Minutes of the Board - 31 March 2025

PART I – OPEN ITEMS

J. Hoyland in the Chair.

04/25.  Declarations of Interest

1. The Vice Principal - Quality, Apprenticeships & Information, Vice Principal - Technical & Vocational Education, Vice Principal - Students and Vice Principal - People all declared an interest in Minute Number 22/25. They left the meeting before consideration of the item. The Vice Principal – People returned to the meeting for consideration of Minute Numbers 23 & 24/25.
2. The Executive Director of Finance declared an interest in Minute Numbers 23 & 24/25. He left the meeting before consideration of the item.
3. The Clerk to the Board declared an interest in Numbers 23 & 24/25. She left the meeting before consideration of the relevant item.
4. The Principal/CEO declared an interest in Numbers 23 & 24/25. He left the meeting before consideration of the relevant item.

05/25.  Minutes of Previous Board Meetings (Appendices, Agenda Items 3.1 & 3.2)

The Minutes of the meetings held on 09 December 2024 and 30 January 2025, were approved as a correct record.

06/25.  Matters Arising

None.

07/25   Chair’s Announcements

The Chair made the following announcements:

1. Chair’s Action – none
2. Link Governor Visit Reports. All Link Governors who had completed visits this Term, were encouraged to submit their reports to the Clerk. The Board Chair also encouraged those who had yet to undertake a visit to do so in the early summer term.  In her capacity as Safeguarding Link, the Board Chair advised that, due to preparations for Ofsted, in place of a Link visit, she had attended all the college’s Safeguarding Committee meetings and reviewed key documents and had been assured.  She would meet with the Safeguarding & Wellbeing Team Leader in the summer term.
3. Governor Stakeholder Activities –
   1. Apprenticeship Awards. Those governors who had attended the event commented that through meeting with employers and students, they were assured as to the breadth and quality of the college’s apprenticeship provision, the positive relationship the college had with employers and how the college had worked to secure high-quality apprentices.
   2. Attendance at Student Union Executive meetings. Governors had attended recent meetings and had taken the opportunity to advocate the importance of the student governor in anticipation of the vacancy to the role from July 2025. The Clerk reported that, as a result of this, several students had already expressed an interest in seeking nomination to the role and an election would shortly be held.
4. English & maths Learning Walk. The Walk would now take place on Thursday, 03 April 2025, having been postponed due to the recent Ofsted Inspection.

Action: Learning Walk 2024/25 Programme Summer Term date to be agreed and circulated to all governors

1. The Development and Strategy Day would be held on Friday, 11 April 2025.
2. The HE Student Governor would be leaving the Board at the end of April 2025. The Board thanked him for his input and support and wished him well going forward.

Action:  Clerk conduct exit procedure and commence Notice of Vacancy procedure

08/25.  Appointment of Board Vice Chair Designate

Further to Board Min. No. 02/25, in accordance with the Board’s succession planning procedures, the Board considered the appointment of a Board Vice Chair Designate. 

One valid nomination had been received (candidate statement previously circulated) from M. Thompson, having been proposed by J. Hoyland and seconded by C. Sharp.

Having considered the candidate statement and there being no other nominations, it was unanimously agreed that M. Thompson be appointed Board Vice Chair Designate with effect from 31 March 2025.

Action:  Clerk to amend Board documentation and support Board Vice Chair Designate in Induction

09/25.  Strategic Discussion – OFSTED Inspection Update

The P/CEO advised that the draft Inspection Report had been received for comment.  Whilst the details of the Report remined confidential, the P/CEO gave a short presentation on the provisional comments, including:

• The provisional grades had aligned with the college’s self-assessment report grades, providing assurance on the robustness of the college’s internal quality assurance systems.
• Inspectors’ feedback –
  • Clear evidence of alignment in values and purpose across the college.
  • Students’ exceptional behaviour during the Inspection period.
  • Impressed with the high level of engagement in the student, parent, stakeholder and staff surveys and the quality of the feedback through the OFSTED Inspection survey.
  • The strength of the college’s leadership, including the skilled and engaged Board.
  • The clear evidence of the ‘student centred’ culture throughout the college.

The SLT shared their experiences and perceptions of the Inspection, including –

• The impact of the college’s thorough preparation. Staff felt empowered and confident going into the Inspection due to the supportive approach taken by the college to prepare for the Inspection and the work done across the college to embed its values throughout.
• The innovative use of technology that enabled inspectors to virtually ‘attend’ lessons delivered in other parts of the country as part of the college’s adult provision.
• Staff were excited to implement further improvements.

Governors discussed the strategic implications of the provisional grades, which would be developed further at the Strategy & Development Day.

10/25.  Principal/CEO’s Report (Confidential Appendix – Agenda item 08)

The P/CEO presented his report (previously circulated).

Having delivered the report, in response to questions, the P/CEO made the following additional observations –

• Funding and Finance –
  • The college was awaiting final funding details from the Department of Education (DfE), despite some information being released.
  • 16-18 funding had increased, to consolidate this year’s pay award and contribute to next year’s. Although the funding allocated was insufficient to cover these additional costs, the college’s growth in student numbers meant that a robust budget could be set for 2025/26. However, uncertainty remained regarding funding for pay awards from April to July 2025 and in-year student growth.
  • Adult funding had been cut by 6% nationally. In response to a question, the P/CEO confirmed that the impact on the college was manageable.
• Pay Award and Industrial Action -
  • The government had agreed to provide designated sixth forms with additional funding as part of the settlement of the judicial review taken out by the Sixth Form College Association (SFCA). This additional funding enabled the SFCA to make an improved offer to the teaching unions of 3.5% from September 2024, rising to 5.5% from 1 April 2025. However, this offer remained below the 5.5% award offered to schoolteachers and teachers in 16 – 19 academies from 1 September 2024.  The Support staff pay offer had been accepted by the unions; whilst the NEU teaching union had accepted the offer, the NASUWT had not and had a mandate for strike action, although not at the college.
• Full-time Applications for 2024 -
  • Attendance at the college’s guidance events had grown again this year.
  • Applications had increased compared to previous years, with variations across different school types. In response to a question the P/CEO explained that various factors external to the college that appeared to have influenced changes in application numbers.
  • Applications from the college’s larger year 1 cohort indicated more progressions in 2025/26.
• Official Opening of the Martin Thorpe Learning Centre -
  • The new Learning Resource Centre at Welsh Bridge was officially opened, named after the Shrewsbury Sixth Form College's first principal and attended by members of his family, governors, staff and students.
• Oxbridge Success -
  • A significant number of students had received offers from Oxford and Cambridge, highlighting the impact of the college's Scholars Programme.
• GCSE Resit Results -
  • Record-breaking results were achieved in GCSE resit exams, with notable improvements in mathematics.
• Retention, Attendance, and Progress Monitoring -
  • Retention rates were slightly below target but remained high.
  • Attendance remained a concern, reflecting the national picture and across Shrewsbury secondary schools. The college would continue to implement the variety of support and interventions in place to secure attendance.
  • Progress grades indicated positive student performance, with optimism for improved value-added outcomes.

• College Branding Update

Further to a strategic discussion held at Board on 10 October 2024, on the creative design options for the college rebrand project (Board Min. No. 53/24 refers), the D – C, A & M had provided a verbal and visual presentation on the outcome of the consultation on the five design options selected to the Finance & Business Operations Committee (F&BO Min No 07/25 refers).

The final design selected to progress featured a combination of one of the design concepts using a colour scheme from another concept.  One of the biggest considerations in selecting the design was that it could be used in a variety of different environments and on mobile devices.

The marketing agency engaged to assist the college with developing the creative aspects of the rebrand project was finalising the brand guidelines.  Once finalised, the college would continue with preparations in anticipation of the rebrand launch in September 2025, including redesign of the website, managing lead-in times and working up proposals regarding the design of the college’s internal spaces.  A question was raised as to whether this should be done at the same time as the Ofsted announcement.  It was suggested by a governor that it was not the norm as this would dilute the impact of both issues and would be better issued separately. The P/CEO undertook to discuss this with the Director – Communications, Admissions & Marketing.

• Department for Education (DfE) Performance Tables -

The P/CEO presented information on the college’s position in the recently published DfE performance tables on A Level progress and Applied General progress.  The college had performed well nationally compared to other colleges(16^th), across the West Midlands compared to other colleges(2^nd) and across Shropshire & Telford compared to all providers, including independent schools (6^th)

11/25.  Annual Strategic Conversation (Confidential Appendix, Agenda item 9)

The Board reviewed a report (previously circulated) summarising the main points raised in the recent Annual Strategic Conversation held between the college leadership and Department for Education (DfE) representatives.  The P/CEO explained that the meeting followed the successful Ofsted inspection which set a positive tone.  Therefore, the DfE expressed the purpose of the meeting was for the DfE to understand how it could support the college and learn from its strengths.

The key discussion areas included:

• T Level Qualifications - discussions focused on the benefits and challenges of T Levels, including work placements and suitability for all students.
• College Growth and Space - the college's growth and resulting space challenges were a central topic, with recognition of the need for capital investment.
• DfE Data Dashboard Pilot - the college provided feedback on the pilot dashboard, highlighting concerns about data aggregation and relevance.
• College Strengths- the DfE identified the college's staff recruitment and retention, T Level placement management, and timetabling, resource allocation, management of student tragedies and cultural change.
• The DfE acknowledged the college as a prime candidate for capital investment in the region and was advised to lobby the SFCA for capital funding for designated sixth form colleges.
• The possibility of visits from the Skills Minister and Further Education Commissioner was raised.

In discussing the strategic considerations arising from the report, the Board acknowledged the need to raise capital funding issues for sixth form colleges with the SFCA at the Development and Strategy Day.

12/25.  Strategic Development Plan – Year 4 Implementation Report (Appendix – Agenda item 10)

The Board reviewed the Strategic Plan Operational Implementation Plan: Year 4 (2024 – 2025) (previously circulated), to seek assurance that the planned actions would deliver the expected impacts.

• Senior leadership considered that the college had sufficient resources and capacity to deliver the actions, notwithstanding that the college had not been able to attract all the capital required to invest in the estate.
• The biggest strategic challenges remained securing sufficient teaching and enrichment space.

13/25. Summary of Minutes and Recommendations from Committees (Appendices – Agenda Items 11.1 – 11.3)

Chairs of the committees presented the following meetings, drawing the Board’s attention to items of particular interest and presenting recommendations.

Search & Governance Committee – 05 March 2025 (Appendix – Agenda Item 11.1) (Summary Report previously circulated)

The Committee Chair presented the following recommendation –

14/25.  Governance Assessment – External Review of Governance (ERG)

The Final Report, concluding the External Review of Governance of the college’s Board and governing arrangements was discussed at Board on 15 July 2024.  During facilitated group work, the Board and SLT had prioritised the recommendations identified as being the most supportive.

Having considered the revised Draft Action Plan (previously circulated), the Committee had agreed that it both encapsulated into 3 clear recommendations, the most helpful recommendations in the original ERG Report and reflected the recent changes at Board level.

Resolved:  The External Review of Governance Precis and Action Plan be approved for publication on the college’s website.

TO ACTION:  Clerk to advise ERG partner and publish on college’s website.

Audit Committee – 12 March 2026 ((Appendices – Agenda Item 11.2) (Summary Report previously circulated))

The Committee Chair gave a verbal update and presented recommendations.

15/25.  Strategic Risk Register (Appendix – Agenda Item 11.2)

The Board reviewed the 2024– 2025 Risk Register and Board Assurance Framework (previously circulated).

The EDoF had explained the risks identified and mitigating actions being undertaken.  Whilst no risks were rated ‘red’, the strategic risk (Planned defunding of AGQs) remained ‘high amber’ as the SLT considered this to be the most significant risk at this point. 

The Committee had concluded that the risks have been appropriately identified and the management actions reported were effectively mitigating these risks.

The Board concluded that the risks had been appropriately identified and the management actions reported were effectively mitigating these risks.  In addition, each committee would continue to review risks within its remit at each meeting during 2024/25 and the Strategic Risk Register would be reviewed at every Board meeting.

Resolved: That the Risk Register – March 2025 Update, be approved.

16/25. Draft Policies (Appendices, Agenda Item 11.2)

The Committee had reviewed the draft Treasury Management Policy and the draft Whistleblowing Policy (previously circulated).  An amendment to the Treasury Management Policy was noted, reflecting the Education & Skills Funding Agency's transition to the Department for Education.

Resolved: That the Treasury Management Policy and the Whistleblowing Policy be approved.

TO ACTION:  Policies to be placed on InfoPoint.

Quality, Standards & Curriculum Committee – 24 March 2024 (Appendix – Agenda Item 11.3) (Summary Report previously circulated)

            The Committee Chair presented the following recommendation –

17/25.  Sub-Contracting Annual Report

The Report had been produced to facilitate scrutiny of the sub-contracting function and to help meet the requirements of the Education & Skills Funding Agency (ESFA)’s Subcontracting Standard.

Resolved:  That the Sub-Contracting Annual Report be approved.

ACTION: Report to be submitted to DfE.

18/25.  Risk (Appendix, Agenda Item 12)

To support informed discussion, any changes in risk movement were highlighted in risk reports the committees received. 

Having been advised of this, the Board reviewed those risks specific to the Board and agreed that the risks have been appropriately identified and the management actions reported were effectively mitigating these risks. 

19/25.  Date of Next Meeting

The next scheduled meeting, arranged to approve the annual Accountability Agreement, would be postponed until June 2025, and held on Teams.

20/25.  Governance Pack  

Precis of Minutes of Committee Meetings with no Recommendations for the Board  

The Board Chair explained that, as part of the actions arising from the recommendations in the recent ERG Report, going forward, committee chairs would present to Board a precis of the meetings, to ensure that all governors were aware of the key issues discussed at each committee whilst ensuring that the majority of time spent in Board meetings was reserved for strategic discussions.

Committee Chairs presented a precis of the following –

1. Quality, Standards & Curriculum Committee – 27 January 2025

The Committee focused on

1. OFSTED Preparation: This included reviewing the Self-Assessment Report (SAR) and the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP).
2. Professional Practice Reviews, and the review of the quality enhancement plan.
3. Student Outcomes:
4. Safeguarding.

Overall, the Committee focussed on ensuring the college’s readiness for inspection, while also maintaining and improving the overall quality of education and student welfare.

2. Finance & Business Operations Committee – 04 February 2025

The Committee focused on reviewing the college's progress with respect to –

1. Financial Performance
2. Period 5 Management Accounts:
3. Estates Development
4. Health & Safety
5. College Rebranding:

Overall, the Committee had focussed on the financial stability, operational efficiency and strategic development of the college.

21/25.  Draft Policies (Appendices, Governance Pack)

The Board approved the following draft documents (previously circulated) –

• Single Equality Scheme
• Financial Regulations

Staff and Student Governors and all members of SLT, except for the P/CEO and EDoF, left the meeting at this point.

22/25.  P/CEO Confidential Briefing

The P/CEO provided a confidential verbal briefing to the Board, details set out in a Confidential Minute.

The VP – P returned to the meeting at this point.

The Principal/CEO, EDoF and Clerk to the Board left the meeting at this point.

In accordance with Instrument 12, a Board member was appointed to act as Clerk to the Committee during their absence.

23/25. Recommendations – Remuneration Committee – 31 March 2025 (Confidential Verbal Report)

The Chair of the Committee provided a confidential verbal update, details set out in a Confidential Minute.

24/25.  Senior Post Holder Remuneration

Resolved:  That the recommendations set out in a Confidential Minute, be agreed.

The meeting concluded at 7.40 p.m.