The findings of an official investigation into defunct training provider Elmfield are on the desk of Skills Minister Matthew Hancock, FE Week can reveal.

A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) would not say if the report would be made public, but MPs on the Business, Innovation and Skills select committee were expected to grill the minister on the issue next month.

Committee chair Adrian Bailey said: “I understand that the findings are currently with the minister.

“I have no information yet whether it will be made public, but we will be interviewing the minister in early April. Obviously if it is not [made public] by then the minister will be questioned on the reasons for this.”

He confirmed Mr Hancock would be questioned by the committee on April 1 or 8.

The committee is also planning to call former Elmfield director Ged Syddall  and Skills Funding Agency (SFA) finance director Paul McGuire to a later hearing, but no date has been finalised for this.

Mr Syddall previously appeared before Mr Bailey’s committee in April 2012, when he said Elmfield’s entire income of £30m in 2011/12 came from public funds and defended his own £3m company dividend.

But a BBC Newsnight probe screened in October last year, supported with information uncovered by FE Week, put Elmfield back in the spotlight over its dealings with workers at supermarket giant Morrisons.

It was alleged Elmfield signed Morrisons staff up to apprenticeship programmes they had declined, enabling the provider to claim public funding for training.

A separate probe into the allegations was launched around five months ago by the SFA which has now concluded.

A BIS spokesperson said: “The report has been received and is now being considered by the minister.”

Both BIS and the SFA declined to comment on whether the report will be made public.

Elmfield went into administration in November last year owing £11m.

It was in debt to more than 180 firms, including provider Skillsfirst Awards which was set up by Mr Syddall and owed £863,550.

A spokesperson for the company said Mr Syddall no longer had any involvement in either the running or day-to-day finances of Skillsfirst.

After it went into administration, the majority of Elmfield’s business and assets were sold for £1.5m to EQL Solutions Ltd, which is 100 per cent owned by CareTech Holdings plc. It is understood the deal saved 300 jobs.

The Morrisons contract was sold to NCG (formerly Newcastle College Group) for £20,000, which is belived to have saved the remaining 50 jobs at the company.

Further concerns that valuable qualifications could fall victim to a government cull have been raised after a leading awarding organisation saved nine of its qualifications from the public funding axe, but lost three.

The Skills Funding Agency (SFA) has published its first list of qualifications eligible for funding in 2014/15.

The list includes 6,558 qualifications — almost half the 13,011 on the final list for the current academic year.

But NCFE, which managed to save nine of its qualifications after appeal in the SFA’s “exception” process, has raised concerns about the cuts.

Chief executive David Grailey said: “We feel that many of the qualifications in danger of losing funding actually do have real value to learners and what’s more, they’re held in high regard by employers.

“For these qualifications within NCFE’s portfolio, we are working hard to secure their funding for the 2014/15 session.

“For example, we proactively put in an appeal with the SFA for a number of qualifications to be considered as exceptions.”

The nine NCFE qualifications saved, all level two certificates, include areas such as customer service, business and health.

Mr Grailey said: “We felt that there were qualifications on the list in the health and social care sector such as ‘working in mental health’ and ‘end of life care’ which fill a skills gap and are integral to those who work in this incredibly worthwhile profession.

“Therefore, we’re pleased that the SFA is treating these qualifications as exceptions and granting them public funding.”

The news comes after Skills Minister Matthew Hancock announced that the axe would fall on upwards of 5,000 qualifications, leading, it was claimed, to savings of almost £200m. But the minister faced criticisms for seeming to belittle some qualifications which help vulnerable people into work.

However, other organisations have welcomed the clarity of new funding criteria, but questioned the need for some of the rules, including a 15-credit threshold.

Charlotte Bosworth, skills and employment director for Oxford Cambridge and RSA (OCR) Examinations, said: “Some of the rules do feel a bit arbitrary — particularly around size and where 16-19 performance table criteria have been adopted.

“It seems more about ‘system tidiness’ than considering what is needed to support adults into sustainable employment. It is just as important to develop the values, habits and characteristics needed in work as to foster direct technical knowledge about an occupation.”

Under the SFA’s exceptions scheme, providers can make submissions to the government of qualifications they think should be included on the 2014/15 list. Submissions for 2013/14 are also still being accepted until early May.

Further education leaders have welcomed Ofsted plans that would allow parents and learners to compare the post-16 performance of school sixth forms with that of colleges.

A separate inspection grade for school sixth forms could be introduced under much-anticipated proposals put out to consultation by the education watchdog.

An Ofsted spokesperson had told FE Week in July of the plans, adding that the effectiveness of post-16 provision did already inform wider inspection judgements on a school and that Ofsted recognised the importance of sixth forms in helping students to progress to employment or higher education.

And Ofsted’s national director for schools, Michael Cladingbowl, said this month: “It’s important that parents and young people have a clear understanding of how well the school’s sixth form is doing so they can make informed choices about where to continue their studies when they reach 16.”

Martin Doel (pictured left), Association of Colleges chief executive, said: “We have been pressing for many years for school sixth form provision to be graded separately in order for parents and students to be able to make a considered judgement about the best place to continue their studies.

“With the variety of options for 16-year-olds, it’s imperative there’s a robust comparison managed through an inspection regime that compares all provision in the same way.

“It doesn’t make sense that a school can be judged outstanding while its sixth form, if compared with a college’s provision, is only satisfactory.

“This long-overdue reform will help students and parents but it will be important to ensure inspectors use the same standards in school sixth forms and colleges.”

James Kewin (pictured below), Sixth Form Colleges’ Association deputy chief executive, said: “We have long campaigned for Ofsted to inspect school sixth forms and sixth form colleges in the same way.

“This proposal is an important step in the right direction and will help students to make an informed choice about where to study in the sixth form.

“At the moment, the absence of a separate grade can mask the quality of sixth forms in schools.”

The Association of Teachers and Lecturers also welcomed the move, but was critical of the timing.

Its general secretary, Dr Mary Bousted (pictured), said: “We are not particularly opposed to separate judgements for sixth forms, but ask why Ofsted is not introducing this at the same time as all the other recent and planned changes?”

She added: “Ofsted will never rebuild its reputation with teachers and heads while it constantly moves the goalposts for how it carries out inspections.”

The eight-week consultation, which ends on May 13, asks: “Should there be a separate graded judgement on the effectiveness of a school’s sixth form?” The change would apply to maintained schools and academies.

The consultation also proposes introducing separate graded judgements on the quality of nursery and reception in its inspection reports.

Mr Cladingbowl added: “We are keen to hear the views of parents and learners as well as providers about our proposals to bring in these separate judgements.

“We are also giving a lot of thought to how school inspection might develop over the longer term and will bring forward proposals for consultation in due course.”

Visit the Ofsted website for details on how to take part in the consultation.

The Education Funding Agency has announced it is freezing rates for 2014/15, prompting criticism that the sector is facing a “real terms” cut.

The agency said it would continue paying an unweighted full-time rate of £4,000 for 16 and 17-year-olds while implementation of a 17.5 per cent rate cut for 18-year-olds will see the age group’s funding drop to £3,300.
It also said the part-time rate for 16, 17 and 18-year-olds would go untouched.

Stewart Segal, chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers, said: “The freezing of the funding rate means in real terms providers are being asked to deliver more for less.”

The deputy chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association James Kewin said the national rate for 16 and 17-year-olds was “still well below what colleges need to ensure all students can successfully progress”.

“Rather than conjuring up a national rate and telling colleges to deliver what they can for it, funding should be based on an assessment of what it actually costs to provide a rounded and relevant education,” he said.
He described the 18-year-old rate cut as “ill-informed and pernicious” and likely to affect “educationally vulnerable” learners.

The agency confirmed allocations, due to be published this month, would incorporate a 2 per cent cap limiting the effect of the 18-year-old cut on providers’ total budgets.

It further said it would fund places for 1.54m young people in 2014/15 with a total budget of £7.18m. “These volumes will keep us on track to provide a place for all young people who want to participate and to enable 16 year-olds to meet their new duty to participate in education or training,” it said.

However, the Association of Colleges (AoC) also argued this amounted to a real terms cut. Julian Gravatt (pictured), AoC assistant chief executive, said: “It will mean colleges, who’ve coped with year-on-year cuts since 2010, will need to do more with even less money.”

He added he was “relieved” by the 2 per cent cap, but said the measure “doesn’t address the underlying financial challenges facing colleges and sixth form colleges and will only cushion the blow for a year”.
“Funding for 16 to 18 cannot sustain a further cut without quality suffering and the financial health of colleges being irreparably damaged,” warned Mr Gravatt.

Lynne Sedgmore, executive director of the 157 Group, said: “It is disappointing that the government has chosen not to review its decision. While the one-year mitigation is of some relief, we continue to make the case very strongly that this cut will hit those who most need education the hardest, and to push for a review.”

Ofsted’s careers guidance boss has called for “flexibility and functionality” in English and maths GCSEs.

Karen Adriaanse, the education watchdog’s national lead for careers guidance, told MPs on the House of Commons Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee how she thought the government could improve adult literacy and numeracy.

“One of the things that government could do, and certainly has started to do, is to raise the profile nationally of English and maths across the board,” she said on Tuesday, March 18.

“I think talking about basic and skills in literacy and numeracy is not necessarily helpful, but talking about English and maths almost instantly raises the profile.

“We also need to diminish the stigma through things in everyday life, even in things like and soap operas and films, so people understand that this is a problem that anybody can have, and also then celebrating when it makes a difference.

“What there still isn’t in this country is a strong culture that teaching English and maths to adults who haven’t been able to succeed in class is a difficult thing to do and it needs to be recognised as a high professional career with postgraduate qualifications, and support to make sure that they really have the expertise to motivate.

“I know the government is revising GCSE qualifications in English and maths, and it’s important that this isn’t just seen as a qualification for schoolchildren. It is a qualification for adults, too, but there needs to be flexibility and functionality — flexibility in assessment procedures and functionality in content.”

The committee, which was holding its second session on adult literacy and numeracy, also heard from Skills Funding Agency executive director of funding Keith Smith, who defended qualifications from suggestions they put off adult learners.

He said: “What’s important when you’re putting investment into such an important area is that we’re clear about the standards we expect to be achieved and qualifications are a measure of that and it’s vitally important that qualifications that people study are the right ones.

“I think that’s very much been the discussion over the last couple of years. That was certainly the debate around the investment that went into adult literacy and numeracy pre-Functional Skills — that it wasn’t making people progress — therefore the qualifications were made more rigorous through Functional Skills and that’s obviously being looked at again through GCSE reforms.”

The Education Funding Agency is to continue paying providers an unweighted full-time rate of £4,ooo for 16 and 17-year-olds while 18-year-old funding drops to £3,300.

The agency is notifying providers of its funding rates for 2014/15 and has said the full-time, and also part-time, rate for 16 and 17-year-olds will be untouched.

The unweighted full-time rate for 18-year-olds drops 17.5 per cent, as reported in FE Week in December, to £3,300. It will be untouched for the age group’s part-time learners.

The agency also confirmed its allocations, due out by the end of the month, would incorporate a 2 per cent cap limiting the 18-year-old funding rate cut’s effect on provider budgets.