Strategic Plan
2023 - 2027
“Everyone’s aspirations matter at ucm”
PRINCIPAL’S INTRODUCTION
At UCM we are committed to supporting the Island’s economy and the aspirations and wellbeing of our communities. We strive to be an education and training provider that is transformational – inspiring, challenging and empowering people to realise their dreams. With more than 1000 course options offered each year across a range of real work environments, classrooms and online platforms, we aim to meet the Island’s diverse needs.
We engage with 350+ local employers, fostering strong relationships which have a formative influence on the courses taught at UCM. Through employer engagement, students undertake a range of activities including work placements, live projects, competitions and employer events, ensuring they are well informed of their career pathways and prepared for employment.
Since 2023 we began hosting regular skills meetings, bringing employers, government agencies and staff together to explore workforce needs. These highlight the knowledge and sector skills needed for the future. Through the student journey we aim to provide students, and consequently employers, with the core skills they will need to adapt to an ever-changing world of work. In developing skills such as effective teamworking and communication, digital literacy, creativity, critical thinking and problem solving, students will be well prepared to navigate work, study and life in the 21st century.
Our lecturers are passionate about what they do and have vast experience in the subjects they teach, enabling students to develop the skills, knowledge and qualifications they need. Our 2024/25 academic year was highly successful, with many of our students exceeding their predicted grades and progressing to employment or further study. 87% of our degree, degree-level and postgraduate students gained top grades, achieving a 2:1 or 1st class honours degree, and we have seen real success in our range of Level 3 Extended Diplomas (which are the equivalent of three A Levels) with 53% of students achieving distinction.
Together, we are facing the future with an overwhelming sense of optimism and positivity, with students at the centre of everything we do. We want them to reach their full potential, whilst also enjoying an inclusive, caring and supportive college community. As a college of further education, UCM is central to the Island’s commitment to lifelong learning and continues to seek ways of widening access and participation in education. Over the last 3 years we have widened access to English and Maths, and introduced new courses in Animal Management and Counselling We will continue to review our curriculum offer to ensure it is accessible and future facing.
Each year we review our strategy, actions and objectives. We are creative and aspirational in how we develop our curriculum, with a long-term focus on collaboration, particularly at local level, and our Strategic Plan demonstrates this continued engagement with our partners.
In enacting our strategy we will continue to provide an environment and curriculum which is engaging and future focused, and secures the best outcomes for our students.
Jesamine Kelly, UCM Principal
ABOUT UCM
UCM is the Isle of Man’s university college with well-established post-16 further and higher education provision, together with a broad 1416 vocational programme delivered in partnership with the Island’s secondary schools. Our main campus is located on Homefield Road, Douglas, with additional sites at the Nunnery and Hills Meadow, with a net internal space of approximately 18,000m2. In addition, UCM delivers education in community settings around the Island including the Isle of Man Prison, community centres and schools. UCM’s highly qualified and skilled workforce comprises the equivalent of 205 full-time staff, with the excellent industrial and academic credentials needed to drive the curriculum forward.
In 2024-25 we recruited approximately 4,000 learners, across a range of full-time, part-time and apprenticeship programmes. With a wellestablished HE provision, UCM provides a curriculum which enables progression from entry level through to level 7 (postgraduate level) and reflects both the diverse local economy and students’ own aspirations. Our curriculum offer resembles that of similar UK colleges and represents the diverse employment opportunities across the Island, whilst also supporting wellbeing and community learning.
The curriculum is concentrated into four faculties, supported by cross-college co-ordination for part-time courses and English and Maths:
Art, Design and Creative Media
Catering, Hospitality & Food Service Business
Hairdressing & Barbering
History
Music
Computing & Cyber Security
Education & Training
Human Resources
Prison Education Management
Sport
Animal Management
Childcare
Engineering and Motor Vehicle Counselling
Horticulture and Land-based Studies
Joinery
Painting and Decorating
Work-based Integrated Studies Plumbing
Our curriculum roadmap demonstrates the breadth and levels of courses available at UCM (see overleaf).
Foundation Learning
General Studies
Health and Social Care
Science
Each year we celebrate our students’ achievements through a range of activities including the annual Skills Test, the Research Festival, Student Awards evenings and the Graduates’ Ceremony. These events showcase the diverse talents and interests of our students and inspire our students of the future.
PROGRESSION MAP
ROUTES TO QUALIFICATIONS
ACCREDITED & ACADEMIC
LEARNING AT UCM
OUR QUALIFICATION LEVELS AT A GLANCE
HIGHLIGHTS 2024-25
Increased employer engagement – delivered through a series of skills increased work-based encounters including work placements and live brief initiatives
Development of curriculum:
New further education courses in counselling and leadership and management
A refreshed university level offer including a full degree in sport
A diverse Services to Business offer (updated annually)
Completed development of phase 1 of the university centre
Refreshed student welfare rooms and staff meetings hub
Top grades for HE at 87% - in line with high performing UK universities
Student engagement including student ambassadors role and termly surveys, with 98% of respondents recommending UCM.
7th Annual Research Festival (October 2025) attracting international speakers and over 300 attendees
Carbon footprint mapped following introduction of a Sustainability Model
Accessible English and Maths offer which is free at the point of entry (up to Level 2/GCSE), with 326 students working towards English and Maths
Ongoing awareness for UCM through targeted communication plan, media channels and increased following on Facebook
AT A GLANCE
443 students in higher education
992 students in full time further education 1240 students in part time further education
338 apprentices
90% of cyber/computing BSC Hons students gaining 1st class honours
of students retained
of BTEC students achieved Distinction grades 86% attendance for full time further education students
£1.85m income generated
OUR PRIORITIES
As the Island’s only college we must look outwards, to seek best practice and challenge ourselves to meet demanding benchmarks which ensure that we give our students access to the best further and higher education possible.
Whilst our current offer aims to reflect both student aspirations and the Island’s skill needs, it is also constrained by the financial implications of scale. Sufficient and ongoing numbers of enrolments are hard to maintain in some curriculum areas, hence growth of our offer depends in maintaining or expanding markets and participation, whilst ensuring curriculum continues to meet future skills needs.
Digital Development
We must support the Island’s digital strategy. When the Homefield Road Campus first opened in 1971 digital was an emerging sector. Now digital technologies are integral to everything we do and our curriculum and systems must reflect this. We must learn from innovative approaches to learning undertaken during the pandemic and extend access to blended and online learning. Our model for teaching and learning articulates our principles and approaches to teaching, learning and assessment including technology enhanced learning. We will support our staff and customers in the development of streamlined systems which enable easy access to course information and enrolment.
Curriculum Changes
Over the next few years the further education sector will be shaped by intensive curriculum reform with the reduction in traditional BTEC pathways, emerging sectors and technologies, a drive for sustainability, increasing use of AI and a rapidly changing world of work. We must ensure that our curriculum offer, tutorials and enrichment programmes effectively embed the core skills needed for the future. As more young people than ever are choosing employment over full-time university level study we must also ensure that access to professional and degree-level study enables more students to “earn and learn”. We must also continue to promote lifelong learning, widening access to education and a passion for learning in the wider community.
The Island Plan
The Island Plan sets the Isle of Man Government’s vision to be build a secure, vibrant and sustainable future for our Island. One of its key aims is to overcome uncertainty by developing a stronger and more diverse economy through delivery of the Economic Strategy, providing prosperity and rewarding career opportunities, and where our economic success positively impacts all residents. The Island’s business leaders will want to know if specific skills exist to inform investment decisions; other leaders will need the same information in order to decide whether to relocate their businesses to the Island. The availability of talent affects all industries and we must play a key role in harnessing individual potential and developing the talent and core skills needed for Island businesses to grow in a global economy.
Employers and Partners
We must continue to work closely with both the public and private sectors to ensure that a full understanding of the talent and skills requirement for current and emerging sectors is known and planned for, and with an understanding that we have a critical role to play in our economy. Equally, we must ensure that students benefit from meaningful advice, guidance and work experiences which enable progression and prepare them with the skills required for a life of flexibility and innovation.
Looking Ahead
Finally, as the world of work undergoes dramatic changes we must support our learners to develop the resilience needed to adapt and thrive. We will focus on enabling learners to focus on positive strategies for mental wealth, and the things they can do to help maintain mental wellbeing. Through developing emotional, social, physical and cognitive intelligence together with digital proficiency, learners will be equipped for the future and be able to adapt to new ways of working.
VISION AND MISSION
UCM’s strategic plan aligns with the Isle of Man’s Island Plan, encompassing its vision to build a secure, vibrant and sustainable future. Our overarching vision is to be recognised as a great place to learn and work, making a real difference to the lives of learners, and to act as a driving force in future skills development and sustainability for the Island.
Our mission statement concisely sets out why we exist and how we will work towards our vision:
“We will provide inspirational and inclusive education and training which is transformational”
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES
Student Experience:
Deliver a life-enhancing and inclusive student experience, placing students at the heart of everything we do
Skills for the Future:
Offer a high quality, agile and challenging curriculum which is focused on skills for the future, widens access and delivers excellent outcomes
Staff Excellence:
Foster a culture of innovation, development and collaboration, positioning UCM as an Island leader in education, research and training
Smart, Safe and Sustainable:
Stakeholder Engagement:
Create safe, sustainable, flexible and vibrant learning environments informed by best practice
Provide an outstanding service which is focused on the needs of all of our stakeholders, supporting growth and prosperity on the Island
OUR VALUES
Working with staff, students and our govenors we have identified three core values which inform and permeate the way we work to make the University College Isle of Man a leading provider of education and training.
MONITORING PERFORMANCE
We will set out a delivery plan, with short and long term actions and associated key performance indicators (KPI) that will measure our progress. These will be built upon each year and may change depending upon a range of internal and external factors. Progress in delivering the plan will be reviewed by the governing board each year.
Our Board of Governors boasts a wealth of industrial, commercial and educational experience, with staff and student representation, and works closely with us to support continuous development and improvement. The Board provides independent oversight for the college, ensuring that the organisation is acting in accordance with the principles and articles under which it was established, and to assist us by providing, scrutiny, challenge and support for the Principal and the Senior Leadership Team.
REPORTING OUTCOMES
Outcomes and external assurances will be reported to Governors at Board meetings through:
strategic update reports by the Senior Leadership Team
review of key performance indicators
annual self-assessment processes
review of quality improvement plans
reports by external agencies
An annual report will provide an overview of progress against the plan.
STRATEGIC PRIORITIES
Our strategic priority outcomes are aligned with both the Island Plan and Government’s Vision to build a secure, vibrant, and sustainable future for our Island nation, and the Department of Education, Sport and Culture’s Strategic Priorities. This plan sets out in detail how we will deliver our priority outcomes, monitor and measure our success, how we will ensure continuous improvement and ultimately how we will INSPIRE, CHALLENGE and EMPOWER our students to reach their full potential.
