UTC Leeds Ofsted rating: Inspectors praise technical college for 'bringing curriculum to life'

University Technical College (UTC) Leeds, which offers employer-led academic and technical learning with a focus on engineering and advanced technology, were given the high praise during a recent Ofsted inspection.

Ofsted is responsible for educational standards across the UK and ensuring compliance with national standards, delivering overall ratings ranging from “inadequate” to “outstanding”.

Inspectors said: “Leaders and staff are united in their vision to develop the next generation of engineers, scientists and innovators. Pupils are well supported by kind staff who are determined to help them to achieve highly.

"Leaders provide many broad opportunities for pupils to learn about different careers. Pupils work closely with employers on different projects, closely linked with each subject area. The curriculum is brought to life as a result.”

UTC were rated as “Outstanding” in the categories of Behaviour and attitudes and Sixth-form provision, with the report hailing behaviour as “exceptional” and bullying as “vanishingly rare”.

It said: “Pupils’ behaviour is exceptional. Staff create a calm and purposeful atmosphere, both in lessons and around the school. Bullying is vanishingly rare.

"Pupils display a tangible and emerging professionalism as they grow in confidence and self-belief.”

In the areas of the quality of education, personal development and leadership and management, the college received a “Good” – earning it an overall inspection rating of “Good”.

Inspectors added: “Pupils develop important workplace skills and start networking and building relationships with future employers. Teachers have strong subject knowledge and think carefully about how best to help pupils understand new information.”

Hannah Wilson, Principal of UTC Leeds, said “We are absolutely delighted that the Ofsted inspection team recognised the ‘life changing’ opportunities we offer our community. We are always extremely proud of the exceptional destinations our young people achieve each year; they are phenomenal and again, we are delighted that Ofsted recognised this and that this is a result of our Outstanding Sixth Form provision.

"Ultimately, Ofsted recognised that UTC Leeds is driven by our dedicated team of staff, and their happiness creates a positive, reinforcing environment for young people to thrive.”

It completes an impressive turnaround for UTC who were given a disappointing “Requires Improvement” after their last inspection in March 2019.