Page 169 - Minutes of meeting

The Education Challenge

Spotlight on… Furness College

Barrow is home to Furness College, a further education college, which is member of the
Chartered Institution for Further Education. Following its merger with the Barrow Sixth Form
College in 2016, it is the largest college in Cumbria. The College was rated GOOD by Ofsted in
March 2019 and has an Excellent Quality Assurance rating for Higher Education.

The Rating Lane Campus has 550 students studying A Levels across 30 subjects, mainly at
Level 3. The Channelside Campus was rebuilt in 2013 and delivers a broad range of
professional and technical qualifications to 5,000 students from entry level up to Level 7.

Key Learner Facts:
The College has a specialism in engineering and advanced manufacturing and is recognised
as a Centre of Vocational Excellence, holding a STEM specialist accreditation. A purpose ▪ 1,100 apprentices including a large
proportion employed by BAE Systems
build £4.6m Advanced Manufacturing Training Facility opened in 2016 in response to the ▪ 500 students studying higher education
higher level skill requirements from major projects in the town, and was used by 600 learners in programmes
2018-19. ▪ 900 students studying 16-18 study
programmes from L1-L3
▪ 800 adult learners participating in a range of
The College has a longstanding relationship with BAE Systems Maritime for the delivery technical and professional qualifications
of education and training, and is the largest single subcontractor in the UK for apprenticeship

provision. The college and BAE Systems work extensively on the joint design of learning and
training programmes, and this collaboration is nationally recognised. Other industry partners
include Spirit Energy, Orsted, GSK, Kimberly Clark, and Sellafield Ltd.

The College is accredited by three Universities (Lancaster, UCLAN and Cumbria) to deliver
qualifications from Level 4 up to Level 7, in addition to Higher National Qualifications offered
through Pearson. In 2018-19, the college delivered 480 degree qualifications. The HE
programme includes engineering, health, social work and project management.

Looking ahead, the College is exploring the opportunity presented by the Wave 2 Institute of
Technology with a focus on digital supporting a range of sectors.
Source: Furness College