NCG has retained an Overall Effectiveness rating of ‘Good’ from Ofsted following a full inspection of our colleges in November 2024. 

A large team of 31 inspectors met with students, staff, college leaders, employers, and community partners during the extensive enhanced inspection visit, where they assessed the performance and quality of provision across all seven colleges in Carlisle, Kidderminster, Lewisham, Newcastle, Southwark and West Lancashire. 

NCG exists to provide learners with education and training that will help them to succeed in their future career, developing a future workforce that is fit for purpose and will bring value to the local communities and economies that we serve. We are pleased that our Overall Effectiveness continues to reflect the consistent good standard of education delivered by colleagues and our valued partners across our colleges that will help us achieve our mission of enabling social mobility and economic prosperity. 

We have also made significant progress in many areas, most notably our apprenticeships provision. The inspection team stated that “leaders and managers have taken substantial steps to improve apprenticeship provision across the group. Apprenticeships are now of good quality and are aligned closely to local and regional priorities.” 

Under Ofsted’s new inspection framework NCG was also assessed for the first time on how well we meet local, regional and national skills needs, including how we work in partnership with stakeholders. The report highlights how we engage effectively with a wide range of stakeholders across all the areas we serve, how we consider regional priorities when planning curriculum within colleges, and how in most curriculum areas, stakeholders are involved in the design, implementation and delivery of the curriculum. 

Other positives highlighted in the report include: 

  • Learners and apprentices make good progress in the development of new knowledge, skills and behaviours.
  • Learners and apprentices enjoy being part of the diverse and inclusive college communities at each of the college sites. They value studying in college environments where there are high levels of mutual respect and where learners and staff are approachable and openly support and care for each other.  
  • Learners and apprentices feel safe and know how to keep themselves and others safe at their colleges, at work and during online training. 
  • Most learners benefit from valuable experience of the workplace and the world of work.
  • Most learners progress to positive and sustained destinations on completion of their programmes such as further study or employment.

Liz Bromley, CEO of NCG commented: “This is a positive result that reflects the hard work and dedication of colleagues and partners across the country to deliver high-quality education and opportunities that can transform lives. 

“I am very pleased that the report highlights the continuous improvements we have made as a Group since our last Ofsted inspection, particularly in our apprenticeships provision and in the work we have done to ensure we meet local and regional skills needs by putting employers and stakeholders at the centre of our curriculum development. 

“As an ambitious organisation, we will continue to strive for outstanding education for the benefit of our learners and the communities we serve, which are at the heart of our organisation.” 
 
Read the NCG Ofsted Report in full here.