The current operational director at the Schools, Students and Teachers Network (SSAT) Bill Watkin has been appointed as the new chief executive of the Sixth Form College Association (SFCA).
He will start in the post on April 18 following the retirement of current SFCA chief executive, David Igoe.
The appointment was announced today by SFCA chair, Eddie Playfair, who said: “Bill is a great advocate for educational excellence and social justice and he has the vision, skills and experience to help lead our sector through what will certainly be a period of significant change.
“We are confident that he will be a great champion for our work and will help us make an even more significant contribution to the educational landscape.”
Mr Watkin said: “This is a very exciting time for the SFCA and I am looking forward to working with member colleges across the country to ensure that their outstanding work is recognised and celebrated and that they continue to play a vital role in leading system-wide improvements across all phases of education.”
He started his career as a teacher of modern foreign languages in secondary schools and developed his work as a national consultant on curriculum matters.
He has written a French text book and many publications on education.
He has also sat on a number of boards, including two Multi-Academy Trusts, the Centre for High Performance, the DfE Capital Consultative Forum and the EFA Learner Support Consultative Forum.
Since 2006, he has worked for SSAT, a membership organisation for schools, leading its work on the academies programme, developing policy and supporting academy leaders, governors, sponsors, and operators.
Mr Igoe said: “I think he will do a good job. He has an interesting background and given that SFCs are looking seriously at whether they should become academies and are talking about becoming more schools-facing, he is the ideal person to bridge the gap.”
Around 200 colleges are expect to be hit with strike action today (February 24), as members of the University College Union (UCU) and Unison walk out in an ongoing dispute with the Association of Colleges (Aoc) over pay.
The unions estimate that thousands of staff, including lecturers, librarians, technicians, cleaners and caretakers, will be striking in protest at a recommended pay freeze by the national employers’ organisation AoC.
However, FE Week has spoken to a number of colleges who said they were not aware of any classes being cancelled as a result of the strike.
Meanwhile, the AoC has said it has no plans to go back to the negotiating table.
Dave Prentis, Unison general secretary, will be joining the picket line outside City and Islington College at 9am this morning.
He said: “The real villains in this dispute are government ministers, whose funding cuts over several years have left colleges in dire financial straits.
“But it shouldn’t be further education employees paying the price.
“After years of pay freezes and real terms pay cuts, staff have been left with no choice but to take action to win a fair deal.
“It’s time for the college employers to do the right thing, get back around the table and make a decent pay offer that rewards all college staff for their dedication and hard work.”
Sally Hunt, UCU general secretary, will be addressing a rally at the Emmanuel Centre in London from 1.15pm, alongside shadow business secretary Angela Eagle.
Ms Hunt said: “A pay freeze is an insult to the commitment and enthusiasm of staff working in further education, and fails to address the real-terms pay cut they have suffered in recent years.
“Strike action is always a last resort but our members are clear that the Association of Colleges needs to return to the table with an appropriate pay offer in order to resolve this dispute.”
Marc Whitworth, the AoC’s director of employment policy and services, said: “Strikes are very disruptive for colleges and more importantly for students.
“The pay recommendation of zero per cent made by the Association of Colleges reflects the specific financial challenges faced by our members.
“Colleges are facing increases to pension and national insurance contributions during 2015/16 and this coupled with reductions in funding mean that we have been unable to recommend an unsustainable increase in costs to our college members.
“No further dialogue has been scheduled with our union colleagues regarding this cycle of negotiations.”
UCU has around 20,000 members in around 200 colleges affected by the strike, a spokesperson said. Not all colleges will be taking part as some have reached local pay deals, the spokesperson said.
Unison has around 25,000 members in FE colleges. Unison members will be taking action in around 170 colleges, a spokesperson said.
Provision paid for by advanced learner loans will have to be delivered directly by lead providers from the start of 2017/18, the Skills Funding Agency (SFA) has revealed.
The announcement was made on the SFA website this afternoon.
It said that the agency would “cease to allow subcontracting within the advanced learner loans programme from the start of the 2017 to 2018 funding year”.
This means, it added, that delivery of all loans-funded subcontracted learning aims must be completed by July 31 next year.
Providers must also “not enter any new subcontracting agreements for the delivery of loans funded provision in 2016 to 2017, over and above those which they are already be engaged with in 2015 to 2016,” it said.
Meanwhile, in 2016/17 “any provider which holds a loans facility directly with the SFA cannot also act as a subcontractor to another prime contractor for the delivery of loans funded provision,” the SFA added.
The agency also confirmed that it will be contacting existing loans subcontractors over the next week “whom it considers may meet its criteria to access a loans facility directly”.
These organisations will be invited to apply for a direct loans facility for the 2016/2017 funding year — subject, where applicable, to them entering the SFA register of training organisations and “passing the capacity and capability questions”, a spokesperson added.
Stewart Segal, chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP) raised concern about the planned changes.
He said: “AELP agrees that providers should be able to take a direct loan facility if they are able.”
But he added: “Where a subcontracting arrangements works for both a prime and a subcontractor and more specifically the learner then those arrangements should be allowed to continue, as they allow for greater learner choice.
“We should therefore monitor the situation over a longer period before making any changes, as we believe many of the examples of subcontracting that are often cited are not what we would categorise as subcontracting at all.”
Lead contractors get a loans allocation each year, which they can use up for their learners in non-funded or co-funded courses.
The learner applies for the loan, but their loan comes out of the provider’s allocation.
Lead providers can currently pass on some of their allocation to their subcontractors to use with the subcontractors’ learners, and it is this that the SFA wants to stop.
It comes after SFA funding and programmes director Keith Smith warned college leaders last November that they need to face up to a future without sub-contracting.
Hartpury College rugby players took their skills and speed to the next level as they faced the stars of the England national side.
The squad of 15 students from the Gloucester-based college took part in a training session with Eddie Jones’ senior England side at Pennyhill Park.
After a strict breakfast and a briefing from the country’s head coach, they were put through their paces by England and Hartpury’s coaching staff.
England used the session to prepare for their opening victory in the Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland on 6 February.
Hartpury director of rugby, Alan Martinovic, said: “While we pride ourselves on the international players we produce, the majority of them won’t end up playing at this level, so it really was something special.”
Hartpury will provide the training opposition again ahead of England’s third match with Ireland at Twickenham on
27 February.
Main pic: Hartpury RFC winger Jonas Mikalcius, aged 21, (right) goes head-to-head with England national full-back, Mike Brown (left)
A Salford City College learner has secured a place in the final of a national modelling competition after gaining national attention through shaving off her hair for charity, writes Billy Camden.
Leah with her long locks before shaving her head
Salford City College learner Leah Dean will be strutting down the catwalk during the Miss Teen Model UK competition, thanks to her money-raising efforts which gained widespread coverage for Cancer Research UK.
The inspirational 17-year-old shaved her head last July to raise funds for the charity, after her former school teacher from the Albion Academy, Michelle Holding, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014.
“When I found out I was devastated,” Leah said. “The way she [Ms Holding] dealt with it and the strength she showed, made me want to do something to show my support.”
Leah received a huge backing on social media after shaving her hair, which resulted in her raising more than £3,000 for Cancer Research UK.
Her story was later picked up by local and national media outlets, including the Mirror, which led to her being approached by a top modelling agency, which put the student forward for the Miss Teen Model UK competition.
“I quite suited the shaved look,” Leah said. “Everyone started comparing me to Sinead O’Connor and the modelling agency said they saw potential in me to grow as a model and to represent a different type of model.
“Women models nowadays all seem to follow the same look. They are all around 5ft 8ins and have long hair, they just look like copies of each other.”
But at 5ft 3ins and with cropped hair, Leah is looking to break that mould.
“We come from a very diverse society and therefore to accommodate that, we need to have models that represent every sort of person.
“I am happy to fly the flag for the real people who come in all different shapes and sizes and different hair lengths,” she said.
Leah is now one of five finalists, and is looking forward to attending the grand final in Warrington on 26 June.
Leah’s charitable streak continued on Boxing Day last year when she won £600 on a scratch card, and donated it all to flood victims in her local area.
“I went to the shop to get the general bread and milk and I had a pound or so change left, so I bought a scratch card,” Leah explained.
“I took it home and scratched it and won £600. I started spending the money in my head and I was going to put it towards my university savings, but after watching the news, I couldn’t keep that money knowing other people out there were left with nothing. So I donated it.”
When she’s not raising money for charity, Leah is studying level three IT software at Salford City College.
She is a strong advocate for getting more girls into IT, explaining: “IT is a very male-oriented industry, but I believe in the equality of women, so I think that they should be entitled to the same opportunities.”
Once she finishes at college, Leah plans to go to university to train to be an IT teacher, as she would like to be a role model for young girls who want to get into the industry.
Main pic: Salford City College learner Leah Dean shaves off her hair for Cancer Research UK
A group of budding engineers from North Shropshire College (NSC) made a pit stop to the Williams Martini Racing F1 Factory.
The 14 learners, who all study either engineering or mechanics, visited the advanced engineering section of the factory, learning how employees with the racing team use their scientific knowledge to solve everyday problems.
They were invited along after winning a prize-draw competition hosted by Randstad Student Support, a provider of learning support staff, at the Association of Colleges conference in Birmingham last November.
NSC motor vehicle lecturer Derek Coffey said: “It was a fantastic day out. The students really enjoyed the visit, giving a real insight into what career choices and apprenticeships are available at advanced engineering firms such as Williams.”
Sadie Besley, Operations Director, Randstad Student Support said: “It was fantastic to see the students engage with the experience and fully embrace all the elements that create a successful F1 team.”
Main pic, from left: learners Christian Ball, aged 17, Jonathan Donaldson, 17, Jonathan Pinches, 17, Karen Guthrie, Randstad student and worker support, students Dylan Bowyer, 18, Rhys Arnold, 17, Rachel Ara Grant, 17, Jade Williams, 16
Talented Walsall College dance students performed at the Birmingham Hippodrome theatre ahead of award-winning director Matthew Bourne’s production of Sleeping Beauty.
Level three learners Ann-Marie Wood, aged 18, Chelsea Cowley, 17, Emily Hartshorne, 18, and Faye Bolan, 16, impressed the audience with a brand new five-minute dance inspired by the main show, called The Beauties Awake.
They performed ahead of Tony Award winning director Mr Bourne’s staging of Sleeping Beauty.
Chelsea said: “Being involved in the project has been an eye-opener into the professional world of dance, and it’s just made be more determined to make it in the industry myself.”
In the build-up to the big night, the students attended regular rehearsals and worked with a professional choreographer and two members of Mr Bourne’s New Adventures cast.
Performing arts lecturer Julie Wright said: “This was a fantastic opportunity for the students to build up their experience of performing to a live audience and working in a professional environment.”
Main pic, from left: Walsall College dancers Ann-Marie Wood, Chelsea Cowley, Emily Hartshorne and Faye Bolan (front) during rehearsals at the Birmingham Hippodrome theatre
Three Lambeth College snappers have won awards at the RealLife Photography exhibition.
Held at the Menier Gallery in London, the BTec level three diploma in photography learners exhibited work that explored themes of space and community in the context of wellbeing.
Jessni Teeluck, aged 18, won the most artistic category, while Milton Furtado, 22, was named best on brief, and Kiera Johnson-Liddle, 19, was recognised for producing the best technical photograph.
Mark Silverman, principal of Lambeth College, said: “This was a great opportunity for our learners. It was also good to see family and friends get involved and participate in their learning experience.”
Each of the winners was awarded a cash prize of £50 and a certificate.
Main pic: Milton Furtado’s winning photograph in the best on brief category at the RealLife Photography exhibition
Kiera Johnson-Liddle with her best technical photographJessni Teeluck with her winning photograph in the most artistic category
Angry providers have slammed the government’s failure to fully fund all their apprenticeship growth requests as “appalling” and “destabilising”.
The comments were made by respondents to an FE Week survey carried out in the wake of the Skills Funding Agency (SFA) announcement on 5 February explaining how the money would be portioned out.
The funding agency said it had awarded £25m to colleges and training providers to deliver 16 to 18 apprenticeships in 2015/16 — but that left many providers short-changed, with many receiving much less than they had asked for.
In addition, no requests for traineeship growth had been funded.
The 30 people who completed our survey told FE Week they had put in a combined total of £3,187,179 in 16 to 18 apprenticeship growth requests for the period from August to March 2015/16 (period 1 to 8), but had only received 63 per cent — or £2,009,466 — of that amount.
Jill Nagy, the chief executive of Rochdale Training Association (RTA), said that while they had received all the 16 to 18 apprenticeship growth requests they’d put in for period 1 to 8, they had received no growth funding for the period from April to July.
RTA had already committed to over-delivering to the tune of £150,000 for this period, which was “a risk to us as a charitable body which could potentially rise to £350,000 if we dare to continue to recruit”, she said.
Mark Durham, the chief executive of the Training Trust, in Essex, called for “answers from government” on the situation, adding that “the public need to know this to put the pressure on”.
Adrian Gunner, the managing director of South West Regional Assessment Centre (SWRAC), described the news that there was no cash for traineeship growth as “appalling”.
SWRAC put in a bid for £100,000 in traineeship growth over period 1 to 8, having been effectively encouraged to over-deliver, Mr Gunner said.
As a result, they now have “a substantial number of very vulnerable learners whom we now have a big doubt over how we can help them”, he said.
Steve Roe, chief executive of Yorkshire-based Avant Partnership, which had unsuccessfully bid for extra apprenticeship and traineeship cash, described the situation as “potentially destabilising for the whole sector”.
In a statement, the SFA said: “We assess all provider growth cases to ensure they secure high quality opportunities for young people.”
SFA chief — we can’t operate in a demand-led environment
Peter Lauener
Peter Lauener, chief executive of the Skills Funding Agency and Education Funding Agency, was asked about the growth requests chaos during a talk at The Skills Summit in London on Thursday. He said: “We were not able to allocate so much money to 16 to 18 apprenticeship growth although we were able, after carefully balancing the books in the Department for Education, to allocate £25m additional funding in the current year. It took three weeks longer than we’d originally hoped, but I don’t think we reached a bad place even if not everyone got everything that they asked for.
“What no department or agency can do is allocate money that’s not there. We’ve never been able to give an absolute guarantee on growth funding. But we then need to work that into future plans. We’re looking now at the allocations for 16/17, which of course are due out very soon. And we’ll say, have we got enough in the apprenticeship pot? And if more young people are going into apprenticeships, are there fewer young people going into other routes? We’ve got the data on that, so we’re having to adjust and calibrate.
“We did allocate £25m extra. What we can’t do is operate in a demand-led environment. We can’t allocate money just on whim. That would get me appearing at the Public Accounts Committee in an indefensible case faster than anything else.”
Jill Nagy, chief executive, Rochdale Training Association
“SFA has given us funding for period 1 to 8 to cover all 16 to 18 apprentices on the system at the of period 4 – 100 per cent of period 1 to 8 request. No new funding for traineeships and no growth funding for periods 9 to 12. Our existing apprenticeship carry-in value to period 9 to 12 already exceeds our MCV by circa £150,000. This is a risk to us as a charitable body which could potentially rise to £350,000, if we dare to continue to recruit. The SFA performance management process clearly broke down at review point 1. We now have no confidence in the system and have been given no reassurance that funding will be available and that timetables will be adhered to. The notification that we had been successful with our bid for period 1 to 8 came 80 per cent of the way through that financial period. This is clearly not a sustainable model for managing any business, let alone something as important as growing apprenticeships by 3 million in this parliament.”
Mark Durham, chief executive, Training Trust (WFCCTT)
“I think we need some answers from government, not just through the Skills Funding Agency. Also the public need to know this to put the pressure on, not just kept between us in the wider college/provider network.
These numpties were elected on the promise of a future in building the country from within and now the goal posts have been ripped out of the pitch, nowhere to aim at now!”
Steve Roe, chief executive, Avant Partnership
“We will also not be the only provider in this position. Many others, like us will have invested substantial resources (including staff time, equipment, materials, marketing and liaison with referral agencies) in developing what we understood to be priority provision for young people. It is unacceptable and extremely inefficient to continually operate on a stop/start basis, which is unprofessional but also potentially destabilising for the whole sector. How would the SFA want us to respond to the young people and employers?”
‘’The position we, along with many other training providers, now find ourselves in is disappointing. The system permits growth requests but in order to be in a position to prove your ability to meet such requests you need to have over-achieved contract tolerance which due to the success of our award-winning 16 to 18 programme, is exactly what we’ve done. To then be told that due to the national overspend in 16 to 18 provision there is now no funding for growth after all, effectively means that MiddletonMurray has made a ‘donation’ to the government of over £600k in free training. Whilst we pride ourselves on our commitment to the communities we serve, we hadn’t planned on being quite so altruistic as this!”
Adrian Gunner, managing director, South West Regional Assessment Centre
“In response to government policy we have worked to develop traineeship provision to meet a significant need within the local authority areas of Bournemouth, Poole and Dorset. A provision which has been successful and well received by the authorities – working with the most NEET people. The SFA had alluded that growth in this area could be requested and it was clear that the only way to demonstrate an ability to meet growth was by over-delivering. We are now in a position where the SFA have effectively encouraged us to work for no income and we have a substantial number of very vulnerable learners whom we now have a big doubt over how we can help them. For the SFA/EFA and government to take so long to come up with this is appalling and their inefficiencies really do need to be called into question.”
