South Devon UTC | |
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Address | |
Kingsteignton Road , , TQ12 2QA [1] | |
Coordinates | 50°32′02″N3°36′29″W / 50.534°N 3.608°W |
Information | |
Type | University Technical College |
Established | 2015 |
Founder | Lord Baker and Lord Dearing |
Local authority | Devon |
Department for Education URN | 141749 Tables |
Ofsted | Reports |
Co-chairs of Governors | James Trout David Goldsmith [2] |
Principal | Claire Plumb |
Gender | Mixed |
Age | 14to 19 [1] |
Enrolment | 206 |
Capacity | 600 [1] |
Website | http://southdevonutc.org.uk/ |
Background
University Technical Colleges (UTCs) were first proposed by Lord Kenneth Baker, a former British Conservative politician and Secretary of State for Education, as part of a national effort to enhance technical education in the United Kingdom. The aim was to bridge the gap between academic learning and the practical skills required by industry. UTCs emphasize a blend of rigorous academic study and vocational training, fostering links with local industries and universities to create a workplace-like environment rather than a traditional school atmosphere.
Sir Andrew Dearing, best known for his 1997 Dearing Review of Higher Education, which helped reform the UK’s higher education system, also played a significant role in advocating for reforms in technical and vocational education. His work, which focused on aligning education with the needs of the economy, resonated with the goals of the UTC initiative.
In 2010, Lord Kenneth Baker and Sir Andrew Dearing founded the Baker Dearing Educational Trust. The Trust's primary mission is to support the establishment and growth of UTCs across the UK. It provides resources, industry connections, and guidance to ensure that UTCs thrive, advocating for a model of education that combines academic learning with hands-on vocational experience. By focusing on the alignment of education with industry needs, the Trust plays a vital role in promoting high-quality, industry-focused education, preparing students for careers in essential sectors such as engineering, technology, and manufacturing.
South Devon UTC is a mixed University Technical College (UTC) located in Newton Abbot, Devon, England. It opened in 2015 and caters for students aged 14–19 years. [1] It is located on a former motor dealer site, which was vacated in 2012. [3]
Vocational education is education that prepares people for a skilled craft. Vocational education can also be seen as that type of education given to an individual to prepare that individual to be gainfully employed or self employed with requisite skill. Vocational education is known by a variety of names, depending on the country concerned, including career and technical education, or acronyms such as TVET and TAFE. TVE refers to all forms and levels of education which provide knowledge and skills related to occupations in various sectors of economic and social life through formal, non-formal and informal learning methods in both school-based and work-based learning contexts. To achieve its aims and purposes, TVE focuses on the learning and mastery of specialized techniques and the scientific principles underlying those techniques, as well as general knowledge, skills and values.
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Kenneth Wilfred Baker, Baron Baker of Dorking is a British politician, Conservative Member of Parliament from 1968 to 1997, and a cabinet minister, including holding the offices of Home Secretary, Education Secretary and Conservative Party Chairman. He is a life member of the Tory Reform Group.
Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its population was 24,029 in 2011, and was estimated at 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in the Victorian era as the home of the South Devon Railway locomotive works. This later became a major steam engine shed, retained to service British Railways diesel locomotives until 1981. It now houses the Brunel industrial estate. The town has a race course nearby, the most westerly in England, and a country park, Decoy. It is twinned with Besigheim in Germany and Ay in France.
Ronald Ernest Dearing, Baron Dearing, was a senior civil servant before becoming chairman and chief executive of the Post Office Ltd.
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A university technical college (UTC) is a type of secondary school in England that is sponsored by a university and has close ties to local business and industry.
Specialist schools in the United Kingdom are schools with an emphasis or focus in a specific specialised subject area, which is called a specialism, or alternatively in the case of some special schools in England, in a specific area of special educational need. They intend to act as centres of excellence in their specialism and, in some circumstances, may select pupils for their aptitude in it. Though they focus on their specialism, specialist schools still teach the full curriculum. Therefore, as opposed to being a significant move away from it, the specialism is viewed as enriching the original curricular offer of the school.
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The Baker Dearing Educational Trust is a UK-based registered charity established to support, advocate and develop university technical colleges (UTCs) in England. An official partnership with the Department for Education has been made for this purpose. All schools with UTC status must have a licence agreement with the BDT as it is the creator and owner of the UTC model, trademarks and brand. This agreement is fulfilled via a license fee.
Specialist schools, also known as specialised schools or specialized schools, are schools which specialise in a certain area or field of curriculum. In some countries, for example New Zealand, the term is used exclusively for schools specialising in special needs education, which are typically known as special schools. Specialist schools often have admission criteria making them selective schools as well.