Southampton College

Last updated

Southampton College
The Aspire Building.jpg
Address
Southampton College
St Mary Street

Southampton
,
Hampshire
,
SO14 1AR

England
Coordinates 50°54′12″N1°23′42″W / 50.90343°N 1.39512°W / 50.90343; -1.39512
Information
TypeFurther education college
Established1952
Local authoritySouthampton
Department for Education URN 130696 Tables
Gender Coeducational
Age16+
Website https://www.southampton-city.ac.uk

Southampton College, formerly known as Southampton City College, is a general further education college located in Southampton, Hampshire, England. There has been a school of some kind on the site since the 1930s, but the current institution originated with the establishment of a technical college in 1952. Much of the current campus was constructed during a period of redevelopment from 2001 to 2012. In 2023 it merged with Eastleigh and Fareham colleges to form the South Hampshire College Group (SHCG). [1] The "Southampton College" title is today applied to the modern SHCG campus; in a legal sense the original college was closed in 2023. [2]

Contents

The college offers various study programmes for young people and adults as part of the SHCG, including professional, technical and creative courses as well as apprenticeships. It specialises in marine, engineering, early years, hospitality, digital and the creative arts. [3] The Warsash Maritime School was also located on site from 2017 to 2024.

Campuses

History

Several of the buildings on the campus pre-date the college. The oldest is Bencraft House, a Georgian house built in around 1800. It is named after Russell Bencraft, who was born in the house when his father was the medical officer for the workhouse. The Victorian frontage dates back to the old St. Mary workhouse (1866); earlier almshouses existed on the site as far back as the 17th century.

Old Victorian Workhouse frontage City College Victorian Workhouse frontage.jpg
Old Victorian Workhouse frontage

Origins (1930-2000)

The Deanery building was built as a school in the 1930s, and remained part of the campus area until it was demolished in the 2000s. Under the leadership of Frank West, the junior school saw substantial growth. In 1948 the Education Authority took over the old St Mary Institution to provide a more permanent home for the Technical School. Following substantial building works and consolidation of a number of local school sites, it was opened as the Technical College in June 1952. In 1960 work began on the construction of Southampton College of Technology and the Technical College became part of this organisation. In 1969, it became a separate entity and as such adopted the name Southampton Technical College. On 2 April 1995, it changed its name again to Southampton City College. [4]

In 1999, the college received £80,000 in funding for a new theatre on campus. The new venue was used by the performing arts programme. [5] Changes to the UCAS rules in 2000 allowed City College to gain membership, along with other local colleges. While the college did not offer degrees; it did offer at least one HND or HNC, which meant that it was eligible for membership. This meant that City College was thereafter eligible to compete with other colleges and universities nationally for prospective students. [6]

Industrial disputes and redevelopment (2001-2012)

The college faced financial difficulties in the early 2000s, caused by poor student retention. The college warned staff in May 2001 that job cuts may have been necessary. [7] Industrial action took place that September. [8] The financial situation was improving by early 2002, but City College decided not to enact a pay rise that was recommended by the Association of Colleges. It was the only college in the south of England not to adopt the pay rise. [9] Strikes continued intermittently throughout the year, with a change to the tutoring system in December 2002 causing further action. [10] A pay agreement was eventually reached, but failure by the college to implement the second stage of the agreement resulted in further strikes in 2004, conducted during an Ofsted inspection. [11] Further strikes were held over pay in 2005 [12] and again in 2008. [13]

A new building dedicated to trade union training opened in 2001. [14] Beginning in 2002, the campus then underwent extensive redevelopment as part of a 30 million pound programme. The first stage was completed in September 2004, which included the completion of a new reception and information & advice centre, new teaching block with learning centres for IT, Art & Design, Health & Social Care and Childcare. The second phase was completed in the summer of 2005 and involved the development of a new technology building which included facilities for motor vehicle, brickwork and construction trades. A portion of the campus, including the 1930s Deanery building was sold to make way for housing as part of an urban redevelopment programme for the area. [15]

In September 2009 an outdated block was redeveloped to provide learning facilities for 3D creative design, engineering, professional construction and electrical installation. This block also housed learning centres and a lecture theatre. In September 2010, City College opened two new blocks, forming the completion phase of the campus redevelopment project. 'The hub' included a new theatre, TV and radio studios, a business training suite, a learning centre, a theatre bar and a fitness suite. The adjoining Aspire building housed new facilities for catering, hair and beauty, together with seminar rooms and learning centres. These work-based training facilities were open to the public as the "Aspire" restaurant and "Kudos" Hair and Beauty Salons. [16]

In 2012 City College Southampton was shortlisted for a Times Educational Supplement (TES) FE award in elearning [17] for the work done in Citybit, the VLE.

Financial troubles and merger (2012-2023)

City College was left in serious financial trouble after the redevelopment concluded, with 6 million pounds of debt from a loan taken in 2009. The previous principal Lindsey Noble resigned in 2013, replaced by Sarah Stannard. [18] The college leased the Austen building to the Warsash Maritime School; the move required the removal of the college's library and photography studios. [19] Warsash did not remain on the site for the full ten year lease, instead relocating again to Solent University's East Park Terrace in 2024. [20]

In an attempt to manage the financial problem, City College then explored mergers with a number of other education providers in the area. A merger attempt with Solent University failed in 2017, and an attempt at merging with Eastleigh College failed in 2019 after Eastleigh withdrew from the agreement. The financial situation of the college continued to worsen throughout the 2010s; from 2018 the college was reliant on bailout funding. The failure of the second merger attempt left the college at risk of insolvency due to breach of a loan covenant. [21] In 2022 an investigation from the Further Education commissioner indicated that without intervention the college would collapse; the report led to the resignation of the principal Sarah Stannard. [22] The college ultimately received 8 million pounds of emergency funding, and merged with Eastleigh and Fareham colleges to form the South Hampshire College Group (SHCG) in 2023. [23] [24]

As part of the South Hampshire College Group (2023- present)

Following the merger, Southampton City College was renamed to Southampton College, and the old southampton-city website now simply redirects to the SHCG site. [25] The campus was the main beneficiary of a 12 million pound investment project in 2024, which will see the development of new facilities and improvements to motor and maritime resources. [26]

Notable alumni

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References

  1. ↑ "College merger announcement". www.southampton-city.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
  2. ↑ https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/Establishments/Establishment/Details/130696.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. ↑ "About Us". www.southampton-city.ac.uk. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  4. ↑ Southampton City College (1999) Memories of Southampton. UK: True North.
  5. ↑ "Curtain rises on theatre project". Daily Echo. 10 August 1999. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  6. ↑ "Colleges win recruitment right". Daily Echo. 19 February 2000.
  7. ↑ "COLLEGE JOBS ON THE LINE". Daily Echo. 8 May 2001. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  8. ↑ "Lecturers plan new term strikes". Daily Echo. 25 June 2001. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  9. ↑ "College staff go on strike". Daily Echo. 8 January 2002. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  10. ↑ "Staff to take action over tutoring system". Daily Echo. 9 December 2002. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  11. ↑ "Lecturers strike during college inspection". Daily Echo. 9 December 2004. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  12. ↑ "Lecturers vote to walk out over pay". Daily Echo. 23 May 2005. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  13. ↑ "Schools braced for teachers' walkout - updated". Daily Echo. 23 April 2008. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  14. ↑ "Influx expected at training centre". Daily Echo. 7 February 2001. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  15. ↑ "Leadbitters passes £30m college test". Daily Echo. 14 December 2007. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  16. ↑ https://www.southampton-city.ac.uk/facilities/ Southampton City College Facilities
  17. ↑ Celebrating dedication to excellence in FE, FE news | Published in TES magazine on 7 September 2012 | By: Joseph Lee
  18. ↑ "Farewell to Southampton City College principal Lindsey Noble". Daily Echo. 20 June 2013. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  19. ↑ "WARSASH MARITIME ACADEMY CADET TRAINING RELOCATION PROJECT – UPDATE 10 MAY 2017" (PDF).
  20. ↑ "Warsash Maritime School move from St Mary's to East Park Terrace". www.solent.ac.uk.
  21. ↑ "City College Southampton backed by bank after merger fails". feweek.co.uk. 8 March 2019. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  22. ↑ "'Stuck in limbo': City college's plea as damming report says it has no money and growing debts". Daily Echo. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  23. ↑ "City College makes 'significant progress' after 'improvements required' rating". Daily Echo. 3 April 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  24. ↑ "'It's an exciting opportunity': New chief executive on City College merger". Daily Echo. 1 August 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  25. ↑ "Southampton College – Southampton College".
  26. ↑ "Principal vows to give 'best-in-class' facilities in £12 college investment". 19 July 2024.
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