NCG is a very large college group that formed in 2007 following the merger of Newcastle College and West Lancashire College. The group now comprises the following colleges: Newcastle College, Newcastle Sixth Form College, Carlisle College, West Lancashire College, Kidderminster College, Southwark College and Lewisham College. Each college is led by a principal and a team of locally appointed senior college leaders. Principals are accountable to the corporation board through the NCG executive board and the college stakeholder board. The group provides academic, vocational, professional and technical courses from entry level to degree level and apprenticeships from level 2 to 6. At the time of inspection, there were 13,059 learners on education programmes for young people, including T-level courses in childcare, health, digital, science and construction. There were 10,208 adult learners on a wide range of courses, including Skills Bootcamps in welding and rigging and 1,475 apprentices. There were 770 learners with high needs. At the time of the inspection, leaders worked with eight subcontractors.