Employer pilot should have a better structure

The days of a job-for-life are no more and workplace training initiatives need to be suited to today’s more fluid employment trends, says City and Guilds chief executive and director general Chris Jones.

I watched with interest last month as the first successful employer bids were announced as part of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills’ employer ownership pilot.

This sentiment was echoed at the Labour Party conference, where a commitment to empowering employers to deliver more training was announced.

While I wholeheartedly support government efforts to hand control back to employers to develop training appropriate to them, it strikes me as alarmingly shortsighted — for both businesses and learners — that there is no stipulation this funding be used for training.

Such training should provide learners with formal recognition of achieving set outcomes, providing a viable means of progression.

Workplace training is by its very nature specific to individual businesses and is essential for workers to progress within their chosen career, so employers should be given more say in how it is designed and delivered.

However, gone are the days when an employee stays with one company for the course of their career so it is wrong that such a high level of investment — £250 million over the next two years — will go towards giving employees a learning experience with just one company.

Instead, vocational training needs to provide recognition of competence for the individual and help them move up or progress through to higher education in the longer term.

In an increasingly fluid job market with high levels of youth unemployment, the value of providing workers with externally-recognised and portable skills should not be underestimated.

The employer ownership pilot leans too far towards supporting a limited number of businesses“

This system provides the flexibility for employers, working with others, to accredit bite-sized learning and well-designed programmes that validate individual learning and furnishes transferable skills.

If the employer ownership pilot is to provide real, tangible benefits to the economy, businesses, and learners, then it must prioritise this type of accredited learning.

I welcome news that the pilot will create 11,000 apprenticeships and the commitment from Labour to deliver more apprenticeships, should they come to power.

As the UK’s leading apprenticeship provider, City and Guilds is hugely supportive of this means of training, which is of great value to the learner, businesses and the wider economy.

Our February research paper, The Economic Value of Apprenticeships, highlights how essential apprenticeships are to the UK economy, with businesses set to benefit from a £4.37bn boost by 2020 if one million extra apprenticeships are created by 2013.

As part of this, apprenticeships help to tackle youth unemployment levels and ensure that businesses have the skills they need for increased productivity and growth.

However, again, if learners and the wider economy are to feel the true benefits of these, apprenticeships must be formally accredited and provide learners with skills which are transferable — benefiting themselves alongside current and future employers.

I agree with the core aims of the employer ownership pilot — employers and workers know what training is best for them and employers should be given the space to step up and own the skills agenda. However, my principal concern is that these aims are not being underscored by the right structure.

As it stands, the employer ownership pilot leans too far towards supporting the needs of a limited number of businesses rather than
helping to develop a suitably skilled workforce with the transferable skills that will help to drive the UK economy forwards.

Whether this is achieved through gaining qualifications or by some other means of evidencing competence, my message remains clear — the engagement of employers is important, as is on-the-job learning for employees, but we must ensure we are simultaneously providing the kind of structured and externally-recognised vocational learning that equally benefits all parties in the longer term.

Learners ‘miss out on £630m’ as Skills Funding Agency discover under-delivery

Providers failed to deliver on nearly 17 per cent of the Skills Funding Agency’s £3.8bn allocation for the past academic year, FE Week understands.

An industry source said around £630m of agency funding had not been delivered by providers.

And changes announced last week mean colleges will keep the cash without having delivered training.

The agency said it “did not recognise” the £630m figure. A spokesperson referred instead to its financial year accounts and cash that had not been handed out to providers.

This figure, 0.6 per cent of the agency’s total skills budget, was included in its accounts published in June. But it wasn’t until two months later that the last provider funding returns reached the agency, which would have allowed it to identify under-delivery.

“The agency published its 2011/12 accounts in June 2012,” said the agency spokesperson.

“This confirmed we delivered to within 0.6 per cent of the total skills budget we are accountable for. The agency does not recognise the figures quoted.”

It would seem the under-spend happened because providers were not allowed to fund courses they previously offered.”

It declined to review its statement after FE Week pointed out the agency was referring to its accounts rather than allocations.

“We have nothing more to add to our statement. Our budget position is set out in our published accounts,” said the spokesperson.

The government announced in November two years ago that for 2011/12 it would no longer fully-fund learners on inactive benefits, such as working tax credit.

As a result, many colleges either cut courses or struggled to meet recruitment targets.

FE Week also understands that increased apprenticeship funding targets have not been met.

In a policy revision published online, the agency said: “The sector continues to work on aligning provision to meet the needs of learners and employers.”

Shadow FE minister Gordon Marsden said the government was to blame for the alleged £630m under-delivery by providers.

“This figure suggests almost a fifth of agency’s entire allocations for last year has been under-utilised,” he said.

“It seems to relate to failures in terms of delivery and failures to understand the impact of changes in government policies on its budget.

“This speaks volumes for the way in which providers and learners appear to have been let down.

“It would seem the under-spend happened because providers were not allowed to fund courses they previously offered.

“I shall be writing to the agency and the minister urgently to ask for a full explanation of the situation.”

The alleged under-delivery was revealed to FE Week just days before the agency relaxed its rules on how much cash could be kept by colleges who failed to deliver provision they’d been paid for.

Last year’s rules, relating to the 2010/11 academic year, allowed colleges to keep all of their funding, even if they delivered only 97 per cent of their allocation.

But now a more complex “reconciliation” system allows colleges that deliver just 90 per cent of the provision they’ve been paid for to hold on to nearly 100 per cent of their allocation.

However, the agency spokesperson defended the system.

“The agency’s performance management systems ensure that allocations reflect the performance of the sector,” she said.

“We work at all times to ensure public funding is provided for the benefit of learners and employers.”

——————————————————————————————————————–

Editor’s comment

The scale of under-delivery, as revealed by a trusted source and reported on our front page this week, is astonishing — and scandalous.

It would be easy to blame providers for failing to enrol enough students and missing their funding target.

Yet, this outcome was inevitable when the government re-wrote the funding eligibility rule book for 2011/12.

It completely underestimated how many employed learners on inactive benefits would be turned off by the prospect of tuition fees.

Consequently, some colleges underrecruited while others simply faced a shortfall and were forced to cut or shut courses.

The problem was clear to me and many others from the outset. In fact, early last year I posed the question in The Guardian: “How exactly are colleges and training providers expected to make up the shortfall?”

And so it has transpired, there appears to be a huge shortfall, and many colleges will keep funding that has no delivery attached.

Essentially, colleges are being rewarded for failure (in some cases for the second year in a row).

Conversely, colleges that spent money to hit their targets, as well as private training providers that are only paid on delivery, will see no such reward.

A sad day for taxpayers, learners, fairness and FE.

Labour plans for a Tech Bacc welcomed

Further education leaders have backed Ed Miliband’s proposals for a new Technical Baccalaureate.

The Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP), the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and education charity The Edge Foundation all welcomed the Labour leader’s plans for a new vocational qualification.

Mr Miliband told his party’s annual conference that the qualification would be aimed at the “forgotten 50 per cent” of young people who did not go to university.

He said he wanted “ours to be a country where kids aspire not just to go to Oxford and Cambridge, but to excellent technical colleges and elite vocational institutions”.

Students would work towards the new qualification from 14, completing it four years later. English and maths would be required to the equivalent of a GCSE grade C.

We want a stronger championing of vocational learning in schools, especially the equipping of young people with better employability skills”

They would also do work experience and move into a placement after their studies.

Edge Foundation chief executive Jan Hodges said: “We believe there should be a high quality vocational pathway for 14 to 18-year-olds who enjoy learning by doing.

“We want to work with like-minded people across the whole political spectrum to make sure all young people have opportunities to achieve their potential.”

An AELP spokesperson said: “How the details are fleshed out will be important. But of course we want a stronger championing of vocational learning in schools, especially the equipping of young people with better employability skills.

“Where we need to be careful is not to fall into a stark post-14 divide for pupils between academic and vocational learning. Any reforms must allow space for blended learning within schools if parents and students want it.”

CBI director general John Cridland said: “Ed Miliband was right to put so much emphasis on education for the forgotten 50 per cent. Unless everyone has the skills to contribute to the economy, they are unable to benefit from it.”

Further praise came from the former Tory Secretary of State for Education Kenneth Baker — now Lord Baker of Dorking — who said: “I support rigour in technical and vocational education, which is why I support proposals for a Tech Bacc at 18.

“This isn’t a case of ‘either/or’ —it’s ‘and/and’. We need academic and technical subjects to be equally stretching and equally valued.”

And Association of Colleges’ chief executive Martin Doel said: “We watch with interest the Labour leader’s proposals and welcome the concept.”

Chief executive at the Institute for Learning Toni Fazaeli said: “We welcome the focus on raising the profile of vocational education, and are keen to contribute to the debate about developing a technical baccalaureate.”

Mr Miliband’s plans also include handing the £1bn apprenticeship budget over to the private sector.

EuroSkills 2012 gets underway in true Olympian style

A glitzy opening ceremony, complete with an Olympics-style countdown clock, welcomed the UK’s 22-strong team to the EuroSkills competition in Belgium.

The squad featured among more than 400 competitors, 316 experts and 39 team leaders from 23 European countries at last Wednesday night’s event.

They were welcomed to the opening ceremony by members of Skills Belgium at Pepinster’s Hall du Paire.

Competitors were invited to the stage in a parade of nations, with flag-waving and cheering echoing scenes from the summer’s London 2012 Olympic Games, before a EuroSkills clock marked the official opening of the third biennial competition which was held over three days in Spa.

Nineteen-year-old Andre Rhone from Middlesex, who works at London’s Royal Garden Hotel, is a Squad UK cooking competitor.

The ceremony was a fantastic spectacle. It was truly heart-warming to be able to cheer on Squad UK”

“The atmosphere was electric,” he said. “Getting up on stage with all my team mates and being cheered on by our supporters was an amazing experience, one that I’ll never forget.

“I hope that by competing at EuroSkills I make my family and country proud and share my experience with others back home, showing how taking part in competitions can improve your skills and set you apart from competition for jobs or promotions.”

He added: “I want everyone to get behind Squad UK — just like they did with Team GB at the Olympics.”

The audience at the opening ceremony was also treated to a series of live performances, including a group dance ensemble, an urban Stomp-style percussion set and a daring  performance from a world champion trick cyclist.

Jaine Bolton, chief operating officer at the National Apprenticeship Service and official UK delegate to EuroSkills, said: “The ceremony was a fantastic spectacle. It was truly heart-warming to be able to cheer on Squad UK and to witness and share the huge sense of pride and excitement felt by all competitors, training managers, experts, team leaders, performance coaches and supporters.

“This will be the first experience for most of Squad UK of competing against their skill counterparts from different countries on an international stage.

“EuroSkills is an important part of their training and development ahead of Team UK selection next year, as it will enable them to benchmark their skill levels against those from all over Europe and gain confidence in competing under pressure and in front of a live audience.

“I congratulate every member of Squad UK for getting this far and wish all of them the best of luck at the competition.”

The event gives UK selectors an early chance to see competitors in action before whittling their WorldSkills squad, which includes most of the EuroSkills team, down from around 90.

The rest of the EuroSkills UK Squad includes Sarah Smithers, 20, Woking, Jenna Stephenson, 18, Liverpool, Hannah Clague, 21, Gloucester, Robert Broomsgrove, 20, Weymouth, Alastair Wilson, 21, Scotland, James Overend, 22, David Cargill, 18, both Northern Ireland, Gareth Humphries, 19, Heather Peach, 18, both Wigan, Jack Jameson, 25, Ipswich, Aaron Jamison, 18, Northern Ireland, and Jack Conway, 19, Essex, Philip Glasgow, 21, Northern Ireland, Gareth Jones, 19, Wales, Robert Johnson, Middlesbrough, Ken Wilson, Northern Ireland, both 19, Reece Johnston, 20, Leicester, Mark Woods, 21, Northern Ireland, Amy Leigh Wilson, 17, Blackpool, Georgina Briscoe, 18, Derby, and Wojciech Pastor, 22, Scotland.

Photo by Ellis O’Brien

Jaine Bolton, chief operating officer, National Apprenticeship Service

Growing up in England’s industrial heartland of the Midlands, Jaine Bolton’s childhood dream was a simple one — to become an engineer.

But, having left school aged 16 with hopes of winning an apprenticeship, her world came crashing down as one potential employer told her bluntly: “We don’t recruit women.”

The rejection, and growing up in “very multicultural” Wolverhampton, was one of the reasons she became “so committed to equality and diversity”.

Bolton, chief operating officer at the National Apprenticeship Service (NAS), says: “The experience of being a female in a male world and not being able to get what I wanted at the time, and the challenges that ethnic minority communities have faced over the years in education and skills; these two things have really followed me through my career.

“It [equality and diversity] wasn’t a theory, it wasn’t something I’d read about. It was real to me.”

While later working at a civil service agency, Bolton revisited the company that had rejected her — only this time to discuss its recruitment of women.

“That was a nice moment,” says the mum-of-two, who still lives in Wolverhampton.

The company was initially “defensive” she says, stating they couldn’t recruit women because there were no female toilets.

I enjoy seeing peoples’ commitment and passion for the job that we’re doing and the difference we make”

But, Bolton says, the firm soon became “very positive” about changing its policy.

She was brought up on a “fairly big notorious council estate,” but has nothing but kind words about her own experiences there.

“If I was to read about it in the newspaper now I would think, that’s probably not the sort of place I’d like to have grown up, but that wasn’t my experience of it. I had a fantastic time,” says Bolton, who is married to solicitor, Ian. Her son David is 22; her daughter Laura, 25.

Her grandparents, Joe and Bertha, lived nearby and played a strong role in her upbringing. She was the oldest of four, with brothers Mark and Simon and sister Chris. Once all of them had grown up, her mum, Pauline, became a wages clerk.

“Family and being supportive is very important to us,” says Bolton, 49.

“What all of them gave me was a sense of purpose and pride. It was important to work hard and to do the best that you possibly could, but it was also really important to be nice at the same time, to have nice manners.”

Her role at NAS, which itself promotes apprenticeships, follows a childhood in which apprenticeships were seen as the route to employment rather than university and higher education.

“It [apprenticeships and vocational training] was the route to success for people in my community,” she says.

“Nobody in my family had been to university, it wasn’t what we did. What we did, was do well at school — we worked really hard, that was important, but it was expected that I would leave. There was no pressure on me to leave, but there was no pressure on me to stay either.

“I always knew I wanted a career. I always knew I wanted a really good job. A-levels [and university] were never on the agenda.”

Having been unable to get the engineering apprenticeship, Bolton decided to train as a nurse.

I think I must have done something really good in a previous life to be given responsibility for WorldSkills UK”

However, after a few months she stopped the course because, she says, she found it too emotionally demanding.

Instead, she signed on at a job centre and was offered a casual administrative role working at a youth skills agency for the civil service.

One of her first managers was “phenomenal in terms of support and development”, she says, and after a year became a permanent employee.

She left the civil service to join Wolverhampton Training and Enterprise Council and later moved to Wolverhampton Business Link.

But in 2007 she returned to the public sector to become the director of communications at the Learning and Skills Council, which was replaced by the Skills Funding Agency in April 2010.

Since she joined the civil service she says that all of her jobs have been focused on developing skills in other people, a fact she is proud of.

“It’s really rewarding knowing that the work that you do contributes to somebody else’s success and wellbeing, their beliefs and self-worth,” she says.

That has continued in her role at the NAS, which she joined three years ago.

“I can’t remember ever being in an organisation that has always been so full of enthusiastic, bright, committed people, no matter what’s thrown at them.”

“That’s what I enjoy the most, seeing peoples’ commitment and passion for the job that we’re doing and the difference we make.”

And there’s more joy in her NAS role with it having brought her into contact with WorldSkills, billed as the biggest international skills competition in the world.

“I’ve really enjoyed my career and I’m going to carry on enjoying it. I love NAS and I love WorldSkills,” she enthuses.

She describes the competition as the Olympics of skills, with its “dedication, commitment, pressure and world stage”.

“The emotion around it is supercharged,” says Bolton, who was involved in the UK squad selection for WorldSkills International in Leipzig next year. “It wasn’t just about seeing the young people and how great they are, it was also recognising everything that goes around it — the training managers, the experts, the support from the colleges. There was a real buzz.

“I think I must have done something really good in a previous life to be given responsibility for WorldSkills UK. It’s fantastic.”

Picture by Ellis O’Brien at the EuroSkills 2012 opening ceremony in Belgium

First notice of concern issued over ‘significant deficit’

A Kent college has become the first provider to get a government warning that could lead to the withdrawal of Skills Funding Agency cash, FE Week can reveal.

Financial worries were said to be behind an agency official notice of concern, issued to K College in August. The college was allocated £11.7m for the 2012/13 academic year

The notice of concern is the first step in a three-stage SFA risk management process, introduced following the government’s New Chances, New Challenges review.

It is issued to colleges that “fall below standards in relation to financial health, financial control, Ofsted judgment or minimum levels of performance”. SFA funding is withdrawn at stage three, although it is understood improvement measures have already been agreed.

An FE Week Freedom of Information request has revealed K College is the first and only provider to have been handed the official notice.

It comes as college staff plan industrial action in protest at proposals to axe almost 150 jobs.

The college is working with the SFA and bankers to agree a long term arrangement to establish financial security”

Principal Bill Fearon said: “The college deficit for 2011/12 is a significant factor in the SFA’s view.”

He refused to go into detail about the college’s financial situation, but conceded that the notice was justified.

“It’s fair and reasonable . . . we’re working with the SFA to resolve the situation,” he said.

“The SFA is looking to be supportive under the circumstances that we find ourselves in.”

In an e-mail to staff seen by the Folkestone Herald, Mr Fearon said accounts showed an “operating deficit (recurrent) of £11m”, which was “clearly substantial” and would involve “an increase in required savings in staffing and non-pay”.

A spokesperson from K college said: “There is going to be a budget deficit from last year, the second year of merger, of c £11m, and, through a development plan, we will return to a balanced budget within two years. The college is working with the SFA and bankers to agree a long term arrangement to establish financial security.”

Staff action was expected to take place on October 8, in a move backed by 93 per cent of University and College Union (UCU) members at the college. The UCU said more than 1,000 people were at risk of redundancy.

Adam Lincoln, UCU regional support official, said: “Strike action is never entered into lightly, but the overwhelming mandate from members at K College demonstrates how determined they are to fight these ill-conceived and unjustified proposals.

“Staff from all five sites will gather ahead of the afternoon governors’ meeting to make it absolutely clear that they oppose unnecessary job cuts, which would see 200 staff leaving the college in one calendar year.”

Nick Childs, National Union of Teachers regional officer, added: “Teachers enter the profession to help children and young people and are not prepared to stand aside as their education is put at risk by short-sighted and ill-conceived cutbacks.”

The threat of industrial action follows the loss of 50 jobs two months ago. In a letter to staff at five college campuses, Mr Fearon said the losses followed funding cuts and falling student numbers.

Bill Fearon, principal of K College. Picture courtesy of the Folkestone Herald

FE comparison website leaves users ‘confused’

An independent review has branded the government’s £30m FE Choices website “bland” and “ambiguous”.

The site, which compares the performance of providers, was criticised by unions in June when it was discovered that only 6,230 people had looked at it since its launch six months earlier. The Taxpayer’s Alliance said the site was “pointless”.

The Skills Funding Agency (SFA) called in London-based consultants Bunnyfoot in March. Its  review said testers were left scratching their heads over figures that “didn’t add up” and confusing statistics about what learners went on to do after their courses.

It’s bland, it doesn’t look like it’s trying to appeal to younger people/students,”

“Participants displayed confusion when reading and analysing the data shown. Many said that it ‘didn’t add up’ and were unsure how percentages were arrived at,” said the report.

One site user told Bunnyfoot: “The percentages on their own don’t mean anything, there needs to be more.”

The consultancy firm recommended that more information on the figures was needed, such as whether a percentage was “very good”.

But the SFA said “judgmental text” would not be used. “There has been a long-standing policy decision, agreed by the sector, that the SFA will not give judgments (grades, comments, etc) on scores achieved by providers,” said a spokesperson.

Users similarly misinterpreted the site’s purpose. “Most expected to see information relating to courses as well as general provider information,” said the report.

The site’s appearance was also criticised. “It’s bland, it doesn’t look like it’s trying to appeal to younger people/students,” said one tester.

Bunnyfoot recommended more colour and graphs to show figures. The SFA said improvements would start early next year.

Overall, the consultancy firm said FE Choices was well received. “In terms of usability, participants were seen to navigate and interact with the site easily. The ability to search for this type of information and compare organisations was liked and said to be useful,” the report said.

It is understood that delegates at an Association of Colleges conference in September questioned the similarity of FE Choices and Ofsted’s Learner View website, which draws together the opinion of students to rate providers.

However, the SFA pointed to differences between the two sites. A spokesperson said: “The Ofsted website focuses on learner feedback and Ofsted inspections.

“The agency believes that the combined effect of this information and the agency’s FE Choices website will further strengthen the breadth of information available to help the consumer make better, more informed choices.”

Next Step fails to hit the mark in London

A survey on a countrywide government careers advice service uncovered varying levels of satisfaction and methods of delivery.

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) ordered the study into the Next Step service — the National Careers Service since April — to see how it was performing on telephone advice. It also looked at the face-to-face advice provided regionally by prime contractors.

The report, by IFF Research and published last month, said face-to-face satisfaction ratings, “while still very positive, were consistently lower than average in London”.

Clearly the National Careers Service needs to consider the extent to which variation is acceptable and potentially reflecting local needs”

It added: “Assessing how the service is being delivered across the capital, and how well this meets the needs of its customers, should be considered.”

The report also highlighted regional differences in the number of face-to-face meetings and variations in the use of skills checklists and action plans.

“Clearly the National Careers Service needs to consider the extent to which variation is acceptable and potentially reflecting local needs, compared against a more uniform service being delivered nationwide,” it said.

Mark Ravenhall, director of policy and impact at the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE), said that the findings raised two important points.

He said: “First, the regional variations in a national service are interesting. Is this indicative of regional responsiveness, or is it due to different delivery outcomes by separate prime contractors?

“Second, NIACE has worked with the National Careers Service, Next Step and successor agencies — in particular on Adult Learners’ Week — and we, like them, value longitudinal studies that look at quality of outcomes as well as the quality of processes.

“It’s vital that adult learners get the best service that works for them.”

The National Careers Service does around 52,000 face-to-face interviews a-month. It also fields around 23,500 telephone queries on top of handling a number of emails.

The report, based on more than 11,000 interviews, was largely positive.

“Customers rate the service highly,” the report said. “As many as 93 per cent agree the service was good and 84 per cent were very satisfied…compared with 6 per cent dissatisfied.”

It recommended moving “face-to-face customers to the less resource-intensive telephone advice service after their initial session”.

The report was welcomed at BIS. “This survey demonstrates the Next Step service played a valuable role in helping people choose their career path, and progress in learning and work,” said a spokesperson.

“The National Careers Service is now building on that success, providing young people and adults with access to authoritative information on careers, skills and the labour market and professional advice on how to use it.

“We will use these results to drive up performance and improve the customer experience.”

Empowering learners through new legislation

The Education Act 2011 has been widely heralded as a positive move for the FE sector, providing colleges with significant new freedoms to develop and deliver more learner-focused services.

But, like any new legislation, the Act has brought with it a range of new challenges. Elizabeth Delaney, associate at business law firm DWF, looks at how to make the most of the Act’s new freedoms.

Greater autonomy
With the government seeking to put FE and sixth-form colleges on a similar footing to charities operating within the independent / private sector, the Act has reduced the financial restrictions and controls faced by FE institutions. This financial autonomy will allow colleges to be more creative in how they initiate new training schemes to meet the needs of employers and learners. Direct central government oversight will also be reduced, allowing colleges to dedicate more time and resources to supporting learners.

By exempting high performing colleges from routine Ofsted inspections, for example, the Act will allow teachers to focus on the needs of their students, rather than on meeting targets.
Constitutional reform. The Act will allow colleges to change their constitutional structures and governance procedures. They now have the right to modify and replace their constitutional instruments and articles without seeking permission.

This will allow them to introduce more flexible structures and develop more effective ways of working. They can dissolve and move to more flexible legal forms if considered appropriate. This is a major step, and will allow FE institutions to look at adopting innovative business structures – such as social enterprise models or joint venture companies – or to develop strategic alliances with other educational institutions so that they can share best practice.

A bright future
The changes have been introduced to create a more transparent marketplace in which colleges are accountable directly to their stakeholders – their learners and local community – rather than central government. This will be reinforced by the introduction of student funding streams which are easier to access, and to find out about.

Stakeholder engagement will take on a new level of importance as colleges strive to use their increased powers to develop new and better services. As recent Department of Business, Innovation and Skills draft regulation has made clear, the government intends for stakeholder consultation to be a central element in implementing structural and / or constitutional changes.

The government’s ultimate ambition is that the changes to FE will help to support a virtuous circle, where colleges compete to attract learners by developing more innovative services and delivery methods that meet local demand and improve quality. This, in turn, is expected to create a more diverse sector.

Getting on board
The immediate impact of the Act will differ between institutions. Some colleges will feel that their existing structures do not prevent them from achieving their objectives, while others may feel that they can deliver better results if they implement a radically new business model. However, before coming to any conclusions on which path to take, decision-makers – governors or chief executives – need to review their institution’s existing constitutional documents and consider whether or not they provide the flexibility needed to deliver the college’s strategic objectives.

It is important not to go through the upheaval of changing legal form purely because of the apparent attractiveness of alternative models; in many cases colleges may well be able to achieve their aims through much more subtle methods. Partnerships are likely to become a more important aspect of the FE sector as accountability is devolved to local stakeholders. Colleges may find that the most effective way to support their learners and wider community is to work with a local academy, university or employer.