The minister for skills’ speech at the AoC conference today highlighted an ambitious vision for further education at the heart of the government’s renewed mission-led approach. In my view, her words bring an optimistic energy to our sector which has long advocated for a stronger, clearer role in driving economic and social progress.
This new focus promises to transform the way FE engages with both government and local communities, making it a central player in building a prosperous, skills-rich nation. At the core of this mission-led approach is a vision of opportunity and economic growth for all – a belief that success should reward hard work and enterprise, regardless of background.
This completely aligns with the work we are doing at LSEC, and indeed across the sector. It is recognising the critical role that FE plays, not just in skills development but in generating social value, empowering individuals to achieve their career ambitions and, as a consequence, supporting social mobility.
Colleagues across the sector know how pivotal FE is when it comes to reducing economic disparities, by creating career pathways for all. We know that talent is indeed everywhere – and it was reassuring to hear Jacqui Smith echoing our belief that education and opportunity must exist everywhere too.
It is also positive to hear acknowledgment of the significant challenges we are facing as a sector. Smith highlighted that nearly one in eight young people are not in education, employment, or training (NEETs), and around nine million adults lack basic literacy, numeracy, or digital skills. These are facts that need to be shared if they are to be effectively addressed.
For too long, the skills landscape has been fragmented, requiring colleges to compete for small funding pots rather than allowing us to collaborate on meeting pressing national needs.
The minister’s recognition of this issue, alongside the announcement of £300 million in additional revenue and capital funding, demonstrates a commitment to making the improvements necessary to reverse our sector’s decline.
FE is positioned at the core of this ambitious agenda
Importantly, funding has also been confirmed to help cover additional national insurance costs, an acknowledgment of the financial strains FE faces.
However, the real ‘meat on the bones’ of this speech was Smith’s focus on the government’s new mission-led approach. And for me, this is what feels different from previous planned reforms.
Outlining three key shifts – a move to support learners more holistically by recognising and addressing the barriers they face; streamlining the complex network of agencies, funding bodies, and organisations involved in skills provision; and a move from competition to coordinated partnership – gives the sense of very positive reform ahead.
Moving beyond the prescriptive measures that have been in place for so long, and instead engaging colleges in the development of policy is for me, critical to the success of the mission we are all striving for.
A more flexible, unified approach, with true collaboration between stakeholders, including colleges, employers and local authorities will lead to more flexible working. This will help us to meet the needs of our communities and have measurable impacts on our local and national economies.
But perhaps most important for me is the acknowledgment of the civic role colleges play – an approach we have been advocating for and leading on for some time. Colleges provide so much more than just education. Our sector is unequivocally mission-based, in the very sense that the minister is talking about.
From what we have heard today, the government’s national mission for growth and opportunity is very much rooted in an ambition to encourage closer working across public services. Encouragingly, FE is positioned at the core of this ambitious agenda.
Working together, we now have a real chance to influence policy and shape the skills system, lleading to prosperity and economic growth in our communities.
I don’t see what we have heard so far from the government in the same positive light.
They are planning to remove the top rung of the apprenticeship ladder, are taxing investment incentives out of business, and this will include any incentive to invest in skills, and seem wedded to the tired, inefficient devolution agenda, that has yet prove its ability to deliver anything tangible.
Whilst it is still early days what I have heard so far is more negative than positive.