Fircroft College Reviews 

I am disappointed with my experience.

The teaching from my IT tutor Ayo was excellent. He was supportive, understanding & always encouraged me when I was struggling. Natasha from learning support was also fantastic & she went above & beyond to help me when I needed support.

Unfortunately my overall experience of the college was affected by the way my wellbeing concerns were handled outside of the classroom.

Having attended previous courses @ this college, I genuinely hoped my experience would be better this time. Unfortunately I felt it became even more challenging due to how my wellbeing concerns were handled.

I raised concerns about the residential environment including excessive door slamming, noise, room changes & how it was affecting my autism & wellbeing. I also emailed Elliot explaining my concerns which were not taken seriously or acted upon. As a result of this my wellbeing declined & I had to return home instead of staying residential.

I also found parts of the course organisation confusing including classroom changes, timetable disruption & the course being delayed before it had even started.

Its a shame because the teaching was very good but I feel that the college needs to improve on how it responds to students wellbeing concerns & make more reasonable adjustments when they are needed. Staff should also receive regular training on supporting students, listening to students concerns & communicating better when adjustments are requested.

Not a very understanding place to be or any source of compromise.

Just when you think another public organisation can’t possibly fail you and cause you more trauma - it happens. I recommended this place like no-one’s business & loved every element of it until now. Be warned - if you want to continue going to better yourself, learn lots of things and add to your well-being (like they promote repeatedly) then this isn’t the place for you. They put a time limit on something that can’t be defined by a time limit - time! Very disappointed, newer staff behind the scenes are causing issues for many and their motto “once a Fircrofter, always a Fircrofter” is not as it seems! Very high up staff member could neither fully deny or confirm if something behind the scenes/external is at play. Very very very disappointed in what I once believed was the best college in the country.

I ended up joining the access to higher education course at Fircroft with the amazing help of the admissions team as I was late joining. I didn’t know what to expect when I joined but I was absolutely blown away. All of the staff are so, so friendly, everyone remembers your name and staff always say hi and ask how you are doing. The vibe at the college is welcoming and relaxing, and the beautiful scenery surrounding the college is perfect for studying. Lockdown and covid has made the course incredibly bumpy and more stressful, but I can confidently say staff have done all they can to ensure the students receive the best they can get.

I am over the moon at the prospect of being able to attend university after this course, and I couldn’t have achieved this without the help and support from each and every member of staff. From the kitchen staff, to the night staff to the cleaners and the tutors, I have been met with a genuine wish to be helpful, kind and supportive from everyone.

I first started attending short courses at Fircroft College back in September of 2015. I originally only intended on doing a couple of courses but 4 years later I am still doing the occasional short course there and have so far done 22 different short courses. It seems that I cannot stay away from the place.

As for the short courses, they have mostly been related to personal development and my overall wellbeing. Before attending Fircroft, I was extremely shy and kept myself to myself, but these courses have really helped me to open up more and to make friends in the process, which is really easy to do at Fircroft as everyone (both students and staff) are generally quite friendly which is nice.

As for food, let me just say that it is out of this world. I have never once had any bad food from here and everything is forever cooked to perfection. Even the breakfast is outstanding, particularly the poached eggs which are always cooked flawlessly.

When it comes to the surroundings, the environment is beautiful with 6 acres of dazzling gardens which is perfect for those who love nature and the great outdoors with things to find in all 4 seasons. In spring, there's an abundant amount of daffodils and crocuses and let us not forget about the beautiful apple blossom tree. In summer, there's all sorts of pretty flowers which I love to take photos of. Autumn gives you apples, blackberries and mushrooms whereas winter gives you frost which again I like to take photos of.

And as for the bedrooms, they are basic but warm and comfortable and you do get your basic essentials. You are no longer provided with a towel and a mirror in the actual bedroom part, but there's no problem in bringing your own towel in and you do get a mirror in the bathroom. Myself and others have commented on the fact that these rooms were too warm, but now they seem to be just right.

Finally, as for the lessons themselves, I have never once had a bad tutor and all have been friendly and helpful and treated all of us students fairly. The two support workers are lovely also and great to talk to. As for the timing of the lessons, I would say that these have improved tremendously over the last year or so. Originally the lessons went on from 9am to 8:15pm which as you can imagine was far too long and tiring. However, that was since changed and now lessons begin at 9am and finish at 5pm which is far more reasonable. You also get half an hour breaks and an hour for lunch which is reasonable.