Henley College Coventry

Henley College Coventry (Kevin Croucher)

History: Established in 1964, Henley College Coventry has since carved out a reputation as a centre for vocational training.

Address: Located along Henley Road, on the northern edge of Coventry.

Ambience: The college marks the spot where suburbia changes into the green belt in Coventry, backing onto green fields but facing the town in an upsurge of glass and aluminium.

Who's the boss? Ray Goy, previously of Matthew Boulton College, has been in charge since 2002.

Prospectus: 0800 252 772, find it online here and follow @HenleyCollege.

What you need to know

Easy to get into? Entry requirements will vary widely depending on the course you choose but most HE courses require a previous level 3 qualification.

Foundation Degrees: Not yet though there are a range of HND and HNC programmes on offer.

Vital statistics: The college has 7,000 students altogether about 300 of which are in higher education. Vocational study areas are broad and include catering, hospitality, art, design, media, beauty therapy, hairdressing, engineering, tourism, sport, sport science, early years, health and social care, business, computing, office technology and uniformed service.

Added value: Centre of Vocational Excellence in computing and E-skills technologies as well as hospitality and catering. Sport academies for all the budding young sportsmen and women out there. The college is popular for adults looking to develop their existing skills.

Transport links: Buses into the centre of Coventry take only 10 minutes. Taking the train to Birmingham takes around 30 minutes, as does driving at most times of the day.

Teaching: The most recent Ofsted report judged overall quality of teaching and learning to be good. Overall success rates have improved significantly over the last three years and are now above national average.

Any accommodation? Only for international students at £118 per week, but plenty of private flats are available in Coventry.

Cheap to live there? Oh yes - a room in a shared flat in the city can be as little as £55 per week.

Fees: £4,900 per year for the average course.

Bursaries: None offered by the college, although it does advise and support students in making applications for any funding that may be available to them from other sources.

The fun stuff

Nightlife: The students union organises the usual parties and dances but there isn't a bar on campus. Fear not for Birmingham is a clubber's mecca with plenty of late night adventures to discover.

Sporting reputation: Great facilities including floodlit courts, grass pitches, an astroturf and a sports hall.

Glittering alumni: Plenty in the sporting world, including Adam Whitehead, Olympic swimmer; Darius Vassell, Manchester City and England player; Chris Kirkland, Liverpool player; Marlon Devenish, Olympic Gold Medal winner 2004 - which gives you an idea where the college's strengths lie.