Exeter College has become the first college to retain its ‘outstanding’ grade and achieve top marks in the new skills contribution measure from Ofsted. Tallulah Taylor finds out how they did it.
An unexpected influence on John Laramy, the principal of Exeter College, is Terry Leahy, who was chief executive of Tesco in the supermarket giant’s prime in the late 1990s.
Despite needing to make huge profits every year, Laramy explains that Leahy would spend half a day each week in stores, talking to customers and learning what it was like to shop there.
Being in touch with students and staff is therefore a big part of Laramy’s leadership approach, which this week delivered Exeter’s second ‘outstanding’ Ofsted result in 10 years.
