South Bank Colleges is a

further education Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is additional education to that received at secondary school that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. It ...

college in the

London Borough of Lambeth Lambeth () is a London borough in South London, England, which forms part of Inner London. Its name was recorded in 1062 as ''Lambehitha'' ("landing place for lambs") and in 1255 as ''Lambeth''. The geographical centre of London is at Frazi ...

. It was formed in 1992, initially as Lambeth College, from three former institutions – Vauxhall College of Building and Further Education, Brixton College of Further Education, and South London College (previously known as Norwood Technical College). The college serves around 10,000 students from its three campuses at

Clapham Clapham () is a district in south London, south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (including Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Ea ...

Brixton Brixton is an area of South London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th century ...

and

Nine Elms Nine Elms is an area of south-west London, England, within the London Borough of Wandsworth, with some parts (including the Nine Elms tube station, tube station) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Lambeth. It lies on the River Thame ...

. The

campus opened in 2023 and this third site specialises in the provision of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Maths). Lambeth College joined

London South Bank University London South Bank University (LSBU) is a public university in Elephant and Castle, London. It is based in the London Borough of Southwark, near the South Bank of the River Thames, from which it takes its name. Founded in 1892 as the Borough Po ...

(LSBU) Group on 31 January 2019 and became one of three national pilots designed to bring Further and Higher Education together. Now, renamed as South Bank Colleges, it comprises Lambeth College (Clapham Campus and Brixton Campus) and London South Bank Technical College (Nine Elms Campus).

Locations

The three sites currently in operation are: *

Courses

The college offers

NVQ National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) are practical work-based awards in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland that are achieved through training and assessment. The regulatory framework supporting NVQs was withdrawn in 2015 and replaced by th ...

City and Guilds The City and Guilds of London Institute is an educational organisation in the United Kingdom. Founded on 11 November 1878 by the City of London and 16 livery companies to develop a national system of technical education, the institute has bee ...

, CPCAB, UAL, NCFE, OCNLR, ESOL,

Apprenticeships Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in a regulat ...

Foundation Degree A foundation degree is a combined academic and vocational qualification in higher education in the United Kingdom, equivalent to two-thirds of an honours bachelor's degree. Foundation degrees were introduced by the Department for Education and ...

Access Access may refer to: Companies and organizations * ACCESS (Australia), an Australian youth network * Access (credit card), a former credit card in the United Kingdom * Access Co., a Japanese software company * Access International Advisors, a hed ...

, Online, BTEC courses in many subjects and also T-Level .

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

s in English and Maths are also offered for students who lack these qualifications or wish to retake them.

History

Created by an amalgamation of three colleges in 1992, South London College was originally known as Norwood Technical College opening in the 19th century. Lambeth College underwent an overhaul in 2012, becoming an employability focused college with the priority of finding students employment in Lambeth. This change came complete with a new logo and motto for the college along with the planned addition of many new courses and removal of

A-levels The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...

. Lambeth College became a part of London South Bank University (LSBU) Group on 31 January 2019. South Bank Colleges (SBC) was then established by LSBU to operate further education provision (16-19 yrs) in the LSBU family of educational institutions. As part of LSBU Group, Lambeth College is building a local education model that has technical and applied learning at the heart of its educational philosophy. The Group comprises: London South Bank University; Lambeth College (a wholly owned subsidiary of South Bank Colleges)
University Academy of Engineering South Bank
an
South Bank University Technical CollegeSouth Bank Academies, Multi-Academy Trust
The college experienced a period of industrial action in 2014. Faculty members went on strike over proposed contract changes. While the dispute was not fully resolved, it prompted a dialogue about staff concerns and led to investments in the college's facilities, including a redevelopment of the Brixton campus, the construction of the new Nine Elms campus, and, now, a re-build of the Clapham campus (planning permission granted in February 2024). At its last full inspection in 2022,

Ofsted The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...

gave South Bank Colleges an overall grade of "Good".

References

External links

* {{Authority control Further education colleges in London Education in the London Borough of Lambeth Educational institutions established in 1992 1992 establishments in England