Forth Valley College: Campuses closed but steps being taken to minimise students' disruption

Dr Thomson said: "The Forth Valley College Business Continuity Group continues to meet on a daily basis to review the current situation and agree next steps.

"We realise that this is a worrying time and understand there are many concerns, however staff, students and members of the public should be assured that we are doing all we can to minimise the impact of this unprecedented situation.

"The welfare of all our staff and students is a priority for the College and if they have any anxieties about the current situation they are being asked to email [email protected] for support.

"I would like to personally thank all our staff and students for their patience and understanding during this closure period.

"Over the past few days, our staff have been working tirelessly to move face-to-face delivery, to our online learning environment.

"I would also like to thank the Falkirk Herald for helping to disseminate important news to keep the people of Forth Valley informed and updated."

Ken revealed that the college is encouraging all students to join its FVC Digital Community on Microsoft Teams and access Moodle during the closure period to find their learning resources.

He added: "We understand that this will be challenging – and a different way of learning for students, however, online and distance learning provides us with the opportunity for students to complete and/or progress with their studies.

"Many people will be aware of the Deputy First Minister’s announcement last Thursday (19/03/20) regarding the closure of schools and the cancellation of the exam diet for this year. I would like to assure everyone that our approach to exams/assessment has been under consideration for some time and we are currently finalising our plans at a department level.

"It is important that all current students understand that the outcome of their qualification/course will take into account a number of elements. This may include, assessment results achieved to date, course work, and other predicted outcomes.

"Students will still have work to submit/undertake over the coming weeks in order to achieve their qualifications and therefore, must engage with their Lecturer or Curriculum Manager as a matter of urgency.

"This will ensure all our students have a clear work plan in place for the coming weeks and we anticipate that all results will be issued in early August as planned.

"Please also note that work based/practical activities are still to be discussed and we will update all students when further information becomes available. This includes placements and apprenticeship programmes.

"I also want to assure all students that bursary and childcare payments will not be affected during this period. No student will be disadvantaged. The Scottish Government has a dedicated website for students, which contains lots of useful information in regards to funding - www.studentinformation.gov.scot/student-finance.

"Finally, we would like to highlight that the college is still accepting – and currently processing - applications for full-time courses starting in August 2020."

The college will continue to update the FAQs on our website www.forthvalley.ac.uk – please keep checking these on a regular basis.