Skip to main content

The City of Liverpool College

The City of Liverpool College occupies a unique space in the Liverpool City Region. We offer an unparalleled breadth and depth of courses to a diverse variety of students across a wide-ranging curriculum: from entry level to degree; from apprenticeships and vocational skills to higher education and professional courses; from short, sharp courses focused on upskilling and career progression to full-time provision that develops the next generation of talent for the City Region’s businesses. Every year we enrol over 10,000 students from across the City Region, coming together to form a diverse and inclusive student body. Our students benefit from dynamic links with employers and communities and a strong sense of place; the College has a long and rich history within the City of Liverpool and strong links to the communities and people that it serves.

Our Strategic goals

  • To develop world-class skills for business -operating as “The College for Business”, with a focus on current need and industry innovations and supporting the post-pandemic recovery and economic growth across the City Region.
  • To deliver an outstanding student experience - tailoring our approach to the needs of our learners, our city and our communities.
  • To develop talent for sustainable employment - upskilling, reskilling and generating the talent of the future through a focus on careers, not courses.

Our strategic enablers

  • Turning disadvantage into advantage - recognising our student cohort and delivering an experience tailored to their needs, taking a student-centred approach (‘the whole student’).
  • Systems thinking by critical thinkers - changing the culture across the College from top to bottom to realise an impact that goes beyond individual actions (‘the whole college’) as a crucial part of the City Region’s education and skills system.

Who to contact

Contact Name
City of Liverpool College Enquiries team
Contact Position
Enquiries Team
Telephone
E-mail
enquiry@liv-coll.ac.uk
Website
www.liv-coll.ac.uk

Where to go

Name
The City of Liverpool College
Address
The Learning Exchange
Roscoe Street
Liverpool
Postcode
L1 9DW

Local Offer

Description

 

Introduction

The Children and Families Act 2014 requires Local Authorities to develop and maintain a ‘Local Offer’ of services for children and young people with special educational needs. This document provides the necessary information about what support The City of Liverpool College offers.

The City of Liverpool College prides itself on being an inclusive learning environment and we are committed to meet the needs of all our students. At City of Liverpool College, we offer a wide range of course from Entry Level to Level 7. Our mission is ‘To provide high quality skills and education by delivering opportunities for growth to all people and businesses of the Liverpool City Region.’ Therefore, we welcome learners with a wide range of special educational needs and /or disabilities (SEND) and strive to meet their individual needs.

The college provides courses and support for learners with a range of learning needs, but it is not a specialist SEND college. We support students with SEND in every curriculum area and at every level.

Telling College about your learning needs

It is important to tell us about your learning needs as soon as possible so that we can plan your support. You can do this in several ways:

  • On application
  • At open days or open evenings
  • At school careers events
  • At interview
  • Learner Transition Days
  • Enrolment form - it is important to highlight it on your enrolment form even if you have discussed it at interview or mentioned it on your application form.
  • At any time during your course
  • By contacting the Inclusion/Learning Support Teams directly
  • Once you start College, you can tell your Teacher, Progress Leader or speak to the Learning Support Team.

Do you have an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP)?

As part of our application, interview, and assessment procedures, we will endeavour to enrol you on the most appropriate course of study. If you have an EHCP, we will be consulted on whether we have the right curriculum for you and can meet your support needs. It is also very helpful if we can be invited to your EHCP review before you come to us, so that we can plan the support you may need at college. Remember – you can tell us you need help at any time, but the earlier you tell us, the better. If you tell us about your needs before you come to college, we can help to make sure you have the best possible start with us.

How will staff support me?

Our Learning Support Team will contact you to find out about your support needs. We will invite you to meet with one of our team. This team of highly experienced staff have a wide range of qualifications and experience to help ensure that your learning support needs are met.

Specialist Teachers

Our specialist teachers will meet with you to discuss your needs and complete an Inclusive Teaching Plan. They will work closely with your course tutors and Progress Leaders to ensure that they fully understand your needs. The specialist teachers link to different campuses within the College and provide a range of services including Specialist one-to-one or small group teaching covering support with study skills, organisational skills, assignment work, and specialist dyslexia support to develop learning strategies. The team provide assistive technology guidance which may help you to work towards independence with your studies. Our specialist teachers undertake assessments for any eligible Exam Access Arrangements.

 

Learning Support Assessors

Our team of Specialist Learning Support Assessors will work with you to put together an Inclusive Teaching Plan which will meet your individual learning needs. They will also work closely with your course tutors and Progress Leaders to ensure that they fully understand your needs.

Inclusive Teaching Plan

An Inclusive Teaching Plan is a document created with a student and a member of the Learning Support Team. The plan is created to inform and support a student’s journey by identifying the aspects of learning that students may find difficult and provide supportive strategies to overcome barriers to learning. The plan is written from each student’s perspective, in plain and direct language informing everyone working with the student what their normal way of working is and what to do to help you.

Learning Support Practitioners

Learner Support Practitioners (LSP’s) are assigned to work with learners based on their individual needs in sessions. Each learner is different, and some may require one to one support whereas other learners will progress well with group support.

The LSPs can help in many ways including:

  • Note-taking.
  • Simplify tutors’ instructions.
  • Keep a learner on task and help with motivation.
  • Reading/spelling strategies

If you communicate through British Sign Language (BSL) we are able to support you in the classroom with our qualified and experienced BSL Communication Support Workers.

What happens if I need help in exams?

Before we can offer support during examinations, we need to gather various forms of evidence in order to inform the exam boards. It might be necessary for us to carry out an exam access arrangement assessment for those with specific learning difficulties. The arrangements for this assessment will be discussed with the access arrangements assessor.

Some learners require support in their exams due to various medical needs, therefore, we will need to request medical evidence from you. Again, this would be discussed with the access arrangements assessor when you first meet them. If you have an up-to-date EHCP the access arrangements assessor will be able to write a report to the exam board and an exam access arrangement assessment is not usually required.

How will the curriculum be matched to my needs?

College teaching staff utilise the Adaptive Teaching Approach during taught classes.  These teaching methods include adapted learning materials which are created to foster an inclusive learning environment which ensures that students’ needs are met.  In addition, for those learners who require further adjustments or adaptations, the Learning Support Team will create an Inclusive Teaching Plan, and with your agreement, this is shared with course tutors to ensure the curriculum meets your needs. Some of the strategies students most commonly request are as follows:

  • Adapted learning materials (e.g. overlays, coloured paper, enlarged print)
  • Additional time allocated to complete tasks.
  • Reassurances that you won’t be asked to read aloud in class.
  • Time out breaks during lessons if you feel stressed or have difficulty concentrating.
  • Access arrangements in exams, such as extra time, a smaller room, use of a reader, scribe, etc.

How will my parents/carers know how I am doing, and how will you

help them to support my learning?

Parents/Carers will be able to check your progress at college by speaking to Tutors and your Progress Leader. They take responsibility in making sure you have a positive experience at college and support you if you have any problems.  If there are issues with your attendance, behaviour or progress on your course, your Progress Leader will help you overcome these problems.

What support will there be for my overall emotional health and wellbeing?

We have an excellent Student Services team who look after your wellbeing whilst at college. They include:

  • Progress Leaders
  • Student Counsellors
  • Student Finance Team
  • Safeguarding Co-ordinator and a team of Safeguarding Officers
  • Careers Advice and Guidance

Our priority is to ensure every student has a positive experience in college and is able to stay on their course and achieve their goals.

What training do the staff who support me have?

The College support team have a wide range of qualifications associated with their particular area of expertise and undergo continuing professional development to ensure they are familiar with the latest advances in their particular fields.

We also provide a regular programme of training to the rest of our support staff, and our teaching staff across the whole college, regarding strategies for supporting students with various learning differences. In addition to this, we work with teaching staff to ensure they understand the specific needs of our individual students.

How accessible is the college environment?

Campus Accessibility

 

The City of Liverpool College is committed to valuing diversity and to promoting and implementing equality in all its activities and services provided to staff, students, stakeholders, and visitors to the College.

 The City of Liverpool College strives to provide a campus that is fully accessible and that removes barriers to learning for all for site users.

  • Our buildings have lifts to all floors to allow access to all our facilities for site users.
  •  Accessible toilets are provided throughout our buildings and specialist changing facilities are also available for people with limited mobility.
  • Whilst we have no onsite parking for staff, students or visitors on our Campus there are Blue Badge accessible public parking spaces located nearby to all our buildings.
  • Adjustable furniture is provided where necessary and other physical aids and assistive learning technologies such as portable hearing loops, screen readers, magnifiers and adapted keyboards are available through our Learning Support team.

 

How are your resources allocated and matched to my needs?

Further Education colleges are provided with a Disadvantage Fund, and an Adult Skills Budget, which are used to meet students’ needs. Your individual needs will be assessed by one of our Learning Support Assessors, as detailed above. It is the responsibility of the Director of Student Support to ensure that we use our funding effectively to meet your individual needs. If your needs are particularly complex, we may need to work with Liverpool Local Authority, or the council for your local area if you are not a Liverpool resident, to identify additional ‘High Needs’ funding to cover these costs. If you are not a Liverpool resident If you are studying on a Higher Education course (e.g. a degree course), you will need to apply for Disabled Student Allowance to fund the cost of your support. Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/disabled-students-allowances-dsas/overview.  It is important that you apply for this well before your course starts.

How is the decision made about what type and how much support I

will receive?

As described above, you will meet with your Centre Learning Support Assessor, who will assess your needs and work with you to plan your support. This can involve discussion with your parents, carers or other professionals who work with you, if you need it to. This support is reviewed regularly to make sure it is right for you. We will talk to you about how you feel you are doing. We also ask for feedback from the staff who teach and support you, and this will help with any decisions about your support. We will encourage you to become as independent as possible, but we aim to ensure you have enough support to reach your full potential.

 

 

 

Who can I contact for further information?

If you would like to discuss support at the city of Liverpool College in more detail, please contact debbie.mcglinchey@liv-coll.ac.uk or Gary.roberts@liv-coll.ac.uk Education Health and Care Plan Officers.

For general enquiries please contact via telephone on 0151 252 3000 or enquiries@liv-coll.ac.uk.  You can also visit the College website www.liv-coll.ac.uk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Contact Name
Debbie Mcglinchey, Education Health and Care plan officer
Contact Telephone
0151 252 3009
Contact Email
Debbie.mcglinchey@liv-coll.ac.uk
Links
Additional Learning Support
Have your say