College group in Warwickshire prepares to re-open for new academic year

Steps are being taken to ensure colleges which are part of a leading group in Warwickshire are safe to re-open in the new academic year.

WCG (formerly Warwickshire College Group) will be re-opening six of its colleges in September and welcoming students back through the doors, in many cases for the first time in nearly six months.

Learners will be returning to Leamington Spa College, Rugby College, Warwick Trident College, Moreton Morrell College, Evesham College and Pershore College.

Malvern Hills College, which is also part of WCG, will remain closed for the time being to protect and keep students safe – with the average age of a student there being 64 years.

The college group has reviewed the layout of teaching spaces and introduced measures to ensure social distancing guidelines are adhered to.

Teaching spaces will be cleaned before the start of each day, hand-sanitiser will be provided at entrances and all staff will wear visors during student-facing activities.

While social gathering spaces will be closed, on-site catering will be in place with students directed to eat in specified classrooms.

There will be some changes to the delivery of courses, with timetables altered to minimise different groups of students mixing. International students will be taught online until January 2021.

Business support staff will continue to work from home where possible to reduce the numbers of people at each college.

Face-to-face learning was suspended at college sites on March 23 but Leamington, Moreton Morrell and Pershore College have been partially open for those classed as vulnerable or children of key learners.

Students completing apprenticeships have been in college to complete end-point- assessments, whilst all other full-time learners have been supported with online learning.

All students and staff have been contacted to outline the newly-introduced measures and the steps they need to take.

Angela Joyce, CEO of WCG, said: “We have been working on a Covid-19 safe plan for September following Government guidance to return to college in the autumn.

“The health of our students and staff remains our top priority and the measures being implemented will make our college spaces safe to study and work.

“The decision has been taken for Malvern Hills College to remain closed to protect students and staff, and due to the demographic of the college we believe this to be a necessary measure at this time.

“We have planned a series of scenarios if future localised lockdowns affect staff and students and should this occur we will communicate directly to those affected.

“Over the course of the time away from face-to-face learning our staff have gone above and beyond to ensure our learners received the support they needed.

“We would like to thank all of our staff and students for their support and understanding in what has been an unprecedented situation for education providers across the country.

“Our colleges look forward to welcoming back new and existing students in September and believe the steps being taken at each college will ensure people feel safe on their return.”