At WM College we believe our diversity is one of our strengths. We welcome adults of all ages, abilities, religion, sexualities and believe everyone should have access to high quality education.

We aim to ensure that information is accessible to all, rather than just available to all. To support this, we have integrated new cutting-edge tools onto our website that facilitates seamless access to information for all users, regardless of language or physical ability.

The newly implemented accessibility features include audio reader compatibility, adjustable font sizes, and colour options, ensuring that individuals with visual impairments, or learning differences can navigate the website with ease. Additionally, the website now boasts a suite of translation tools, enabling visitors to translate content into multiple languages at the click of a button.

The decision to enhance the college’s online platform comes as part of a broader commitment to diversity and inclusion. Dipa Ganguli, OBE, Principal of WM College emphasized the importance of creating an environment where everyone feels valued and supported.

“We believe that access to information is fundamental, and it’s our responsibility to ensure that our website is accessible to all individuals, regardless of their abilities or language preferences. By integrating these tools, we’re taking a significant step towards making our online resources more inclusive.”

The installation of these accessibility and translation features reflects ongoing efforts at WM College to prioritise accessibility and cater to our diverse student population. As we increasingly embrace digital platforms for communication and learning, initiatives like these play a crucial role in breaking down barriers to information and fostering a more inclusive community.

Feedback from students and staff has been positive, with many expressing appreciation for the college’s commitment to accessibility and inclusivity. Looking ahead, WM College remains committed to further enhancing accessibility across all aspects of college life beyond the website, with a focus on ensuring that physical spaces, events, and resources are equally accessible to all members of the college community.

As educational institutions continue to embrace digital transformation, prioritising accessibility and inclusivity will undoubtedly remain at the forefront of their agendas. By leveraging technology to break down barriers and create more inclusive environments, educational institutes can better support the diverse needs of their students and staff, ultimately fostering a more equitable and accessible educational experience for all.

Try out the new feature by clicking the ‘Accessibility and Translations’ button in the header of this website, or by clicking the accessibility icon on devices (shown below).

WM College are delighted to welcome Joanna Davidson CBE as the new Chair of Governors. 

Joanna brings with her a wealth of knowledge and a track record of achievement from her experiences as chief executive, chair and non-executive director in public and not for profit sectors. She joins the Governing Board of WM College at an exciting time, as the College celebrates it’s 170th year and remains the oldest adult education institution in the country. WM College maintains it commitment to excellence in education, community engagement and the holistic development of our learners and staff and with Joanna onboard we’re excited to develop further.

On Joanna’s appointment, College Principal, Dipa Ganguli OBE said, “I am absolutely thrilled that someone of Joanna’s experience, knowledge and skills is joining the Board as the Chair of Governors.  I am looking forward to building a collaborative partnership and together driving the College forward. 

I also want to thank Guy Shackle, the outgoing Chair, for his dedication, commitment, and service to the College for the last six years.” 

On joining the Board, Joanna Davidson said, “”I am delighted to be joining the College in this anniversary year. Working Men’s College has a wonderful reputation in the sector, and I hope that we can build on that to provide even better experiences for our students in the future.”

Staff and learners at WM College are celebrating the outcome of their first full Ofsted inspection since 2018. Inspectors visited the college in February and rated the college as “GOOD”.

The inspection report, which was published in March, graded the college as ‘Good’ in all inspection areas covering teaching and learning quality, learner behaviour and personal development, leadership and for its specialist adult learning provision. Ofsted inspectors recognised the broad curriculum WM College offers that enables adults to return to learning and thrive within the community, and also commended the high quality of teaching that is demonstrated across the college.

In particular Ofsted stated:

“ Leaders have developed a curriculum for young and adult learners that provides good opportunities for learners to be economically and socially active. For example, tutors ensure that adult learners, many of whom are new or returning to study after a significant time away from education, improve and build on their English, mathematics and digital skills and knowledge. Learners are well prepared for further learning or employment. Most learners achieve their planned learning goals.“

The report also commented on the high level of personal care and support provided by college staff that enables adults to be successful in their education and feel safe in their learning environment.

“ Learners feel safe and well supported during their time at college. Staff have a strong focus on the safeguarding and well-being of learners. They work closely with community and charity partners to support learners who are often socially excluded. While at college, learners thrive in the supportive community. Learners know who to contact if they have any concerns.“

WM College Principal, Dipa Ganguli OBE, commented on the outcome of the inspection saying:

” We are all extremely pleased with the outcome of the inspection. I am particularly pleased for our staff who work tirelessly to provide adults from all walks of life opportunities to enhance their future prospects. “

She continued: “ The inspectors saw WM College as it operates on a day to day basis and therefore their comments and feedback truly reflect the learner experience. We will remain steadfast in our commitment to maintaining our 170-year-old tradition of academic excellence, integrity, and service to the community and our unwavering dedication to the success and wellbeing of all members of our college community. ”

The view the official report, click here.

We’re delighted that WM College’s ‘Eat Well, Pay Less’ course was selected to feature in one of six videos commissioned by The Greater London Authority (GLA) to showcase community numeracy provision across London.

The ‘Eat Well, Pay Less’ course has been co-designed by Luvain Maximen, WM College Multiply tutor, and Ifrah Ahmed, Somali Community Worker at Chadswell Healthy Living Centre, as part of the national Multiply scheme. Each session aims to empower participants to feel more comfortable with everyday numeracy so that they can manage shopping budgets, measure ingredients, and control portion sizes to support healthy eating for the whole family. The majority of learners on the course have gone onto complete Entry Level Functional Skills qualifications and are looking to progress their maths skills further. These journeys and individuals stories are what the GLA captured with 4 hours of filming and interviewing participants. Take a look at the final result below.

If you’ve ever struggled with maths or want to improve your numeracy skills for life and work, WM College Multiply team can help. All the courses are free to London residents who do not have the basic UK maths qualifications that most employers require. Click here for more information or contact Peter Whitehead at peterw@wmcollege.ac.uk. 

WM College has recently been announced as the winners of Century.Tech’s Winter Cup.

Century is a learning platform that combines artificial intelligence (AI) with the latest research in learning science and neuroscience. It creates constantly adapting personalised pathways for learners and powerful intervention data for tutors.

The WM College English and Maths departments have been using Century to stretch and support learners as well as identify gaps in knowledge. As part of the regular English and Maths lessons, tutors used the platform to set up question activities for learners. Without realising the results of these questionnaires were being measured against other colleges to see who could answer the most questions in the 4-week run-up to Christmas, WM College were the winners! Our learners answered an amazing 95,000 questions in that time, averaging 297 questions per learner, which meant the College won by an enormous margin. A huge well done to the learners and their tutors, they have now clocked up an incredible 370,000 questions. 

If you’re looking to improve your English or maths skills for everyday life or work, we have a course for you. Many discounted or free, take a look here.

We’re thrilled to announce New York Times and Sunday Times number one bestselling author and WM College alumni, Lisa Jewell, is to become a patron of the College.

Lisa’s first novel, Ralph’s Party, was the best-selling debut novel of 1999. Since then, she has written another twenty novels, most recently a number of dark psychological thrillers, including The Girls, Then She Was Gone, The Family Upstairs and The Night She Disappeared. Her books have been published worldwide in over twenty-five languages. 

Having studied at WM College, Lisa is passionate about supporting the College to reach its aim of providing diverse, enriching and enjoyable lifelong learning for adults in Camden and the local area.

In her role as patron, Lisa will attend significant events in the College calendar and inspire learners with their future aspirations. We’re very much looking forward to this exciting partnership.

If you’re interested in studying Creative Writing, join us and you could be the next best-selling author!

We’re proud to share that one of WM College’s Supported Learners recently completed a supported work experience with The British Museum. During the six-week placement the learner took part in exciting day to day activities such as cataloguing and handling artefacts that have never been on display or seen by the general public. The learner’s particular areas of interest were Egypt & Sudan, the Middle East and Africa, and with over 170 million items at the museum there was plenty to get stuck into.

Our Supported Learning provision offers a broad range of courses for learners aged 25 and over who have learning difficulties or disabilities. The courses are designed to help learners develop a range of new skills, as well as improving their confidence and providing an opportunity to meet new friends. Work experience opportunities such as this are vital to help our learners build upon what they have learnt in the classroom and further develop skills for the workplace. With the success of this recent placement WM College plan to apply for more supported learners to take part in the scheme at The British Museum.

An example of WM College Supported Learning success is alumni, Mar Pal Pour Machar. Mar Marchar studied Supported Learning Creative Computing, Crafts, Health and Wellbeing and Maths. She has now progressed into full-time employment as a meal prep and meal time assistant at a local school and has also enrolled onto one of our ICT courses to further build upon her skills.

Mar Marcher said:

“WM College supported my disabilities and encouraged me to push myself further. My teachers believed in me, which made me believe in myself. I’ve made new friends, gained confidence, developed new skills and have now secured a job.”

For more information about our Supported Learning courses, visit the webpage here.

WM College is excited to announce the completion of the historic library refurbishment, made possible due to generous funding from The Greater London Authority (GLA) and the estate of WM College alumni, Kathryn Brownlee.

This year marks 170 years since the College opened, and what better way to start the celebrations than with the restoration of this important space.

The Library is the historic heart of WM College and has some incredible resources which tell the story of the College from its inception in 1854. Many notable WM College alumni and tutors such as Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Ruskin, E M Forster, George Orwell and Octavia Hill spent time studying within the Library and would have used the space for collaborative thinking with their peers. Therefore, it was essential that this restoration tastefully preserved the history whilst also developing an improved space that would enhance current learner’s experience.

Atomik Architects were selected for the task and proposed tasteful and subtle developments that enhanced study spaces for working in small groups, improved desk areas for independent study and created a new area for specialist talks and events. The fully restored space now boasts the following:

• Restored original bookcases and parquet flooring, showcasing their original splendour
• Study desks restored and fitted with brass lighting to illuminate work areas while providing ambient lighting
• New power and data sockets
• Alcoves for 1-1 tutorials, private work and small meetings
• Reduced shelving to make the whole library more open and accessible
• A warm colour scheme bringing through hues of green to complement the natural wood
• New comfortable meeting area including soft furnishings – sofas, rugs and ambient lighting
• A new purpose-built reception desk
• A small suite of PCs and a printing area
• A comfortable, furnished reading area

The finished result is a beautiful, calming environment which we hope will enable our current and future learners to feel inspired and thrive within their education. Library opening times and resource information can be found here.

Discovering History

During the refurbishment the architects discovered some fascinating historical items in the rafters – a pair of boots, a hat and a prayer left by the original builders in the 1800’s. Historically, objects like these have been left as ‘Builder’s Rites’ and used to ward away evil spirits, often found in fireplaces and chimneys which were thought of as easy places for evil spirits to enter a building. As a mark of respect, the objects were left in place and remain there to be discovered in another 100 years.

Our mission at WM College is to provide diverse, enriching, and enjoyable lifelong learning, including skills for work, in a supportive environment for adults in Camden and the local area.  

The Multiply maths scheme is the perfect example of how we achieve this. The programme provides regular FREE maths workshops held at the College as well as within the community to help adults improve their understanding of numbers and numeracy for everyday life.

Recently, the WM College Multiply team ran a series of workshops at Castlehaven Community Centre called ‘Eat Well, Pay Less’ which aimed to help participants gain numeracy skills to plan shopping budgets, measure ingredients, and control portion sizes to support healthy eating for the whole family. 

We met up with Felicia, a WM College Multiply Learner, to hear about her experiences and how taking the time to invest in herself has opened up more doors.

Why did you enrol on the “Eat Well, Pay Less!” course? 

I enrolled on the course to help with my obesity and general bad food habits. My local council-run gyms recently became privatised which meant I was no longer able to access nutritional and fitness advice as easily.

So, nothing to do with maths then?  What was it in the course that triggered you to start thinking about maths? 

Measurement mostly. I didn’t have the knowledge of what 10g actually looks like or general cooking knowledge like how big a teaspoon measurement is. When we used the scales, I saw 3.6g and realised that I don’t know what that looks like.  I needed to learn more about portion sizes as well. 

What are you doing now? 

Having completed the course at Castlehaven I felt more confident and inspired to visit WM College. I’m proud to say that I’ve just started a maths course at the College, through the Multiply scheme, which will prepare me to move on to a GCSE maths course. Not having a maths qualification has held me back in lots of ways in life.

Did it require a big leap in confidence to come into college to enrol? 

Yes! It was brilliant to have the link with Castlehaven, having done the course there it really encouraged me to push myself a bit further. In the past it’s been too big a step. I’ve tried lots of times to enrol but decided it’s not for people like me. Having had bad experiences of education in the past I was put off going back into it and it’s affected lots of things in my life such as looking for work, so it’s brilliant now that I’m here and I shall encourage others to do the same.

If you’ve ever struggled with maths or want to improve your numeracy skills for life and work, WM College Multiply team can help. All the courses are free to London residents who do not have the basic UK maths qualifications that most employers require. Click here for more information or contact Peter Whitehead at peterw@wmcollege.ac.uk. 

We all use numeracy in daily life at home and work. Whether that be budgeting household finances, helping children with homework, making more sense of the stats and facts in the media, or using numeracy skills specific to employment.  

However, many adults are fearful of maths having struggled with the subject in school and now avoid it. By improving numeracy skills people are more likely to gain employment, have higher wages, and better wellbeing, and able to progress to higher levels of training to secure skilled jobs. 

As part of the national initiative, WM College started delivering the Multiply Maths programme in 2022. The programme provides regular FREE maths workshops held at the College as well as within the community to help adults improve their understanding of numbers and finances for everyday life.  

In November, WM College Principal Dipa Ganguli OBE accompanied officials from the Greater London Authority (GLA) and the Department for Education (DfE) on a visit to a few Multiply sessions that WM College were running within the community. The first visit was to Our Lady’s Catholic Primary School where the Multiply team ran a session for parents using numeracy to create Japanese Rice Bags. The team then went onto Castlehaven Community Centre where they ran an Eat Well, Pay Less session helping participants with numeracy skills to plan shopping budgets, measure ingredients, and control portion sizes to support healthy eating for the whole family. 

A participant of the session, Felicia said: 

“I enrolled on the Eat Well, Pay Less session to help manage my obesity and general bad food habits. I needed to think about portion sizes and understand what 10g looks like and general cooking knowledge like how big a teaspoon measurement is. When we used the scales, I saw 3.6g and realised that I don’t know what that looks like. 

Having completed the course at Castlehaven I felt more confident and inspired to visit WM College.  In the past it’s been too big a step – I’ve tried lots of times to enrol but decided it’s not for people like me. Having had bad experiences of education in the past I was put off going back into it and it’s affected lots of things in my life.  But I’m proud to say that I’ve just started a maths course at WM College, through the Multiply scheme, which will prepare me to move on to a GCSE maths course.  Not having a maths qualification has held me back in lots of ways in life such as applying for jobs, so it’s brilliant now that I’m here and I shall encourage others to do the same.” 

Dipa Ganguli OBE, Principal of WM College said: ‘Multiply gives us the flexibility to enhance adult learners’ ability to work with numbers, mathematical concepts, ideas and solutions without the constraints of qualifications and exams.  Our learners are developing a way of thinking that is valuable across various aspects of life without realising it is maths! 

Our mission at WM College is to provide diverse, enriching, and enjoyable lifelong learning, including skills for work, in a supportive environment for adults in Camden and the local area.  

The Multiply scheme is the perfect example of how we achieve this. The team work very hard to ensure the workshops are easily accessible and help integrate maths in creative fun ways. Their support and encouragement makes maths much less scary for the learners and we’ve seen many progress onto further maths studies as a result.’ 

If you’ve ever struggled with maths or want to improve your numeracy skills for life and work, WM College Multiply team can help. All the courses are free to London residents who do not have the basic UK maths qualifications that most employers require. Click here for more information or contact Peter Whitehead at peterw@wmcollege.ac.uk.