STUDENTS at a Winchester college enjoy ‘outstanding’ residential services, according to an Ofsted inspection.

The three day assessment, carried out in June this year, gave outstanding marks to Sparsholt College, which highlighted that students benefitted from living and learning in a socially diverse residential community.

Principal, Tim Jackson, said: “This is an excellent report from Ofsted which is testament to the outstanding work delivered by our residential team of wardens, tutors, senior residents and pastoral staff.

“Not only is the quality of service outstanding with our resident students reporting that they feel safe on campus, enjoy being treated as individuals whilst being well supported and looked after but this also results in them performing better on their courses.

“We want happy students, performing well and Ofsted reported that most of our residential learners progress on to higher level courses or into employment, both ideal outcomes.”

Laura Hart, a Sparsholt student, said: “The 24-hour support we receive from the residential team gives valuable life skills such as cooking, time management and budgeting as well as balancing social activities alongside college work.

“All this helps to prepare you for being more independent when you leave college to pursue your career.”

Students reported they felt safe on the campus and that security measures were appropriate and did not compromise their privacy.