CALAT – the council-run Croydon Adult Learning and Training service – has retained its “Good” rating, scoring “Good” in all six categories after an Ofsted inspection found that the service has developed its courses to help a range of community members improve their skills.
CALAT provides adult, community learning, vocational and employability courses, and also delivers courses for learners with special educational needs and disabilities. It places a particular emphasis on supporting people who have not been in education and work for some time.
At the time of the inspectors’ visit, more than 1,200 of CALAT’s students were studying English as a second language.
Oftsed’s inspection report said: “Learners and apprentices develop good knowledge, skills and behaviours.
“Staff provide good advice and guidance on future opportunities available to learners and apprentices and most apprentices and learners progress onto positive destinations, including work and further learning.”
The inspectors also noted: “Staff provide a wide range of activities to help learners widen their interests and explore their talents. For example, they organise fundraising and sports events, arrange for guest speakers to talk about topics such as saving energy, and run events on themes such as Black History Month.
“They also promote a community kitchen where learners on independent living courses serve customers and offer menu choices.
“However, too many learners do not know about these events and managers do not routinely check on how well learners participate.”
CALAT has been banned by council officials from advertising its activities on Inside Croydon.
The service was commended for meeting all the requirements from the previous Ofsted report in October 2016.
Find out more information on Croydon’s adult learning services on the CALAT website
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