Petroc and Exeter College governors have agreed a “merger in principle” after four months of discussions held to explore “what a deeper collaboration might look like” between the two further and higher education colleges.
A period of due diligence has now begun during which the colleges will seek advice from external consultants on the “detailed legal, financial and strategic” consequences of creating what would be the largest college group in the South West.
The merger is a voluntary process, which Exeter College says could be a “unique opportunity to strengthen further education across Devon and the wider South West”.
Petroc says the idea is driven by a “shared vision to enhance educational provision”.
A merger prospectus will be published before a public consultation on the plans is held in the next few months.
Exeter College in Hele Road. Photo: Tom Joliffe under Creative Commons licence.
Exeter College is based at its main campus in Hele Road and at several other smaller sites across the city.
It was established as a tertiary college in the 1970s but has its origins in two schools opened as part of RAMM in 1869.
A 2022 Ofsted report, which judged it outstanding, said the college was then educating 6,640 sixteen to eighteen year-olds as well as 1,800 apprentices and 880 adults.
Petroc, itself the result of the 2008 merger of North Devon College and East Devon College, covers a catchment area of 1,500 square miles and has two campuses in Barnstaple and one in Tiverton.
An October 2024 Osted inspection, which graded Petroc as requiring improvement, said 2,273 young adults were enrolled at the college alongside 651 apprentices and 408 adult students.
A final decision on the merger is expected in November following votes taken by both college boards.
