Colleges West Midlands is a group of 45 colleges in the West Midlands region that provide education and training to over 300,000 individuals each year, including 200,000 adults and 100,000 16-18 year olds. The colleges play a vital role in the region by providing individuals and businesses with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed. They offer a variety of courses, qualifications, and customized training programs to meet business and individual needs.

1. developing skills for business success

2. Colleges West Midlands
– Who we are
Colleges West Midlands are forty-five colleges of
further education located in the West Midlands region.
Together, we provide education and training for over
300,000 individuals each year including more than 200,000
adults and 100,000 16 to 18 year olds who chose to study
at college after completing their compulsory school
education.
Our Colleges have a rapidly growing international
reputation with more than 3,000 of our students coming
from outside the UK and over half of those coming from
outside the European Union.
We play a vital role in creating an environment in which
business can thrive by educating and training young
people and adults in the knowledge and skills which
employers say are essential to their success.
What unites our Colleges is a desire to ensure the
greatest return from the investment that individuals
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and employers make in improving their skills, knowledge
and expertise. Each of the individual Colleges who form
Colleges West Midlands is committed to
providing high quality education and training.
We represent a huge resource for individuals
and businesses to draw on to unlock their
potential and get the skills and knowledge
they need to succeed.
Graham Morley, Chief Executive of South Staffordshire
College and Chair of AoC West Midlands
Higher skills bring higher productivity. But
they also allow businesses to become more
efficient and more innovative.
John Hayes MP, Minister of State for Further Education,
Skills and Lifelong Learning
Business is on the mend - and skills is a key
driver. ... Employers are looking to increase
their investment in training and development,
recognising the importance of skills to
d
unlocking business opportunities.
John Cridland, CBI Director-General, CBI Skills Survey 2011

3. How we can help
Business needs are our starting point. Colleges will work closely
with you to understand how a training and workforce development
programme fits in with your business plan. We can provide individually
designed training programmes lasting from one day to longer
programmes of vocational learning which lead to recognised
qualifications and are often delivered as part of an Apprenticeship.
Most training programmes can be delivered in the workplace at times
which suit you and your employees. And we use the latest learning
technology to ensure that your employees benefit from the most
effective approaches to teaching and learning.
Colleges offer courses and programmes at many levels from
post-graduate qualifications and degrees to courses to improve levels
of literacy and numeracy. We run courses which give professional
qualifications and certification as well as courses in leadership,
management and business improvement.
Business benefits
The businesses we work with report that investing in skills development leads to significant benefits including:
• Greater ability to compete and innovate
– through a more knowledgeable and skilled workforce
• Better staff retention and reduced recruitment costs
– through an increase in staff morale and motivation
• Increased productivity and higher profitability
– through more efficient business processes and a more flexible, agile workforce
• More repeat business
– through improved customer satisfaction

4. Custom-designed management training
The G4S management programme at Charterhouse Training, the business training arm of City College Coventry,
was developed around a series of themed residential events to focus on the key aspects of management
underpinning the corporate strategy. This enabled managers from both the operational and support areas of the
G4S business to analyse and discuss issues and opportunities impacting on the organisation. The framework
of the course allowed for an exploration of management theory whilst considering practical application.
“By developing a close working relationship with both the training and development department and operational
managers we were ideally placed to translate the unique nature of the G4S business into a nationally recognised
qualification”.
Martin Bate, Management Development Consultant, Charterhouse Training, City College Coventry
Supporting employees to meet new business needs
Dudley College and Unite the Union worked together to develop a range of
supported training courses for employees at Chamberlin and Hill Castings Ltd,
part of the Chamberlin plc group. The support package was delivered at the
company’s onsite learning centre with drop in workshops and flexible
attendance allowing employees to attend regardless of shift patterns. The
uptake of staff in improving their skills has been much greater than originally
envisaged. One noticeable area of success was the number of staff keen to
improve upon their literacy and numeracy skills, as well as completing other
work-related qualifications.
“To accommodate demand from adult learners, we made some radical
changes to the delivery pattern of many of our learning programmes,
including more flexible start dates, opening at weekends, work based
assessment and training during unsocial hours. These changes have not
compromised the quality of our work.”
Lowell Williams, Principal and Chief Executive, Dudley College

5. Colleges play a major part in increasing workforce skills
through Apprenticeships. These are work-based training
programmes designed around the needs of employers
and which lead to nationally recognised qualifications.
You can use Apprenticeships to train both new and existing
employees.
Apprenticeships are designed by industry-led organisations
while the National Apprenticeship Service, a Government
agency, helps to fund the training. Business representatives
from the relevant industry work with the Sector Skills
Councils to develop the course content. Because these
people genuinely understand your business, the training will
be relevant to your industry.
In the West Midlands, 18,500 individuals are undertaking an
employer-based Apprenticeship through a College.
Colleges can work with you to:
• help you decide which Apprenticeship is right for you
• explain the way that Apprenticeships might work for you and if funding is available
• recruit an apprentice or support your existing staff into Apprenticeships
• agree a training plan with your apprentice that meets national quality standards
• manage the training and support your apprentice, as they work through the programme
Mapping the road to success
West Midlands company, Falco UK, recruited an Apprentice through Skillsbase at Leek College. Teenager Lucy
Baker is completing a national vocational qualification in Business Administration whilst being employed as a
sales coordinator at Falco - a market-leading company selling street furniture and cycle parking systems.
Falco Managing Director Jeremy Green said: “Because we are expanding as an organisation we needed to
strengthen the sales and marketing side of the business. Lucy has proven to be a real asset to the company
and, without the Apprenticeship scheme, we could not have afforded to employ her. This way we get the new
employee we need straight away and we get to mould them into our way of working. Lucy’s role is a vital one
and I have been very impressed with the training she’s receiving through Skillsbase at Leek College.”

6. Achieving excellence
Achievement rates in our Colleges are first class, with more than 90% of
students achieving their intended qualification.
Over 115,000 courses in science, technology, engineering and maths are
undertaken by students at our Colleges – subjects which businesses say are
vital to their success.
100% of our Colleges are judged satisfactory or better for the quality of their
provision by the national inspection service, Ofsted.
Higher education
Colleges provide more than a third of entrants to universities and higher education
institutions.
Nearly three-quarters of all Higher National Diplomas and Certificates and over 40%
of all Foundation Degrees taught in the West Midlands are taught in our Colleges.
Three-quarters of our Colleges teach undergraduate and postgraduate level courses.
Contributing to the economy
The combined income of our Colleges in 2009/10 was £916 million.
We employ 31,000 people, 17,000 of whom are teachers and lecturers.
Our Colleges returned £550 million to staff in wages, salaries, pensions and
associated payments in 2009/10.
Government research shows that, nationally, students aged 19+ in further
education generate an additional £75 billion for the economy over their lifetimes.
And that Apprenticeships generate £40 for each £1 of Government investment.
World skills
Two members of Team UK, competing at World Skills London, study at two of
our Colleges:
- Joe Price, representing the UK in Carpentry,
completed an Advanced Apprenticeship at Shrewsbury College
- Victoria Richards, competing for Team UK in Floristry,
studies at South Staffordshire College
Both were Gold Medal winners in their respective competitions at World Skills
UK 2010.
Two of our Colleges hosted the UK Squad and Team
selection events for World Skills 2011.
“Participation and success in skills competitions have raised the
aspiration of our organisation and has given both staff and students new
levels of pride and confidence in our many different vocational skills
areas. Competitions excite us as a College community and have raised our
profile on a national and international stage”.
Marion Plant, Principal and Chief Executive, North Warwickshire & Hinckley College

7. Our region
The West Midlands is a great place to invest,
work, learn, visit and live. Located at the heart of
the UK, the region contains fantastic diversity –
in its businesses, its places and its people.
This vibrant region comprises the counties
of Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire,
Herefordshire and Worcestershire; the unitary
authorities of Stoke-on-Trent and Telford &
Wrekin; and the seven metropolitan districts
of Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell,
Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton.
Colleges West Midlands are:
Birmingham Metropolitan College Hereward College Shrewsbury VI Form College
Bournville College Joseph Chamberlain VI Form College Solihull College
Burton & South Derbyshire College Kidderminster College South Birmingham College
Cadbury VI Form College King Edward VI College Nuneaton South Staffordshire College
City College Birmingham King Edward VI College Stourbridge South Worcestershire College
City College Coventry Leek College Stafford College
City of Stoke on Trent VI Form College Ludlow College Stoke on Trent College
City of Wolverhampton College Newcastle under Lyme College Stourbridge College
Derwen College New College Telford Stratford upon Avon College
Dudley College North East Worcestershire College Telford College of Arts & Technology
Fircroft College of Adult Education North Warwickshire & Hinckley College Walford & North Shropshire College
Henley College Coventry Queen Alexandra College Walsall College
Hereford College of Arts Royal National College for the Blind Warwickshire College
Herefordshire College of Technology Sandwell College Worcester College of Technology
Hereford VI Form College Shrewsbury College of Arts & Technology Worcester VI Form College

8. Steve Sawbridge - Regional Director: steve_sawbridge@aoc.co.uk
Caroline Southall-Chell - Communications Officer: caroline_southall-chell@aoc.co.uk
Yasmin Byrne - Office Administrator: yasmin_byrne@aoc.co.uk
Colleges West Midlands is an initiative of the Association of Colleges (AoC)
– the representative organisation for further education colleges in England.
The Association of Colleges (AoC) exists to represent and promote the interests of
Colleges and provide members with professional support services. We work
closely with national, regional and local government and their agencies to help
shape policy and to create an environment in which Colleges can thrive.
AoC was established in 1996 by Colleges themselves as a voice for further
education and higher education delivered in Colleges, at national and regional level.
If you want to know more about how our Colleges can work with you to meet
your business needs, please visit the Colleges West Midlands website at
www.collegeswm.co.uk or contact us at the address below.
AoC West Midlands Regional Office:
Wolverhampton Science Park, Glaisher Drive
Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV10 9RU
Tel: +44 (0)1902 824399
www.collegeswm.co.uk
© Association of Colleges 2011