Making sense of the T word

The T word may strike fear into some work-based learning providers, but help is at hand to make sense of technology and to find out how it has benefited others, Stan Unwin

Provision of work-based learning (WBL) has some way to go in making the most of what advantages the (appropriate) use of technology can bring.

Some applications, like e-portfolios and virtual learning environments, are well known, but often misunderstood by providers and there is a range of supposed barriers that can affect an organisation’s willingness to explore.

For example, technology can be expensive, but it needn’t be. Money can easily be wasted on the purchase of inappropriate technology.

Technology can also be complicated, requiring technical knowledge, but again, it needn’t be. Lack of preparing staff adequately for what is proposed can be a bigger problem. A little bit of training at the right time works.

And technology may not be suitable for a particular sector, but there is usually an alternative that could work. It’s about knowing what the alternatives are.

What is needed more than anything else is a structured approach and a good measure of ‘joined-up thinking’.

Technology on its own will achieve nothing. It’s how and why the technology is to be introduced that will make the difference — and if the wrong technology is used in an inappropriate way the result may make things even worse.

One big factor that affects the wider take-up of effective technologies in the WBL sector is that this level of development often relies on there being the funding to support it.

Technology on its own will achieve nothing. It’s how and why the technology is to be introduced that will make the difference ”

Which leads nicely on to the opportunities presented by the Joint Information Systems Committee (Jisc) FE and Skills Development and Resources Programme.

Introduced last year, the programme offered sector providers and agencies the chance to apply existing resources (from Jisc or elsewhere) to their work and adapt them for their needs; and to identify gaps in these resources or current uses for technology leading to the development of additional resources for the sector.

The programme has supported a number of successful projects nationally, some within WBL and two of which feature in our workshop. The success of these projects owes a lot to the early involvement and support of staff from the Jisc Regional Support Centres (RSCs), who were able to advise and guide both on the project aims and the technology to be used.

Both featured projects will provide other organisations in the sector with valuable feedback on what they have achieved and how they did it, the benefits that have been realised and the lessons that have been learned. Both will also demonstrate that a lot can be done within a modest budget.

An important feature of Jisc-funded projects is that resources developed and outcomes are shared within the FE and skills sector, providing useful information to others who may be planning a similar exercise.

Finding out what others have tried, their successes and failures, their costs and return on investment is invaluable to any provider thinking of taking the plunge.

Promotion within the WBL sector of this willingness to share and to work collaboratively is high on the Jisc RSC agenda. Much of the work already carried out within wider FE and skills to develop the use of technology is already benefiting WBL where much can be done to adapt and adopt ideas for application in a vocational/workplace setting

Jisc RSCs exist to support providers in their consideration, planning and implementation of technological development; to provide information and guidance that will assist in identifying what, how and when to use technology.

To be most effective this advice needs to be sought at the outset and that requires organisations to apply their thinking to the’ ‘what’ rather than the ‘how’. If you have an idea of your targets and what you would like to achieve that is the time to involve your Jisc RSC. We can then work with you to develop the most appropriate plan of action and the best use of technology.

Stan Unwin, WBL adviser, Jisc Regional Support Centre East Midlands

Event proves a piece of cake

More than 500 delegates attended the 11th national conference of the Association for Employment and Learning Providers (AELP), described as a “terrific” two days by outgoing chief executive Graham Hoyle.

The event in London was chaired by Chris Humphries CBE, the chairman of National Numeracy and the founding chief executive of the UK Commission for Employment Skills.

Half the FE Week team was there to meet the challenge of producing a 16-page supplement covering the conference’s first day, which included the launch of a ‘mini-manifesto’ and a speech from incoming AELP chief executive Stewart Segal (pictured below centre).

It was put together from a hotel room, and printed in time for the gala dinner. A copy is included with this week’s full edition.

The 2013 conference focused on sharing best practice between providers, emerging policy positions and extensive question and answer sessions. The conference also addressed issues such as improving support for young people in challenging economic times, better integration of employment and skills provision for the unemployed, and improving providers’ delivery to employers and learners.

The conference was a terrific illustration in how far AELP has come as an organisation in the past 10 years”

Delegates also had the chance to hear about the development of the Education Training Foundation, formerly known as the FE Guild, and to debate the possible devolution of skills budgets to local employer partnerships (LEPs). Doug Richard fielded questions on the government’s response to his review on apprenticeships.

Day one ended with the annual gala dinner. Following a three-course meal, delegates were treated to a ‘This is Your Life’ tribute to Mr Hoyle. Presented by Paul Warner, contributions were made by the likes of Peter Lauener, chief executive of the Education Funding Agency, and Geoff Russell, former chief executive of the Skills Funding Agency, who submitted a video message recorded while he was in Bulgaria.

There were also performances from DrumChasers and this year’s Britain’s Got Talent semi-finalist, magician James More.

FE Week editor Nick Linford gave an impromptu performance alongside DrumChaser (pictured), surprising many with his drumming skills.

Graham Hoyle cutting his FE Week cartoon cake with editor Nick Linford

It was the last conference for  Mr Hoyle who retires this August after 11 years at the helm. To mark his farewell, FE Week commissioned our baker in Sydenham, London, to bake a special cake (see picture). The chief executive was presented with his cake, which featured a cartoon from our March 4 edition when we published news of Mr Hoyle’s retirement, during lunch on the second day.

He spoke to FE Week following the conference. “I have had a word with my wife about the supply of some of the photographs for the This is Your Life segment at the dinner,” he said.

“More seriously, I was greatly touched by both the tribute at the dinner and the other ones offered by speakers and AELP members throughout the conference.

The conference was a terrific illustration in how far AELP has come as an organisation in the past 10 years and I look forward to watching Stewart and the board building on the progress achieved.”

Mr Segal said: “I was particularly impressed by the high quality of the speakers. The publication of our manifesto also gave the event some real focus in terms of gathering members’ views on the policy
recommendations listed in it.

“This provides a great basis for us to move forward as we start to flesh out the detail. It is really important that AELP members continue to give us feedback on the
recommendations.”

The FE Week team at the  end of the AELP conference gala dinner. From left: Rebecca Cooney, Helen Neilly, Shane Mann, Eleanor Radford, Hannah Smith, Victoria Boyle, Chris Henwood and (front) Nick Linford 

Arise Sir Charlie

The world of FE is to welcome a new knight of the realm in UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) chair Charlie Mayfield (pictured).

He features in the 2013 Queen’s Birthday Honours List for services to business.

Mr Mayfield, from Newbury, Berkshire, is also chair of the John Lewis Partnership and was appointed to his post on the UKCES in November 2010.

“The knighthood is richly-deserved. Charlie’s quite an inspirational character and we’re honoured and privileged to have him as our chair,” said a UKCES spokesperson.

There were CBEs handed out for services to the FE sector to Sally Anne Dicketts, from Oxford, principal of Oxford and Cherwell Valley College and chair of Reading College, and Tony Lau-Walker, from Guildford, chief executive at Eastleigh College and also a UKCES member.

Meanwhile, Neil Scott Wishart McIntosh, from Goring, Oxfordshire, chief executive of CfBT Education Trust got one for services to education, as did Dinah Elizabeth Caine OBE, from London, chief executive of Creative Skillset for services to the creative industries.

Further honours for FE figures, and those related to the sector, came with…

OBEs for services to FE

Stephen John Grix, from Higham, Kent, principal of MidKent College

Janet Hodges, from Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, chief executive at The Edge Foundation

Teresa Kelly, from Birmingham, principal, Abingdon and Witney College — also for services to young people with learning difficulties and disabilities

James Edward Mutton, from Hinckley, Leicestershire, lately principal at Loughborough College

Pauline Odulinski, from Thame, Oxfordshire, principal at Aylesbury College

Anne Catherine Oxborough, from Exeter, lately assistant principal at Exeter College

 

OBE for services to education

David John Kendal Rosbottom, from Wigan, chair of governors at Winstanley College

 

MBEs for services to FE

Alan Lawrence Gordon-Stables, from Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, governor at West Suffolk College

Richard Holste, from Eastbourne, chair of corporation at Sussex Downs College

David William Millington, from Wrexham, chair of corporation at Salford City College

Mary Rimington, from London, deputy principal for curriculum at City and Islington College

 

MBEs for services to education

Christopher John Hall, from Solihull, lately assistant principal at Joseph Chamberlain Sixth Form College, Birmingham

Gary James Warke, from East Riding, chief executive at Hull College Group

 

MBE for services to social enterprise and to the community

Anna Jane Mimms, from Woodborough, Nottinghamshire, chief executive at Broxtowe Education, Skills and Training, Nottingham

 

MBE for services to adult education

Parminder Kaur, from West Drayton, Middlesex, union learning representative at Heathrow Worldwide Distribution Centre, Royal Mail

 

MBE for services to education in Northern Ireland

Alice McDaniel, from Downpatrick, County Down, teacher at South Eastern Regional College

 

MBE for HM Prison Service and to prisoner education

Stephen Paice, from Wolverhampton, manager at HM Prison Featherstone

 

MBE for services to hospitality and catering vocational education in North Wales

Dr Shyam Sunder Patiar, from Llandudno, consultant at Coleg Llandrillo Cymru

 

MBE for services to skills and training in the construction sector

William Robert Williams, from Carmarthenshire, founder of WRW Group

 

MBE for services to young people and the community in East London

Dr Kaneez Shaid, from London, marketing manager at Sir George Monoux College, in Walthamstow

Nic Dakin, MP for Scunthorpe

It’s not easy to lead 2,500 students and 250 staff, head up hundreds of local authority staff or train to be an accountant.

Yet Nic Dakin has done all three.

The 57-year-old has also taught English for 30 years, spent four years as principal at John Leggott College in Scunthorpe and was North Lincolnshire council leader during time out from education.

MP for Scunthorpe since 2010, he is a member of the Education Select Committee, works with 20 all-party parliamentary groups and champions campaigns such as No Free Lunch, which is pushing for free meals for disadvantaged students in FE and sixth-form colleges to bring them on a par with their peers in schools.

“My wife would say I work too hard,” says Dakin who met other half Audrey during his secondary school days in Birstall, Leicestershire.

“But there are always things to do. Perhaps that comes from an upbringing of trying to do things as well as possible, and an ingrained working-class approach to work.”

He is clearly driven by a determination to see equality and opportunity for all, although  he is the first to admit that his journey has been “random” with no strict game plan.

“You get a job, do it to the best of your ability, and then another comes along,” he says.

“I would just like to see those who struggle the most with very low incomes, and whose lives are very challenging, have more opportunities — the same as those who drift through life in a privileged way.”

Dakin was attracted to politics because he wanted to try to “make a difference”.

And education is key, he says. “Tony Blair’s ‘education, education, education’ resonates with me . . . politicians should trust educators more. It’s important to challenge and to hold to account, but forever changing things is not the best way to get the best for the young people of this country,” says Dakin.

In Finland and Singapore, countries with education systems often pointed to as very successful, he says there is a “consensus across political parties that they don’t forever change things”.

“They have a long-term view; their secretaries of state don’t think they know best what the history curriculum should be,” says Dakin, who studied history at the University of Hull before completing his PGCE at King’s College London. (He’d earlier studied accountancy, but gave it up after a year in favour of teaching.)

“This meddling of politicians, particularly the case with the current leadership, could debilitate schools and colleges. There needs to be a mechanism locally for people in FE to crack on with less interference. Local government is obsessed with what it can measure — why not just trust people a little more?”

Should local enterprise partnerships (LEPs) have more influence in education?

He says more resources deployed in partnership with the LEP at local colleges would allow it to be more responsive to what businesses need.

“I’ve chaired a skills commission for the Humberside LEP and it’s been interesting listening to what businesses have been saying — they want schools and colleges producing people with good literacy, numeracy and employability skills. It seems fairly simple.

“In the Humber we are hoping that jobs will take off in the renewables’ industry. There are some major planning applications through Siemens and Able UK that ought to bring tens of thousands of jobs to the region.”

But how will people be prepared for these jobs?

“Give LEPs a bit more purchase on what they’re asking of FE and schools and colleges, and FE will deliver,” insists Dakin, who had his first teaching job at Greatfield High School, a “tough” secondary in Hull.

He says campaigns such as the Association of College’s No Free Lunch illustrate the way FE is treated differently from the rest of education.

“It’s not fair and it discriminates against young people who choose to go to FE
post-16,” he says.

“I’ve done a lot to champion the role and quality of further education, particularly sixth-form colleges, where I worked most of
my career.

“They have done a cracking job over the years but are still a Cinderella in the system.  Funding for 16 to 18-year-olds has really been squeezed and is hitting these colleges
hard . . . if this continues, we might have to question whether they will be able to maintain the quality of their work.”

Dakin, who has two daughters and a son, grew up in rural Leicestershire, the eldest of three boys and a girl. His father was a clicker in the shoe industry, his mother a nurse, who retrained to be a teacher.

Both his parents came from large families and were, he says, “intelligent, working-class people who were focused on education, behaving properly and good values. They were not materialistic at all.

“The things that I think are important are pretty similar, so I suppose the way you’re brought up does leave an indelible mark
on you.”

Does he feel that this influenced his leadership style?

“The skill is getting the best out of everybody else,” he says.

“My view is that the leader’s job is to be clear about where you’re going. And there’s no point in charging off on your own — you have to get the best out of your team and take them with you. You have to value people.”

He says that when he was principal he would walk around the college every day to meet staff and to see what they were doing.

“I would challenge them to make sure that they continued to improve, but I would recognise and celebrate their successes as well,” he says.

“Sometimes in this country we’re not very good at saying thank you. It doesn’t take much but can be very motivating to hear someone say that.”

He says of all his roles, he enjoyed being principal most, “directly impacting on lives and seeing opportunities made” for young people.

“Working with young people is exhilarating,” he says.

“It’s never dull. The challenges come from being in charge of any organisation. In the college there were 2,400 students, 250 staff and a multi-million pound budget. The challenges were diverse and constant.”

As well as education, he is also passionate about the environment — sustainable housing, conservation and wildlife — partly inspired by the two years that he spent in Scandinavia teaching English as a foreign language.

“It was an adventure and I realised that things could always be different,” says Dakin of his time in Gavle, Sweden.

“The Swedes did things in different ways and we saw the world in a different way. Their interest and enthusiasm for the environment was overwhelming.”

For now, though, he remains committed to representing Scunthorpe. “The one test for me is whether my constituents think I’ve done a good job,” explains Dakin.

“We have to face the electorate and convince them we can run the economy better than the Conservatives.

“We’ve got to be clear where we’re taking the country — tackle the squeeze on living standards and make sure people can succeed, wherever they’re from.”

It’s a personal thing

What’s your favourite book? 

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

What did you want to be when you were younger?

An actor

What do you do to switch off from work?

I play squash, go walking, watch films and listen to music

If you could invite anyone to a dinner party, living or dead, who would it be?

William Shakespeare, Hilary Mantel, Marilyn Monroe and Nelson Mandela

What would your super power be? 

To have a magic wand that I could wave to solve the wide range of problems that people bring to me

Physical and verbal abuse exposed

The Skills Funding Agency has demanded “immediate action to safeguard the welfare of all trainees” at a Midland-based provider after Ofsted reported physical and verbal bullying, harassment and exploitation.

The education watchdog’s inspection of National Farrier Training Agency (NFTA), in Peterborough, claimed learners suffered at the hands of approved training farriers (ATFs) and “in a small minority of cases by college trainers”.

The report, which downgraded the NFTA (which teaches the shoeing of horses and similar animals) from good to inadequate, said: “Examples of bullying and exploitation of apprentices in the workplace are not identified or resolved adequately by the care, support and guidance provided by the NFTA.

“In the worst cases, apprentices receive verbal abuse and are required to carry out tasks that are humiliating or are not in any way related to the requirements of the apprenticeship.

“In other cases, ATFs use the apprentices’ fear of losing their employment to make unreasonable demands about their working conditions.”

The report continued: “Serious allegations of physical and verbal bullying and harassment by ATFs are not investigated effectively.”

An agency spokesperson said it had been in talks with the NFTA and the Farriers’ Registration Council (FRC) — the accountable body — over Ofsted’s findings.

“Although the inspection report did not name individual learners, the agency insisted that the FRC and NFTA take immediate action to safeguard the welfare of all trainees even before the report was published,” she said.

“The FRC and NFTA contacted all learners to remind them of their rights and the means by which they could safely raise concerns about their treatment. Similar action is being taken to remind ATFs of their responsibilities.

“The agency sought and received specific assurances from the colleges delivering the off-the-job assessment that their arrangements to protect learners were robust, transparent and understood.”

She added: “No new learners can be recruited until this longer-term plan is agreed.

“The agency is working closely with the FRC, NFTA and other stakeholders to ensure the issues identified are addressed effectively for the benefit of learners.”

Ofsted also reported that the 400-apprentice NFTA, its board and the FRC had “been ineffective in applying a coherent strategy that will rationalise the numbers of farriers trained in future years, despite the calls for such work from many registered farriers and a number of stakeholder bodies”.

An NFTA spokesperson said: “Measures have already been put in place to reassure all apprenticeship learners of the zero tolerance to all instances of bullying and harassment, and that immediate action will be taken by the NFTA against any who do not meet the highest standards.

“The FRC and NFTA also stressed their strong commitment on behalf of all involved in farriery training to the implementation of the improvements highlighted in the report as they give all concerned the opportunity to review the provision, structure and content of the farriery training programme so that it retains its reputation for the highest standards of equine welfare in the world.”

The NFTA has three subcontractors — Herefordshire College of Technology, Myerscough College and Warwickshire College, according to Ofsted.

Herefordshire principal Ian Peake said it had “limited” involvement with the learners.

A Myerscough College statement said it was “concerned” by the report and “supportive” of its recommendations and had a “zero tolerance approach to bullying”.

A Warwickshire College spokesperson said Ofsted and the NFTA had said the accusations did not relate to its training.

———————————————————-

Editorial: Invaluable inspection

The Ofsted inspection report on the National Farrier Training Agency demonstrates just how valuable the independent inspectorate can be.

Had the government relied on recruitment and achievement statistics, it seems highly unlikely the ‘physical and verbal bullying’ would ever have been exposed.

Inspectors visited the provider, spoke to staff and learners and established a shocking picture of mistreatment.

The report does not pull its punches and as a result action is being taken, including by the three colleges that subcontract provision.

So, the lesson to be learned?

Ofsted inspections are uniquely placed to look beyond the numbers, and at times nothing else could be more important.

Nick Linford, editor

Audit office examines agency’s performance

Officials from the National Audit Office are investigating the Education Funding Agency to “consider whether it is prepared to meet future challenges”.

The investigation into the Department for Education’s (DfE) delivery agency for funding and compliance is underway with a report due in the autumn.

An audit office spokesperson said: “The agency distributed more than £50bn in 2012-13 to local education providers in England to fund education and training for learners aged 3 to 19 — 3 to 25 for those with learning difficulties.

“The agency is also responsible for the oversight of financial management and governance in open academies, and for major capital programmes in the education sector.

“Our report will examine the performance of the agency to date, and consider whether it is prepared to meet future challenges.”

The spokesperson declined to comment further.

The agency was formed on April 1 last year when the functions of two non-departmental public bodies, the Young People’s Learning Agency (YPLA) and Partnerships for Schools, were brought together.

The agency was also investigated by the audit office last year, with a report published in November called Managing the expansion of the Academies Programme.

It said: “The YPLA and the agency have experienced difficulties meeting staffing requirements for administering funding and monitoring academies’ financial management and governance.”

The latest investigation comes as the audit office launched a report — Financial management in government — calling for more spending control within government departments.

Amyas Morse, head of the audit office, said: “Finance teams in departments and other public bodies have a vital role to play if the government is to deliver the planned public service reform.

“Finance managers are now being taken more seriously and playing a more central role in the efforts to provide sustainable services at lower cost.

“Savings are being made but progress in restructuring how services are being delivered is lagging.

“If the challenge of reforming the delivery of public services is to be met, then the Treasury and Finance Leadership group need to provide more effective impetus to strengthen financial management capability across government.”

An agency spokesperson declined to comment on the latest audit office investigation, which comes just over a year after a committee of MPs said DfE needed to keep a closer eye on its spending.

A report of the Public Accounts Committee concluded: “The department needs to do more work to clearly define how funding streams will be monitored, audit arrangements, and processes to support whistle-blowers.”

The DfE said at the time that steps had been taken to improve accountability.

“The DfE and agency challenge academies if they believe funds are being spent inappropriately,” said a spokesperson.

Careers report ‘ducks’ funding issues

A report that called for a “culture change” on careers guidance has been criticised for shying away from “difficult underlying issues”.

The National Careers Council’s first report, An Aspirational Nation: Creating a culture change in careers provision, featured seven recommendations including a significant expansion in the work of the National Careers Service (NCS).

“A culture change is needed in careers provision for young people and adults to address the mismatch of skills shortages and high unemployment,” said the report, launched earlier this month.

The report of the council, set up by the government in May last year, also called for face-to-face careers guidance to be available to all pupils from the age of 12 (Year 8); and for all students to have a planned progression route upon leaving school. A further recommendation was the creation of an employer-led NCS advisory board.

However, former council members Professor Tony Watts and Heather Jackson distanced themselves from the report, claiming it ducked the issue of funding.

The duo issued a joint statement that said: “We consider the report’s conspicuous omissions represent a major missed opportunity; a reluctance to address the difficult underlying issues, and a level of acquiescence with current government policies with which we would not wish to be associated.”

A council spokesperson said: “Our report acknowledged that to expand the NCS to support schools, young people and parents, would require resourcing . . . it is for the government to respond as to how this may be achieved.”

The duo walked out on the council early last month in a row over a draft of the report that went before Skills Minister Matthew Hancock.

Their damning resignation statement said the draft proposed a rebalancing of funding that allowed the Department for Education (DfE) “to escape its responsibilities”.

They claimed it suggested adult funding from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) — which funded the NCS with £83m in contrast to £7m from the DfE — might be used to pay for young people’s careers guidance.

Their statement on the published report said the issue had not been corrected.

“Most of the recommendations are directed not to the government but to the NCS, without any attention to how its new responsibilities are to be funded and built into NCS contracts in an accountable way,” said their statement.

The council spokesperson added: “We felt it was not appropriate to demand additional money from the DfE. It was more our task to set out the case as to why career provision was important and to make the argument to government as to why it should give this area high priority.”

Meanwhile, the council’s recommendation of an employer-led NCS advisory board was described by 157 Group executive director Lynne Sedgmore as a “positive development”.

Funding rates still a sector concern

Concerns remain about a Skills Funding Agency policy aimed at “smoothing” the impact of its new payment regime, despite it ditching plans to cut provider earnings rates by up to 25 per cent or more.

The agency wanted to introduce protection measures for colleges and training providers to stop earnings rocketing or nosediving in the next academic year.

Providers have been given a number — a ‘transition factor’ — that indicates how much of their budget under the new system they can earn.

A factor of 1.1 would increase a provider’s earnings rate by 10 per cent, while 0.9 would indicate a cut of 10 per cent — meaning that it had to do more work for the same money.

But the agency stepped away from factors that would result in earnings rate cuts just days after FE Week reported on worries within the sector. The agency said such factors would now be “reset” to 1.

The move was welcomed by the 157 Group, but concerns remain that the agency could still reduce earnings rates with policy wording that states: “We reserve the right to adjust your factor where we have evidence that it is no longer suitable from your ILR submissions or because of the change to your offer in 2012/2013 and 2013/2014.”

Peter Roberts, 157 Group chair, said: “We welcome the quick response by the agency regarding the concerns expressed by colleges over potential implications of the transition factor and confirmation that each college’s 2013/14 allocation remains unaffected.

“We will still need to ensure that the notion the agency ‘reserves the right to adjust your factor’ does not become a mandate to reduce rates at any time in the future without the careful dialogue needed.”

An agency spokesperson said: “We will reset the factors in the way we have communicated and only review that position on a case-by-case basis.”

The agency dropped its plans for cutting earnings rates after FE Week reported a Joint Information Systems Committee online forum for college finance directors in which one provider revealed its rates under the new system would be cut by 25 per cent.

“I can’t imagine that colleges are going to take this lying down,” said one forum member.

And at least one independent training provider had been given a transition factor below 0.7, FE Week understands.

But the agency dropped its plans after what it described as “feedback”.

“As part of the consultation process, we wrote to providers setting out their individual transition factor,” said the agency spokesperson.

“We asked for feedback on any implications or concerns as soon as possible. The feedback from the sector has been very helpful.

“It was clear that there would be a number of unintended consequences.

“As a result we have reset the transitional factor for those providers where earnings would have been reduced as a result of the transitional arrangement.”

She added: “We would like to stress that the 2013/2014 allocation is entirely unaffected by the transition arrangements.”

Colleges miss out on traineeship cash

Colleges look set to miss out on £12m handed over to the Skills Funding Agency (SFA) for traineeships, FE Week can reveal.

The Department for Education (DfE) has transferred the cash to agency coffers to pay specific traineeship providers through their 16 to 18 apprenticeship contracts.

The ring-fenced funding has been made available for next year to providers who only hold agency contracts, mostly private training providers.

The extra funding will not be on offer to providers with Education Funding Agency (EFA) contracts, so bypassing most colleges.

The revelation was set out in EFA letters sent to providers rated good or outstanding by Ofsted. They say: “If you hold a contract or funding agreement with the EFA only, or a contract with the EFA and a contract with the SFA for 16 to 18 apprenticeships, you will be funded to deliver by the EFA through your existing EFA contract and through the numbers included in your lagged student numbers.”

A DfE spokesperson said current funding was expected to cover traineeship costs for those with EFA contracts because the programme would “replace other level one and two programmes” that were already funded.

However, Julian Gravatt, assistant chief executive at the Association of Colleges, said he wanted to see colleges get “similar opportunities” to the private training providers.

He also wanted the traineeship age limit lifted. Currently, only people aged 16, 17 or 18 on August 31 in the relevant funding year will be able to become trainees, along with young people up to the age of 25 with learning difficulty assessments.

“Traineeships will start at the same time as the new approach to study programmes so 2013-14 will be a complicated year,” said Mr Gravatt.

“We believe that traineeships will work well if they are strongly linked to apprenticeships so we are relaxed about DfE finding a short-term fix to allow independent providers to claim funding, but we’ll be pressing to ensure colleges with strong apprenticeship programmes have similar opportunities.

“The bigger issue, though, is to ensure that trainees are able to support themselves and to remove the current age cap.”

The DfE spokesperson said: “We need to make sure that vocational training is high quality, rigorous and meeting the needs of today’s employers.

“Any good or outstanding providers — whether contracted through the EFA or the SFA — will be funded to offer young people traineeships.

“This investment of £12m . . .  will mean that the SFA’s best apprenticeship providers will now be able to offer young people traineeships as well.

“Any good or outstanding providers with an EFA contract will also be able to deliver traineeships, with the costs covered by current funding as we expect traineeships to replace other level one and two programmes.

“Where they recruit additional students, providers under a contract will be funded, while any grant-funded providers will receive an increased allocation next year.”

A spokesperson for the Association of Employment and Learning Providers said: “We welcome this money, but we’ll need more. Further funding will also be required if the programme is expanded from 19 to 24.”

An SFA spokesperson said: “Providers of 16 to 18 apprenticeships that only hold a contract with us will receive a ring-fenced budget, alongside their funding allocations received for 2013/14, to deliver the traineeship offer.”