The colleges and training providers chosen to recruit new FE teachers and improve links with industry for the second round of the £5 million Taking Teaching Further programme have been announced.
Forty five providers are being tasked with recruiting 160 experienced industry professionals to work as post-16 teachers in four key sectors: childcare and education, digital, engineering and construction – areas that will be covered by T-levels from September 2020.
Additionally, the government is splitting £900,000 between 22 projects, including nine by providers not included in the recruitment drive, which will be looking at ways to improve links between FE providers and industry.
Skills minister Anne Milton said she was “thrilled” to announce the winners from the second round, following “fantastic stories of success” from the first round.
Following the programme’s unveiling last June, the first wave of winners was announced the following October and led to 47 new teachers being recruited, including five at East Kent College.
The college’s head of teaching academy Simon Bigrigg said the programme had provided EKC Group, to which East Kent College belongs, with a range of opportunities to develop its recruitment and training of teachers in “hard to fill” areas.
Robin Smith, curriculum manager at another winning provider from the first round, Calderdale College, said the TTF programme had enabled them to deliver “cutting-edge” digital skills to current and future students, and provide a “talent pipeline” for employers in the Leeds City Region.
The second round of the TTF programme was launched in December 2018, with nearly £20,000 up for grabs for each provider to train up to five “experienced industry professionals” in a level 5 diploma in education and training.
Several providers have been successful in both rounds of the programme, including Bridgwater and Taunton College, Calderdale College, Lakes College, Oldham College and St Helens Chamber.
TTF was designed in partnership with the Association of Colleges and the Education and Training Foundation.
The foundation’s chief executive David Russell said there was a “vital need” to bring industry talent into the sector to pass expertise and experience on to learners, teachers and trainers.
In his review of post-18 education, Dr Philip Augar wrote the most important barrier to improving the college workforce is “simply a lack of money”, as FE is directly competing with schools, universities and businesses which can offer more “attractive” rates of pay to experienced industry professionals.
According to the Augar Review, full-time FE teaching professionals in the UK earn, on average, around £2,500 less than secondary school teachers, and approximately £13,000 less than higher education lecturers.
The report, which was launched by Prime Minister Theresa May and Education Secretary Damian Hinds yesterday, recommended prioritising investment in the FE workforce so it can draw in more expertise from industry.
The recommendation came after the government scrapped FE teacher bursaries for subject knowledge enhancement funding and initial teacher education in February of this year, as it moved over to investing in programmes such as TTF.
A DfE spokesperson said they are evaluating the programme before any third round.
FE providers to host TTF teachers:
Activate Learning
Ada, the National College for Digital Skills
Boston College
Bridgwater & Taunton College
Bromley College of Further and Higher Education (trading name London South East Colleges)
Bury College
Calderdale College of Further Education
Cambridge Regional College
Chelmsford College
Chichester College Group
City of Wolverhampton College
Derby College
Ealing, Hammersmith and West London College
East Sussex College
Furness College
Grantham College
Harlow College
Havant and South Downs College
Huddersfield Textile Training Ltd
Lakes College
Leeds City College
Lincoln College
Myerscough College
New City College
Newham College London
North Hertfordshire College
Oldham College
PTP Training Ltd (Performance Through People)
RNN Group
South Devon College
South Essex College
Sparsholt College Hampshire
St Helens Chamber
Stockton Riverside College Group
Sunderland College
The College of West Anglia
The Cornwall College Group
The Isle of Wight College
The National College for High Speed Rail
The Trafford College Group
Wakefield College
Waltham Forest College
Weston College of Further and Higher Education
Wigan and Leigh College
Windsor Forest Colleges Group
FE providers to run innovative projects:
Activate Learning
Chesterfield College
Chichester College
City College Norwich
Derby College
East Kent College
Evolve your Future
Farnborough College
Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce
Greater Manchester Learning Provider Network
Havant and South Downs College
Lakes College
Leeds City College
Lincoln College
Myerscough College
North Hertfordshire College
South Devon College
The Cornwall College Group
The Isle of Wight College
The Lancashire College Group
The Sussex Council of Training Providers
Windsor Forest Colleges Group
Your thoughts