and,• Environmental management and recycling.

NON-LEARNER EXAMPLES

• Finance System Project– Use of flowcharts– Use of user groups

• Government Procurement Cards– Efficient and streamlined process

• Staff recruitment process– Use of BIT consultant and processes

CONCLUSIONS

• All about efficiency and effectiveness;• Customer views on these very informative;• Need to use variety of techniques and tools;• Knowledge of which to use and experience of

them very important; and,• Internal capacity to review process has to be

built.» THE END