Milton Keynes College is a general further education and training college, serving the

City of Milton Keynes The City of Milton Keynes is a unitary authority area with both borough and city status, in Buckinghamshire. It is the northernmost district of the South East England Region. The borough abuts Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and the remainder ...

. It also serves the surrounding areas (northern

Aylesbury Vale The Aylesbury Vale (or Vale of Aylesbury) is a geographical region in Buckinghamshire, England, which is bounded by the Borough of Milton Keynes and South Northamptonshire to the north, Central Bedfordshire and the Borough of Dacorum (Hertford ...

, south

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

, north west

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council ...

and north east Oxfordshire). It also provides tertiary education to Foundation Degree level. Its degree-level courses are validated by the Open University and the University of Bedfordshire.

History

Milton Keynes College was created in 1982, when the further education colleges at Wolverton and Bletchley combined. Wolverton College's roots stem back to its association with neighbouring railway works, where it had a reputation for engineering training. The Bletchley College, founded in the early 70s, specialised in general education catering and art and design. The main "Chaffron Way" Campus in Leadenhall (in

Woughton Woughton is an area of south central Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. It takes its name from the original ecclesiastic parish of Woughton and its original village, Woughton on the Green. For administrative purposes, the area is divided ...

, between Saxon Street and Grafton Street) opened in 1985. Since its inception in 1982 it is estimated that Milton Keynes College has taught over 200,000 students. In January 2019, the college won a government contract to provide education in the majority of the long-term prisons in the country.

Present day

The college is the largest provider of further education and training in Milton Keynes, offering a varied mix of vocational courses to a diverse set of students. It also provides a range of part-time, work-based, community-based, and distance-learning courses. , Milton Keynes College has approximately 3000 full-time students. The principal, Dr Mills, joined in 1990 as a lecturer in finance before becoming deputy principal.

Chaffron Way Campus

At the front of the campus stands a sculpture 'Unity', designed by Dominic Warpole (an Art, Design and Media student). It is intended to represent the three college campuses and the staff, stakeholders and the community all coming together to support students. August 2008 saw a £3.5million extension plan on Milton Keynes College’s Chaffron Way campus. The extra saw the addition on a new learning resource centre and an IT training suite housing 70 PCs, along with a new library and a new reception area. A large outside court area to provide space for students to socialise in a secure environment was created. The Chaffron Way Campus teaches Accounting; Business & Administration; Childcare; Computing; Construction (Bricklaying, Carpentry, Plumbing & Electrical Installation); Engineering; English for International Students; Foundation Learning; Health & Social Care; Performing Arts; Retail; Skills; Uniformed Public Services.

Bletchley Campus

Bletchley Campus teaches Access; Art, Design & Media; Beauty & Holistic Therapy; Floristry, GCSEs and A-Levels; Hairdressing; Hotel, Catering & Hospitality; Motor Vehicle & Motor Sport; Sports Science and Travel and Tourism.

Innovation and Technology Centre

The Innovation and Technology Centre (also known as the Engineering Building) opened November 2011 on the College's Chaffron Way Campus following investment in modern equipment and facilities. It enables the teaching of advanced design, prototyping, manufacturing and inspection, automation and control, renewable energy and hydraulics, alongside existing classes in engineering and construction. The building itself was part of the former Frank Markham Community School (now demolished), and thus became part of the college.

University Centre Milton Keynes

Until summer 2012, the University Centre Milton Keynes was associated with the college. Since September 2012, the centre ceased to be part of MK College and has become part of the

University of Bedfordshire The University of Bedfordshire is a public research university with campuses in Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire, England. The University has roots from 1882, however, it gained university status in 1993 as the University of Luton. The Universi ...

Ofsted reports

Ofsted graded the college as "Good" during the most recent inspection in May 2017, one of only 14 colleges to improve their Ofsted grade in the 2016/17 academic year. The college had previously been graded as "Requires Improvement" in an inspection carried out in February 2014, and again in June 2015Milton Keynes College
Ofsted, 17 July 2015

References

External links

Milton Keynes College
– Official website {{Authority control Education in Milton Keynes Further education colleges in Buckinghamshire