Orbital South Colleges

Orbital South Colleges* comprising East Surrey College, John Ruskin College and Reigate of School of Art is a leading Further Education group, trusted by schools and employers across Surrey, West Sussex and south London.
Together, our colleges form a substantial college group in the southeast. From June 2022, the Group also includes Orbital South Colleges University Centre as the umbrella organisation for our Higher Education provision.
*Orbital South Colleges is the trading name for the East Surrey College Corporation.
Click here to download the Orbital South Colleges Strategic Plan 2022-25

We are a leading Further Education group, trusted by schools and employers across Surrey, West Sussex and south London.  We work closely with partner schools in our most local areas but in total with over 60 schools, delivering vocational learning.

Our student satisfaction rates are routinely high at 97% with 96%* progressing to positive destinations on completion of their course.  Students learn from industry-qualified and experienced tutors who bring the world of work to life.  Our Careers Team provide guidance and support for our students but also wider careers guidance to our local communities.  

We work with many hundreds of employers who say they value the quality of our training, voting us as the top FE College Training Provider in 2022-2023.** We offer upskilling and retraining courses working with DWP/JCP, our employers and communities.

From June 2022, the Group also includes Orbital South Colleges University Centre as the umbrella organisation for our Higher Education provision.  We are proud to offer a wide range of vocational higher education courses validated by the University of Chichester, Higher National Certificates and Diplomas, Higher and Degree Apprenticeships and professional courses.

We offer a comprehensive range of core skills, technical and professional qualifications, courses and apprenticeships from Entry to Degree levels.  From September 2022, this includes a range of ‘T’ levels which will continue to expand in future years. 

Both campuses boast excellent facilities in which we continually invest.  At East Surrey College a brand new Digital and ‘T’ level suite was completed in August 2022; at John Ruskin College a fabulous Construction Skills Centre was added in 2021.  More investment is planned over the next year.  

We are a trusted partner working closely with education providers, the South London Partnership, our Local Authorities, charities and community organisations as well as a substantial and growing number of employers who work closely with us on work experience, industrial placements, live projects and sessions and whose input into our curriculum development we hugely value.   

*2021 College data – destination data based on 1,505 students contacted 
**Highest placed FE College and 11^th overall in the RateMyApprenticeship’s Top 50 Training Providers for 2022-2023