Itchen Sixth Form College – Principal

Dear colleague,

Thank you for your interest in becoming the next Principal and Chief Executive Officer of Itchen College.

We are a sixth form college based in Southampton and develop, promote and manage educational programmes for young people between the ages of 16-18+ and over 3000 part time adult students in various parts of the city and across the region.

Over the past 8 years our current Principal, Alex Scott, with a small senior team and 325 dedicated staff, has worked hard to get the college into a good place: our finances are strong; the student population has grown by 50%; we are the provider of choice for Southampton City Council; we have invested in new buildings and staff morale is at all-time high.

When our current Principal stands down, he will leave an inclusive and dynamic college, truly offering excellence in learning. Ofsted at their last visit (October 2024) graded it as an ‘outstanding’ college. Parent and student satisfaction is high. They like how we operate the college; it is a friendly and motivated establishment.

Our success is very much down to the collective vision and hard work of the Principal, senior team, managers, staff and students, guided by our governors. Now we want to find a new Principal / CEO who will take us further forward.

This welcome note comes from the governing body. We have worked hard to get the college to the position it is today. We want the college to remain an independent, self-determining entity, that has an interest in and works well with other provision but is committed to its own approach and work in local communities.

We oversee a broad portfolio of provision which helps us remain financially sound. Our local student mix is blended with around 80 international students every year. This helps our local students to be comfortable working and enjoying the company of other young people from different parts of the world.

We still want to grow, but we have no ambition to become a large institution. Our growth will come through our desire to help our learners to develop confidence and resilience, to be successful and to aspire to move on to a destination that builds on their abilities. We want to retain our reputation as an ‘inclusive’ college, noted for its pastoral care as well as excellence in teaching and examination results.

We accept that times will change, but we look forward to such challenges and preparing our students to face the future in a positive way.

If the above few words motivate you to consider Itchen, we strongly encourage you to contact FE Associates who are helping the college with this crucial appointment. Contact the lead consultant Jo.Johnston@fea.co.uk prior to applying. A visit to the college can be arranged. Come and see us in late April and early May 2025.

If you believe you have the skills, experience and ambition to lead Itchen College into an exciting new future, we look forward to receiving your application.