SFA to be investigated for alleged data ‘cover-up’

The government’s performance comparison site for further education is under heavy scrutiny after an investigation by FE Week into unannounced changes.

FE Choices, formerly known as the Framework for Excellence, was published by the Data Service, a part of the Skills Funding Agency, on January 26, but is now the focus of three inquiries.

FE Week found post publication alterations had been made to the Leaner Satisfaction performance indicator – an aid for stakeholders, such as prospective students, to work out how a provider compares with average data for the same provider type and to all organisations which are on FE Choices.

However, despite the changes to comparable data fields neither the Agency, nor the Service, made a public announcement, which could leave them in breach of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics by the UK Statistics Authority.

The Code requires that prompt public announcements are made on errors which are discovered in statistical reports.

A statement issued on Thursday said the Agency is taking the allegations “very seriously” and will investigate them in accordance with its Complaints Procedure, which will be undertaken by the Complaints Adjudicator.

It added: “The Agency cannot comment further until the investigation is complete.”

The statement also confirmed that Skills Minister John Hayes has “sought an investigation” into the matter, before adding: “This request will be met through the completion of our thorough complaint investigation.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) said they are committed to transparency.

The spokesperson said: “Mr Hayes has asked that the Skills Funding Agency begins an investigation and reports back to BIS.

“The department is fully committed to ensuring that statistical information is transparent and fully compliant with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.”

A further inquiry is being conducted by the UK Statistics Authority after receiving “representations regarding the publication of statistics” on FE Choices.

A spokesperson for the Authority said: “The Authority has asked statisticians at the Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills, as the parent department of the Skills Funding Agency, for a report.

“We will independently review that report and determine what, if any, further investigations or statements by the Authority may be required.”

The changes were brought to light when the Agency was presented with evidence on Tuesday.

Since then, the Agency has found that the amendments were made on January 30, but says all data on the site is now “accurate and correct”.

However, according to the data manager for FE Choices, who asked to remain anonymous, within a day of the data going live on January 26, it was found the figures were erroneous – with the changes made days later.

The data manager said this demonstrates “maladministration and disregard for the standards” and a lack of governance.

Speaking to FE Week, he said that the data should have been removed as soon as the error was found.

He said: “As soon as they knew there was an error they should have let stakeholders know. What they should have done is disabled the Learner Satisfaction pages.

“These pages should have been switched off, but they chose not to do that.”

Open evening at East Berkshire College draws a crowd and really packs a punch

Former world champion boxer Barry McGuigan visited East Berkshire College to meet budding young boxers and highlight sport as a route to learning.

The boxing legend welcomed prospective students to the College’s Barry McGuigan Boxing Academy (BMBA), signed autographs, answered questions and delivered a special workshop for budding young boxers.

More than 600 visitors attended the event, which formed part of the college’s Open Evening.

Mr McGuigan said: “I was given a chance through sport to fulfil my potential as I grew up, and I want through this programme to give others that chance.”

East Berkshire College is the only college in the south-east to offer a Boxing Academy written and approved by Mr McGuigan himself.

It offers young people the chance to study for a nationally recognised qualification whilst training to an elite level alongside professional coaches. The programme, which is approved by the Amateur Boxing Association (ABA), is open to males and females aged 16-19 who enrol on any full-time course at the college.

Bolton College step up to the crease with Lancashire County Cricket Club

Visually impaired learners at Bolton College were given an afternoon of Blind Cricket coaching by Lancashire County Cricket Club.

The Club is supporting a campaign to raise awareness of cricket for the visually impaired and blind by encouraging more people to participate in the sport. Of the 12 learners who took part, seven have signed up to receive on-going coaching in the hope they can form a Bolton College team.

The group was supported by sighted learners, with some wearing simulation spectacles to experience the game as a visually impaired player.

Sheraz Chohan, of Lancashire County Cricket Club, said: “We’d ideally like to set up an amateur league between the colleges, but there is the potential for the players to progress even further within the County and National team if they have the skills and commitment.”

Bolton College’s curriculum leader for sensory impairment Linda Owens said: “We hope that the positive response from our learners, and with the support of Sheraz, we will have a college team that can compete in the region.”

Professionalising welfare-to-work is important

Historically the welfare-to-work industry, which employs in the region of 20,000 people, has had no occupational standards or designated Sector Skills Council, no required entry qualifications or recognised professional qualifications. Very little of the training for the employability sector’s workforce that has been delivered has been externally accredited.

Various pieces of research highlighted the need to improve the industry’s approach to training and developing its people. It was recognised that the ability of welfare to work providers in the independent and college sectors to attract and retain the best people, who were able to work at a confident and competent level, providing personalised and expert support was going to be critical to the success of the Work Programme. To achieve this, it was vital that the status of practitioners such as the personal advisor role was enhanced through the provision of a framework of professional qualifications and clear career pathways.

In 2010 the sector agreed to address what professional standards and qualifications were required within a flexible framework, which focused on improved productivity, reduced attrition and the attraction of high calibre people into the sector. Sector employers came together to create the PoWER (Professionalisation of Welfare to Work Expert Reference) Group. The PoWER group, chaired by Janette Faherty OBE of Avanta, consisted of AELP, DWP prime contractors, subcontractors, private and voluntary sector employers, plus Inclusion and ERSA.

PoWER created a project group, funded by PoWER members, specifically to look at the qualifications and the creation of an overarching professional body for the industry. Working closely with the awarding body EDI, the project team were able to use the flexibilities of the QCF to design and develop a flexible and accessible framework of qualifications closely aligned to job roles across the sector.

Too often the processes involved in bringing qualifications to market is unwieldy and time consuming.”

Many of the units came from existing QCF qualifications in customer service, recruitment, sales and information advice and guidance with the addition of two new sector specific units, Understanding the Employment Related Services Sector and Sustaining an Employment Outcome, which were written by members of the project group.

The level 3 award, Certificate and Diploma in Employment Related Services, which together with an Advanced Apprenticeship make up the Employment Related Services Qualification Framework, has been developed for people working with the unemployed, supporting them to progress into sustainable employment. The suite of qualifications allows the industry to set the bar on the high standards expected from employees and the quality service they provide, whilst giving individuals an opportunity to be able to accredit the skills, knowledge and experience they have gained against national standards. By offering clear career paths with greater opportunities for progression, the industry expects to enhance performance and motivation amongst its workforce leading to greater productivity and uplifts in the number of sustained job outcomes achieved.

The take-up of new qualifications for those working in the employability industry is gathering momentum. Over 25 providers have now been approved to offer the qualifications and the first candidate to complete the Diploma is waiting to be awarded their certificate.

The whole of the FE and skills sector can learn from the success of the PoWER group. They have demonstrated how effectively employers can work together to develop standards and qualifications that really meet the needs of their businesses. A shared drive and passion enabled the new suite of qualifications and Advanced Apprenticeship framework to be developed from scratch in less than six months which is a remarkable achievement.

Too often the processes involved in bringing qualifications to market is unwieldy and time consuming, but by having a clear vision of what they wanted to achieve and working closely with both EDI and Skills for Justice, the PoWER group has been able to overcome barriers and found ways of fast tracking the accreditation process.

The journey is not over. Partner organisations working together generated a successful bid to UKCES for funding to support the establishment of the Institute for Employability Professionals and secured further success in a tender to NAS for Higher Apprenticeship Funding; the latter was led by AELP member and leading Higher Apprentice training provider Babington Business College.

Stella Turner is AELP’s qualifications and curriculum manager and a member of the PoWER project group

Promoting the positive in Functional Skills

Learners like them, teachers like them, employers like them. This is the message we are hearing from the field. Of course, not all teachers and not all providers are on board, but those that have grasped that the Functional Skills qualifications offer learners a better deal are beginning to develop a sense of excitement. But, there are a number of issues blocking the successful implementation of the strategy.

Ten years after the launch of the Skills for Life strategy, NIACE embarked on its Inquiry into adult numeracy, and subsequently the Inquiry into adult literacy. We were pleased that our Inquiry fed directly into the Department’s own Review of Skills for Life.

One of the major areas of discussion in this closed group was the difficulties with the ‘old’ Skills for Life qualifications and the gradual emergence of the GCSE as the ‘gold standard’ and Functional Skills as the English and Maths element.

Over the past couple of weeks, it has been made clear that enrolments for standalone Skills for Life (Level 1 – Level 2) qualifications, will cease after August 31. New Functional Skills (English and maths) and GCSE equivalents will be the qualifications for adult learners with literacy and numeracy needs, alongside ‘standalone, unitised awards’ which are still being scoped, while Skills for Life Entry Level qualifications will stay in the short term.

Let’s get out there, with some real voices of some real learners and teachers, and promote all the positive aspects of Functional Skills.”

Functional Skills provide a single ladder of achievement from Entry Level to Level 2, for all learners in all sectors. They are a compulsory element in the three qualification routes for young people from 14 to 19; in Diploma and Foundation Learning Tier, and an option to GCSEs, within apprenticeships. They are also offered as stand-alone qualifications at Entry Level, Level 1 and Level 2.

NIACE believes that Functional Skills will support adults to undertake the realistic basic skills demands of everyday life, developing, as we believe they do, the ability to apply skills to other settings. With some more work to address the needs of those learners with the poorest skills, at Entry Level, they will offer better quality literacy and numeracy skills to adults.

Training providers developing their ability to offer Functional Skills within apprenticeships and employers taking on the apprentices tell us that they fit well as an embedded element of vocational courses; the emphasis on transferability was valued by providers.

There are challenges – it may take longer for learners to achieve and Functional Skills will be more challenging for all learners and especially at lower levels. The assessment is more rigorous and includes writing as well as speaking and listening – this will come as very good news to teachers who have been unhappy with the partial nature of the Skills for Life qualifications, with its lack of emphasis on speaking and listening, and on writing.

We cannot ignore the challenges and we are hopeful all the agencies supporting adult learners will work together to make the transition as effective as possible. We need a strategic CPD offer; we need a clear idea of which resources are helpful and have proven worth and impact rather than those that have just been brought (too) hastily to the market to address a perceived need; we need to consider if we require Functional Skills-specific Initial and Diagnostic Assessment tools. And we need clear guidance on how we manage the additional time and resources that delivering Functional Skills will require.

But most of all, the message coming out loud and clear is – why aren’t Functional Skills being sold to employers, providers, teachers and learners?  Let’s get out there, with some real voices of some real learners and teachers, and promote all the positive aspects of Functional Skills.

We recognise that Functional Skills provide learners with the ability to think and act independently at home and in the workplace – but we have to grasp the nettle right now if we really want this to work.

 

By Carol Taylor

Reflecting on National Apprenticeship Week

Last year, I launched National Apprenticeship Week 2011 by saying that I wanted to create the biggest and best apprenticeships programme in our country’s history.

Thanks to record Government investment, the commitment of British firms, tough measures to drive up standards and the hard work and dedication of FE & Skills professionals, I’m proud to say that we have achieved that aim.

One year on, as we approached National Apprenticeship Week 2012, new official statistics revealed a record numbers of apprenticeship starts – a 63.5% increase on 2009/10 , and outstanding success rates and growth across all regions and sectors.

The NAO also recognised the progress we’ve made, with their Assessment of Adult Apprenticeships report highlighting the extraordinary economic benefits of apprenticeships. It found that for every £1 of Government spending on apprenticeships £18 is generated for the wider economy.

National Apprenticeship Week is a great opportunity to take time to celebrate the countless achievements of learners and employers over the past year. This year, as always, I was extremely impressed by the stories I hear and the focus and dedication of everyone I meet.

However, there is more we can, and will, do to drive up quality, open up more opportunities for young people and put vocational accomplishment on an equal footing to academic achievement.

To ensure that the growth in apprenticeship numbers we have delivered is sustainable, quality must match quantity so that employers and learners know that every apprenticeship delivers world class training.

We are working with the SFA and other partners to raise the bar on quality, recognise excellence and drive out poor performance. We have tightened guidance for those developing apprenticeships and training providers that do not meet the high standards learners deserve are having their funding withdrawn. An employer-led review into apprenticeship standards, to report in late spring 2012, will indentify best practice and help ensure that government continues to maximise the impact of public investment in apprenticeships.

A zero tolerance approach to unnecessary red tape, alongside new financial incentives, will enable more SMEs to take advantage of the competitive edge that having apprentices can bring to a company. Businesses with fewer than 50 employees can now apply for a £1,500 incentive payment when they take on their first young apprentice. In addition to this, a review – led by social entrepreneur and jeweller Jason Holt – will examine what more can be done to help SMEs take on apprentices.

The Prime Minister officially opened the second round of bidding for the Higher Apprenticeships Fund during Apprenticehip Week. With 19,000 higher apprenticeships already created as a result of the first round, this latest injection of funding will enable even more apprentices to develop their talents to degree level and beyond, as well as giving firms in sectors such as advanced manufacturing, information technology and engineering the hi-tech skills they need to grow. The fund is a crucial step towards placing vocational learning on a par with academic study, giving bright youngsters the opportunity to work with and build the most dynamic firms in the country.

Looking forward to National Apprenticeship Week 2013, I strongly believe that we will continue to build on our achievements to-date, putting apprenticeships back where they belong – at the heart of our system of education and training.

John Hayes, Minister of State for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning

Sir Peter Rogers, special advisor to the Mayor of London

Sir Peter Rogers recognised the value of vocational learning at an early age. At 18, having researched possible routes into accountancy – seven years with a degree, four without – he decided to leave school and train on the job.

Brought up in Wolverhampton, Rogers, now Boris Johnson’s economic development advisor, attended Wednesfield Grammar School, and as one of the high fliers in his year group was expected to go to university.  Breaking the news to his working class parents – a furnaceman and a shop assistant – who already had made “big sacrifices” to support him in his education, was hard, but made perfect sense at the time.

“I guess I was quite self-aware,” he recalls. “I knew the sort of things that I was good at, the sort of things I was interested in and recognised the path that would get me to a reasonably good salary pretty quickly, through hard work and application.”

It was a move that paid off. Rogers spent 16 years in accountancy and financial roles in local authorities, before moving to a national transport operator, where he was involved with trade union negotiations as part of a management buyout.

In 1996, he joined Westminster Council, where he became chief executive, before moving to the London Development Agency (LDA), where he was awarded a knighthood for his work, something he still finds “embarrassing.”

Much of the hard work was down to people like Simon Milton (Johnson’s former chief of staff who died last year) and real partnership working between public servants and politicians, he says. “To be honest I really don’t know why I got it,” he says, modestly. “You start looking round at people who deserve it and I honestly couldn’t work out why I got it.”

While he is passionate about his home city of Wolverhampton (where he still has a home), and his beloved football team “The Wolves,” Rogers has a soft spot for London. In fact he came out of retirement to take on his current role (his second retirement, having bowed out of Westminister Council in 2008).

And he is clearly proud of the Greater London Authority’s (GLA) work on vocational learning. Since the launch of its apprenticeship campaign in 2010, an average of around 5,000 new vacancies have been created each month, he says, and he is confident the GLA can reach its target of 100,000 by the end of this year. Around 2,000 of those opportunities have been created within the GLC itself or through its procurement process with organisations like Transport for London (TfL) and Crossrail. The GLA is also working hard to increase take up amongst small and medium sized businesses to take on apprentices, he says.

Last month, Johnson announced £177 million funding towards long-term improvements to regenerate high streets across London in a bid to create jobs and stimulate economic growth – on top of 70 million pledged to help repair and rebuild town centres damaged in last summer’s riots.

It’s a simple challenge which is about communities taking care of their own futures by becoming involved in their own quality of life issues.”

While this represents an opportunity for London colleges, many will need to up their game and become “a lot more commercial,” says Rogers. “There is a challenge for FE to be much more aware of the business opportunities, the business dynamics and the community dynamics… but they need to actually start talking and competing with each other about the quality of their work, the quality of their product and the sustainability of what they’re achieving.”

Rogers advocates a system (similar to that proposed by the universities’ minister David Willetts) where colleges are “an open and transparent book,” publishing information about how many of their former learners move into employment and what exactly they go on to do.

He bats off the suggestion that the demise of the regional development agencies (RDAs) as a result of the Coalition government’s quango bonfire, could make this difficult for colleges. Things are tough for everyone involved in education and training at the moment, he says. “I think there’s a significant difference in the last few years because there was a lot of money in the system until the crash in 2008. There was lots of money, people could basically self generate work and self generate their own importance. Those days have gone, every scrap of public sector money now is going to be based on value created and it’s going to have to be demonstrated.”

And he sidesteps the topic of the London Skills and Employment Board (LSEB) the employer led group, chaired by Johnson, responsible for improving adult skills and employment in the capital, which seemed to inexplicably fade away about 18 months ago.

After the abolition of RDAs in June 2010, the government announced plans for the creation of local enterprise partnerships (locally owned partnerships between local authorities and businesses that aim to create local jobs and drive economic growth). Plans for London’s LEP, which will be chaired by Johnson and Harvey McGrath – chairman of the Prudential  – are well underway, and while Rogers admits the demise of the LSEB has left a gap, he will not be drawn on the reasons it seemed to end too suddenly.

Rogers is a big fan of the Big Society approach to rebuilding and regenerating communities, which he says is at the heart of Team London, the GLC new volunteering programme aimed at cutting crime and creating opportunities for young people. “It’s a simple challenge which is about communities taking care of their own futures by becoming involved in their own quality of life issues,” he says. “And if that means kids go out on the streets and pick up litter to make the place look better so the shops actually attract people, if it means they work with disadvantaged kids who can’t read by becoming readers, if it means that businesses and lucky graduates who are in jobs come back and either coach disadvantaged kids or help business by mentoring business…I think those are the sort of new dynamics, and I think colleges could be at the heart of that.”

But with youth unemployment at all all-time high, isn’t this just an excuse to get people to work for nothing, I ask him. “Is there anything wrong with that?” he fires back “How many people in January say ‘I’m going to lose weight, I’ll go to the gym four times a week’ – how many do it?” he says. “Not many. The ones that do have got an attitude about persistence, diligence and they put the discipline in to make it happen. It’s exactly the same as getting up five days a week and going to work..it’s about discipline, it’s about turning up, it’s about doing the work while you’re there and seeing the results – and it’s perfectly transferable into the workplace.”

He seems convinced that volunteering can unlock the potential of young people, creating the “rigour and discipline” necessary to get even hardest to reach into work.  But who exactly will run these community projects? While he has all the jargon – “champions,” “visible ambassadors” and “community leaders” – there are no firm answers for exactly who these people might be.

Having already made two comebacks from retirement, Rogers is relaxed about his future career plans. He’ll certainly be sticking around until the mayoral elections in May, the outcome of which will determine whether his contract at GLC is renewed. But despite a long and distinguished career in local government, his biggest ambition is surprisingly humble. “I’d like The Wolves to stay in the premier league – you can tell I’m a romantic, can’t you?”

Apprenticeships inquiry to hold first evidence session next week

The first evidence session on an inquiry into apprenticeships will be held this week.

On Thursday, the Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) Select Committee will welcome experts from different stages of the apprenticeship programme.

Denis A Hird, chief executive of JTL Training, Alex Jackman, senior policy officer for the Forum of Private Business, and Graham Hoyle, chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP), will all give evidence on the day.

The session will be open to the public on a first come, first served basis, in The Grimond Room, Portcullis House, at 11am.

The Committee had already previously announced that it will be visiting Sheffield as part of its inquiry.

They will hold a number of formal oral evidence sessions between March 5-6 with employers who promote or offer apprenticeships, as well as learners currently enrolled on apprenticeship schemes.

Adrian Bailey MP, chairman of the BIS Select Committee, said: “Sheffield is home to a number of significant organisations and employers offering innovative and meaningful apprenticeship schemes.

“This is something that is being replicated right across the UK and is something the Committee wants to experience first-hand.

“Visiting Sheffield will allow the Committee to take evidence from a wide range of interested parties. This is a hugely important inquiry; apprenticeships are vital to boosting employment and growth throughout the country.

“The Committee feels it is vital that apprenticeships are structured in such a way so as to maximise their potential and to provide young people in the UK with requisite skills for future success.”

The deadline for written evidence to be submitted to the BIS Select Committee has closed.

Families tsar to step down amid fraud allegations

Emma Harrison is to step down from her role as the Prime Minister’s “families tsar” following allegations of fraud at her firm A4e.

In a statement published by the BBC on Thursday, Ms Harrison said: “I have asked to step aside from my voluntary role as Family Champion as I do not want the current media environment to distract from the very important work with troubled families.

“I remain passionate about helping troubled families and I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute in an area where I have been active for many years.”

The government has been urged by Margaret Hodge MP, chairwoman of the Public Accounts Committee, to suspend its welfare-to-work contracts with A4e.

It came after it was revealed police were investigating ‘irregularities’ at the firm, which A4e say dates back to 2010.

Four employees were arrested in relation to the allegation and released on bail until mid-March.

Andrew Dutton, CEO of the A4e Group, said: “A4e has zero tolerance towards fraud, and any instance of fraudulent or otherwise illegal activity is completely unacceptable.

“We take our responsibility very seriously and we are committed to using taxpayer’s money effectively and efficiently to deliver the best services to the public.”

The employment agency A4e, which has five main contracts to deliver the Work Programme, has come under fire from MPs because of its poor track record and large shareholder dividends.

Mr Dutton admitted in a session with the Public Accounts Committee that the UK turnover for A4e in 2011, estimated to be between £160 million and £180 million, came solely from government contracts.

Ms Harrison received 87 per cent of the £11 million paid in dividends to the company’s five shareholders last year.

Mrs Hodge criticised the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) during the session for not considering the past performance of firms, including A4e, when managing the contract process.

“It seemed rather surprising to me that in managing the contract process, you did not have regard to the past performance of contractors,” Mrs Hodge said.

She later added that A4e’s past performance was “abysmal” during the Pathways to Work scheme.

“If you, as a sensible person, were letting a contract in your home for anything or if you were a private business, you would look at past performance before you decided,” she added.

Subcontractors of A4e on the Work Programme include Havering College of Further and Higher Education, Accrington & Rossendale College, Blackpool and Fylde College, Liverpool Community College, Highbury College, among others.