Governance (10)
This section covers information relating to the way Bishop Auckland College is governed and how decisions are made. It includes information on the legal status of the institution and which individual member of staff or group within the organisation is responsible for specific functions and where they fit in the overall structure of the organisation. In some instances information from committee minutes will be exempt from disclosure where it contains personal information, information that may damage the commercial interests of the institution or that may threaten the health and safety of specific individuals.
Equality Standard Gold
Bishop Auckland College has been awarded the Equality Standard ‘Gold’ Award by Equality North East, only two colleges in the region hold Gold, confirmation that we lead the field in this area. Achievement of this award is based on evidence of promotion and monitoring of equality and diversity activity within all aspects of College life – both as an employer and with students. Natalie Davison Principal/Chief Executive said:
“Achieving the Gold Equality Standard has taken us through a very important process which has raised awareness, both internally and externally, of what we do in relation to equality and diversity for our students, staff and communities. I know all staff worked incredibly hard and the exceptional rate of staff achievement of the Level 2 Equality and Diversity qualification (81% of staff now hold the qualification) will undoubtedly have contributed to this, well done!”
Our Commitment
Bishop Auckland College is committed to an equality of opportunity that is intended to be an integral part of College life. To this end, the college is committed to equality of regard and of opportunity for all, irrespective of age, disability, ethnic origin, gender, marital status, medical condition, religious belief or sexual orientation. In its policies and practices the college will seek to enhance the self esteem of all those it serves and to provide a learning environment in which each individual is encouraged to fulfill her or his potential.
This commitment to equality of regard and opportunity is a fundamental policy that pervades all college activities. All members of the college community are expected to uphold the policy and to ensure that their actions embody the commitment.
Bishop Auckland College is determined to promote social inclusion and the development of potential through the provision of quality lifelong learning opportunities to an increasing number of students.The College therefore embraces equality and diversity in all of its aspects and aims to employ a workforce which reflects, at every level, the community, which it serves.
To this end, Bishop Auckland College will seek to ensure that:
- publicity and advertising materials encourage the widest participation and are available in forms accessible to the largest audience and communication methods chosen (eg textphones, fax, email etc) demonstrate the College’s awareness of, and commitment to, good practice in extending access;
- course admission requirements are free from unnecessary barriers to entry;
- selection and admission procedures operate fairly, without bias and in accordance
with the entry requirements of the course and are reviewed by the Equality and
Diversity Working Group; - teaching and learning materials produced within the college are free from unfair
discrimination and implied stereotypes; - assessments are fair to all candidates and provide impartial opportunities for
candidates to demonstrate achievement; - all students have access to appropriate learning and pastoral support
- administrative procedures are fair, considerate and unbiased.
Implementation
The commitment to equality of regard and opportunity is supported by Bishop Auckland College Single Equalities Scheme which is available from Client Services. This Scheme is intended to set out our commitment to equality and diversity and to demonstrate that equality and diversity are at the heart of what we do.
The operation of the Single Equalities Scheme will be monitored by the Equality and Diversity Working Group. The overall responsibility for the implementation of the Single Equalities Scheme lies with the Principal.
Students who feel that they have been unfairly discriminated against, or who have any grievance related to equality of regard or opportunity, are encouraged to seek advice from the Student Support Centre.
Training and Development
To support its commitment to equality of opportunity the College will assist staff to meet their professional obligations in respect of the policy. Training and other opportunities will be provided to encourage staff to become fully aware of the issues and of good practice in the field of equal opportunities, so that they may act with understanding, confidence and integrity.
Infringement
The right of every student to equality of regard and of opportunity, as embodied in the Single Equalities Scheme, is fundamental to all aspects of operation of the College. This means that direct discrimination on the grounds of age, disability, ethnic origin, gender, marital status, medical condition, religious belief or sexual orientation is not acceptable, and the College will take appropriate disciplinary action where individuals discriminate, or incite others to discriminate, in this way.
Equally, the College will not accept indirect discrimination, in which a regulation or procedure leads to unfair treatment, exclusion or disadvantage in respect of a particular group even though the regulation or procedure itself is not intended to have this effect.
Publicity
The existence of the Scheme will be publicised widely around the college and copies will be available from Client Services.
This document can be made available in alternative formats via requests from Client Services.
Annual Report
Vision
Bishop Auckland College aspires to be outstanding and to be first choice provider for vocational education and training in South and West Durham
Mission
To promote social inclusion, fulfil aspirations and develop the potential of individuals, communities and employers through excellence in teaching, training and learning.
Values
The work of Bishop Auckland College will be guided and informed by our values and beliefs and these will shape our culture:
- Be fully committed to our students
- Recruit learners to the most suitable course
- Respect the professionalism of our colleagues yet feel able to challenge their judgements and behaviour if appropriate
- Be accountable to all our stakeholders for our performance
- Operate with sensitivity, transparency and fairness in everything we do
- Consider the impact of our actions and decisions on the environment
Strategic Priorities
- To continue to raise standards in teaching, learning and services to students
- To manage the College finances and other resources ensuring ongoing financial viability and sustainability
- To raise the profile and the reputation of the College within the community
- To be the partner of choice with employers and support social and economic recovery and regeneration
Privacy Statement & Terms and Conditions governing the use of this web site
Bishop Auckland College (the College) is committed to protecting your privacy. This privacy statement applies to Bishop Auckland College’s Web sites and governs data collection and usage of these sites and any services provided therein; it does not apply to other online or offline college sites, products or services. This privacy policy only covers Bishop Auckland College web sites, other links within this site to other web sites are not covered by this statement.
Terms
These terms apply to all users of this web site. If you do not accept these terms then you should immediately stop using this web site. Your use of the web site confirms your acceptance of these terms. The College cannot guarantee that you will always be able to access the web site; the College will not be liable to you for any interruption or delay that you experience in accessing the web site, whatever the cause.
Collection of your Personal Information.
You may be asked for personal information if you want to take advantage of specific services the College offers, such as prospectus requests and course information requests. In each case we will only use the personal information you provide to deliver the services you have told us you require. Information on site activity may be stored for the purpose of future internal market research but it will not be used for any other purposes and will not be passed on to any third parties.
Bishop Auckland College does not use or disclose personal information defined as ‘sensitive’ in the Data Protection Act without the explicit consent of the individual. College statistics may report on these areas however at no time will individuals be identified by name.
The college also collects certain information about your computer hardware and software. This information may include: your IP address, browser type, domain names, access times and referring web site addresses. This information is used by the college for the operation of the service, to maintain quality of the service, and to provide general statistics regarding use of the College’s web sites. Bishop Auckland College keeps track of the pages accessed by visitors to college web sites in order to determine what sites and services are the most popular.
Use of Cookies
Bishop Auckland College does not use cookies for collecting user information for the College.
Use of your Personal Information
Bishop Auckland College may access and/or disclose your personal information if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to:
(a) conform to the edicts of the law or comply with legal process served on the College or the site;
(b) protect and defend the rights or property of the College; or
(c) act under exigent circumstances to protect the personal safety of users of the
College web sites - Security of your Personal Information
Bishop Auckland College is committed to protecting the security of your personal information. The College uses a variety of security technologies and procedures to help protect your personal information from unauthorised access, use, or disclosure. For example, we store the personal information you provide on computer systems with limited access that are located in controlled facilities. When we transmit highly confidential information (such as a credit card number) over the Internet, we protect it through the use of encryption, such as the Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol.
Bishop Auckland College's online forms are processed via formstack.com. Formstack as a company conforms to the Safe Harbor privacy agreement, to find out more click here www.formstack.com/safe-harbor.html
Links
This site provides links to other websites. These links are for your convenience only and do not signify that we endorse or have any responsibility for the content of or any transactions that you enter into relating to those linked sites.
Content
All material on this site is protected by copyright. You may only copy, download and reproduce it for your own personal use. You must not use it in any way for commercial purposes or for gain unless you first obtain our written consent. Bishop Auckland College will not accept liability for the subsequent use of any information contained in College web sites.
Law and Jurisdiction
Your use of this website, these terms and any matters arising are subject to current UK and European legislation.
Glossary of terms
Browser
Used to locate and display Web pages via a software application. The most popular ones are Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer.
Cookie
Message given to a web browser by a web server. The message is then stored by the browser in a text file called cookie.txt. Each time the browser requests a page from the server, this message is sent back. A cookie's main objective is to identify users and personalise their visit by customising web pages for them for example by welcoming them by name next time they visit the same site. A site using cookies will usually invite you to provide personal information such as your name, e-mail address and interests.
IP (Internet Protocol)
All networks connected to the internet speak IP, the technical standard which allows data to be transmitted between two devices. TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) is responsible for making sure messages get from one host to another and that the messages are understood. IP address - If you are connected to the Internet you have one, for example it may look something like this 198.184.98.9
Web Server
Adopting a publication scheme is a requirement of Section 19 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. The purpose of the Act is to promote greater openness by public authorities (i.e. government and other public sector organisations, including Universities and Further Education Colleges).
The information provided under Bishop Auckland College’s publication scheme falls into eight categories, defined by the “model” scheme for the Further Education sector. These categories are:
Main Groups of Classes of Information
Governance
Governors
Corporation Membership
Financial Resources
Human Resources
Physical Resources
Student Administration & Support
Information Services
Teaching & Learning
External Relations
How will information be supplied?
The publication scheme sets out the format in which information will be provided to enquirers (ie electronically or on paper), how the information can be accessed. It may also be possible to convert information to a preferred format upon request.
What costs are involved?
Much information will be readily available on this website and the college makes no charge for downloading this. For other documents a charge may be levied to cover administration, photocopying, postage and packing or to cover the costs of converting information to a preferred format.
The College may refuse a request if the cost of providing the information is over £450 or if the information is otherwise legally exempt from disclosure. You will be asked if you want to proceed with a request before work is done that will attract a charge.
How can information be requested?
If you are unable to obtain the information you require from the website, then please provide in writing (email is acceptable) your name, the address where you can be contacted and a description of the information required. Please address all requests for information to:
The Quality Officer
Bishop Auckland College
Woodhouse Lane
Bishop Auckland
Co Durham
DL14 6JZ