Patrons
Pat Denham OBE, Vice Principal Quality and Learning, Highbury College
11th December 2017
Pat was born in Solihull and went to school and university in the South East.
Pat has taught in various schools and colleges in the South East and South West and in Neo Liosia, Athens, Greece. Pat was appointed a senior manager at the Isle of Wight College during 1990 and supported preparation for Incorporation. Pat was appointed College Nominee and prepared the college for its first FEFC inspection. During this period she trained as an FEFC part time inspector. Pat successfully completed her Master of Business Administration and IPD qualifications.
Pat applied and was successfully appointed Head of Staff and Quality Services at Bridgwater College, Somerset during January 1996. During the period 1996-2003 the college achieved Beacon status and was recognised nationally as one of the most successful further education establishments in England. Pat was appointed College Nominee and prepared the college for a 2002 inspection that resulted in outstanding grades for all areas. Other roles undertaken included Clerk to Audit, Institutional Reviewer for two QAA reviews. Both QAA reviews scored 23 out of the maximum 24 points.
During January 2004 Pat applied for the post of Assistant Principal at South Devon College, meeting the challenges of preparing for an OFSTED inspection and moving to a new inspirational learning environment. Under her guidance and with the support of an exceptional Senior Management team, South Devon College moved from unsatisfactory to good and finally outstanding in December 2008. Pat was appointed Vice Principal & Deputy CEO in 2009.
Pat has guided the College to achieve other awards and successes including notably:
2014 Piloted the successful new Ofsted Common Inspection Framework
2011 & 2014 Investors in People Gold and Champion
2011 STEM Assured status
2010 & 2013 Matrix Standard for information/advice and guidance
2010 Sports Focus College Award
2007 & 2010 Training Quality Standard
2007 to 2014 8 Beacon Awards
2009 Beacon Status
2008 & 2009 BECTA Technology Exemplar Status
Pat is a fully trained OFSTED inspector and has undertaken inspections of various colleges and educational institutions.
Pat was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List in 2012 for Services to Further Education. Pat has two adult children and enjoys her family and walking.
Pat has had the privilege of working closely with Huw Lewis MBE, his staff and students at MPCT since 2011. She is honoured to be a Patron.
Following early retirement during August 2015, Pat continues to work and support with educational organisations to further improve quality and learner experience. During October 2015 Pat became a Company Director, PRTD LTD. She now advises and supports senior management teams with the implementation of successful improvement strategies.
Pat was delighted to be appointed to the interim post of Vice Principal Learning and Quality at Highbury College, Portsmouth during 2020
“I am very proud to be an MPCT Patron. Having met many of the learners, staff and management at MPCT I have always been extremely impressed by their motivation and drive to achieve. MPCT is an outstanding organisation that ensures every learner engages in learning new skills, improve their Maths and English and always achieve their full potential. High success rates are measured not only by qualification success but also by the learner destination. MPCT provides all learners with a clear pathway to a successful future. The strong ethos of high expectation is consistent across the organisation.
Learner satisfaction is very high and learners and parents/guardians are clearly inspired by the learning experience at MPCT. Having observed the high quality teaching and learning I have always been impressed with the teams desire to further improve. The outstanding leadership team ensures a clear strategy is implemented and a rigorous self assessment plan is applied to sustain high performance. MPCT is an extremely successful organisation that will continue to grow and respond to the changing educational landscape”.