Dear Georgia Coan + Poppy Damon,

I am afraid East Berkshire College and Strode's College are no longer
separate entities. They are now the merged group known as The Windsor
Forest Colleges Group.

Please find below answers to your request from the above group.

+Do you offer special provisions for counselling services for students

No, we do not have a dedicated counselling service. We have a number of
pastoral and safeguarding teams that signpost students to external
services.

+specific to bereavement? Y/N Do you offer any support or counselling

No. As above

+services for students? Y/N Do you have an institution  wide

No. as above, we have dedicated pastoral teams who work with students to
support and monitor wellbeing, in addition to safeguarding teams to
monitor students who are currently or who may be at risk of harm.

+policy/guidance regarding caring for students following a bereavement?
Y/N Do your policies or practices exclusively relate to support for
students who have lost parents or does your support factor in other forms
of bereavement, such as losing a sibling?

As above.

+Can you tell me what special provision you have for offering extensions
and academic breaks in study after a bereavement?

Breaks in learning (In terms of funding), only count for adults. 16-18
year olds would be withdrawn and started afresh on their return, if the
period of absence is long enough. If the break is only a few weeks in
duration an Audit note would be kept as evidence.

Adults would be expected to sign an agreement with the College that they
would return at the end of the break. The break in learning would cover a
period of no longer than a year.

+How much money did you allocate to counselling and support services for
bereavement per year (Jan 2016-Jan 2019)?

During this period two colleges have merged so it is difficult to get a
full picture.  During that time on site counselling services were offered 
on one site up until Sept 2018 with an approx. budget allocation of 20k,
with free provision offered via a third sector organisation at the other 
two colleges.

This has since been withdrawn. Since then referrals to external services
are provided.

We do not have a specific allocation for bereavement but we do carry a
contingency fund and within this contingency fund includes "unspecified "
activities or events that which cannot be quantified for budgetary
purposes.

+If you feel you would like to offer an opinion, would you say your
institution feels you are offered enough from the Government in order to
support students who have experienced bereavement while studying?

Students need a variety of support for pastoral needs which include
bereavement for some students.  College have suffered financial
constraints for a number of years and a variety of services have been
squeezed including counselling. More resources for these areas are always
welcome.

Many thanks

Roberts Disbury-Mockett
Head of IT (DPO)
IT Services
Langley College
Telephone: 01753 79 3240 | Mobile: (+44) 07592 00 55
40 | Email: [1][email address]
[2]Windsor Forest Colleges Group
Langley College
Station Road, Langley, Berkshire SL3 8BY
[3]Website | [4]Email
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Dear East Berkshire College,

I am e-mailing to make a request under the Freedom of Information Act
2000.

If you have any questions or need clarification to complete my request, I
would be grateful if you could contact me prior to the deadline of 20
working days from receiving my request.

I’m looking for information regarding the bereavement services which are
available in your university or college. Please could you answer the
following:

+Do you offer special provisions for counselling services for students

+specific to bereavement? Y/N Do you offer any support or counselling

+services for students? Y/N Do you have an institution  wide

+policy/guidance regarding caring for students following a bereavement?
Y/N Do your policies or practices exclusively relate to support for
students who have lost parents or does your support factor in other forms
of bereavement, such as losing a sibling?

+Can you tell me what special provision you have for offering extensions
and academic breaks in study after a bereavement?

+How much money did you allocate to counselling and support services for
bereavement per year (Jan 2016-Jan 2019)?

+If you feel you would like to offer an opinion, would you say your
institution feels you are offered enough from the Government in order to
support students who have experienced bereavement while studying?

I understand that under the Act, I should be entitled to a response within
20 working days. I would be grateful if you could confirm via e-mail that
you have received this request.

Regards,

Georgia Coan + Poppy Damon

[Number Removed]

Yours faithfully,

Poppy Damon

References

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