In Mrs Charlotte Lane, Torpoint Community College have a committed Holocaust educator, an experienced and innovative, gifted teacher and aspiring middle leader, determined to develop Beacon School status and provision. She is widely regarded as ‘the heart and soul of the programme’, enjoying the collegiality and support of colleagues within the History department and wider college – particularly of Mr Golding; all have embraced the Beacon School programme and adopted the scheme of work or the Centre’s pedagogy.

All this has been underpinned by the College’s senior leaders who have a clear forward-looking vision, ensuring Holocaust education is a right for all learners, that students have the enriching learning experience and outcomes they deserve. Together with the UCL Centre for Holocaust Education, Torpoint Community College has truly embarked on the ‘Beacon School journey’ to its fullest – it is an immense team effort and we are delighted to partner with you and re-designate the schools Beacon School status for a further three years.

Key strengths of the Torpoint Community College’s hugely ambitious and innovative programme of Holocaust education include:

• The centrepiece of Torpoint Community College’s excellence in Holocaust education is built upon the foundation of its constant pursuit for quality teaching and learning. The quality of teaching and learning about the Holocaust and range of provision and opportunity to engage with this complex past is excellent. The Holocaust is a central and distinctive feature of History and College’s wider curriculum offer.
• The innovative inclusion of strategies, materials and Poland study visit experiences is exceptional, as are the artistic and creative responses opportunities that the scheme of work/scheme of learning provides; all this whilst retaining historical disciplinary integrity, vigour and skills.
• The ambition of the scheme of work and wider provision plan for Holocaust education at Torpoint Community College is to be admired.
• The regard with which UCL Beacon School status is held is testament to the inspired leadership of a hard-working Lead Teacher and CLT who understand the significance of Holocaust education – these components, working and communicating effectively, have been fundamental to the College’s Beacon School success.
• Despite its successes in Holocaust education, Torpoint Community College is not complacent. Senior and middle leaders are proud of successes and strengths to date, whilst able to identify potential weaknesses or areas for innovation and development and are increasingly outward looking, open to opportunity and innovation.
• Torpoint students are magnificent ambassadors for the College and are articulate and insightful advocates of quality Holocaust education provision and its impact. They are genuinely interested in and enthused by teaching and learning about the Holocaust. They enjoy studying it, and want to know more.
• Beacon School status plays a crucial part in securing excellent SMSC provision and this should be widely celebrated. The initiative has proven important in and of itself, but also for its contribution to whole college priorities like Global Learning, FBV, citizenship, healthy schools and Prevent. It has also successfully linked with the College’s UNICEF Rights Respecting Schools work.
• Pedagogical practice in Holocaust and genocide education at the Torpoint Community College is underpinned by research-informed practice and access to quality CPD via UCL

Our Quality Mark review process confirms that Torpoint Community College’s Holocaust education provision, its quality teaching and learning is indeed outstanding and a powerful contributor to both a curriculum that informs, engages, empowers and inspires its learners and wider school improvement. Given so much excellence, it is fitting Torpoint Community College be recognised for its innovation in, provision for and commitment to quality Holocaust education with this prestigious award.

The Centre’s Nicola Wetherall MBE remarked:

‘Within Torpoint Community College’s offer you find the core elements of all that is best about UCL Beacon School Quality Mark status. With Acting Headteacher Dr Plumb and College leadership team support from Mr Golding, a gifted and ambitious Lead Teacher, Mrs Lane, has embarked on a journey in partnership with the Centre, which has improved student outcomes, refreshed teaching and learning, encouraged research engagement, helped support school improvement and reinvigorated colleagues, both personally and professionally. Torpoint Community College provides all necessary proof that investing in Holocaust education can have far reaching consequences for curriculum design, assessment, teaching and learning, leadership, school improvement and investment in staff, whole person development, SMSC and legacy outcomes for learners – it was a huge pleasure to visit, to see such impactful and impressive work. Students, staff, community and governors should be proud of this Quality Mark award; it is richly deserved recognition of Torpoint Community College’s commitment and efforts in the field of Holocaust education.’

Here is another wonderful example of UCL and schools working in partnership. Torpoint Community College epitomises the ethos, aims and ambition of the Centre’s Beacon School programme: all involved in the school’s Quality Mark process, including mentor Tom Haward and Programme Director Paul Salmons are proud of Torpoint’s achievement, but with the College open to development and refining of practice we all look forward to seeing what the future of Holocaust education in Torpoint may look like.

Read full report here: UCL QM report Torpoint Community College