Skills England must cut through the red tape to close our skills gaps

In 1997, Tony Blair’s Labour manifesto said that the weakness of our industrial base was due to skills shortages. Thirteen years later, David Cameron’s Conservative manifesto said we needed to dramatically improve the skills of Britain’s workforce to compete. The skills challenge facing this government is nothing new, but we do need new ways to address it.

With the Chancellor’s continued commitment to establish Skills England and refocus the growth and skills levy through an additional £40 million investment in the government’s first budget, the spotlight is once again on how the UK can address its worsening skills gap.

This matters. The digital skills gap already costs the economy £63 billion a year in potential GDP according to the government’s own figures. A more flexible levy and a Skills England focused on cross-government coordination in partnership with both industry and education are a compelling way to address this.

While I understand some of the concerns over the independence of Skills England and use of the levy, we simply cannot go on as we are. Doing so risks creating a further disconnect between education and employment, making it harder to meet our pressing digital skills needs.

By focusing on non-traditional, flexible learning models, Skills England can carve its legacy in helping to address immediate skills shortages and upskilling the existing workforce to meet changing demands.

As one of the fastest-growing areas of the economy, there needs to be greater focus on creating pathways that allow individuals from all backgrounds to enter, and transition into the tech sector and tech-adjacent roles.

Digital skills should be integrated more thoroughly into national education policy, from primary school through to higher education and beyond, with more opportunities for adults to upskill and engage in training throughout their career.

Tech UK suggests the potential exists to create a further three million new technology jobs by 2025. In order to fill these roles with talent equipped with the right skills, Skills England needs to harness centralisation of decisions to implement faster changes to standards and qualifications.

We need to create more access points for new talent

Working in collaboration with business leaders and industry, it must increase flexibility in the design and delivery of courses which are eligible for levy funding.

The current apprenticeship levy is rigid and limits funding to accredited, long-set qualifications. This approach prevents innovation in skills training, especially in fast-moving sectors like tech, where the ability to quickly upskill is critical but the length of time to gain a qualification can sometimes be up to three years.

This investment is an opportunity for crucial reform to support flexible learning models, including short, non-accredited courses, to help businesses address immediate skills shortages. For this to work effectively, Skills England must have the authority to collaborate with industry and shape processes that are agile and responsive to the changing world.

It is no secret that skills demand outpaces supply. For this demand to be met, we need to create more access points for new talent to enter the field, and more opportunities for current employees to pivot into new tech careers to plug the skills gap, or upskill to meet the fast-changing demands of their role.

As a starting point, government policy should actively promote diversity, recognising that women remain under-represented – making up only 22 per cent of our IT professionals.

This limits the industry’s potential to innovate and grow. To change this, diverse talent pipelines must be nurtured from the school curriculum through to employment.

At Code First Girls, we have a 96 per cent conversion rate from education to job role. We have so far delivered over 200,000 opportunities to women and non-binary candidates to upskill in tech, working with over 130 clients to place these candidates into tech roles.

Our results are a testament to a successful model that realises the potential of forging partnerships that build regional tech talent pipelines and boost local economies by aligning training with business needs.

Flexibility, adaptability, and responsiveness to evolving business and economic needs is the only way we are going to close skills gaps, particularly in tech and digital skills.

The best way to achieve this is for Skills England to cut through the bureaucracy, backed by strong ministerial directives.

We must look beyond competition to deliver the system change we need

Given media attention paid to Sue Gray’s exit from No 10, you’d be forgiven for missing the arrival, or re-entry, of Sir Michael Barber as the prime minister’s adviser on effective delivery.

Barber’s role is to “support the prime minister in driving forward the delivery of the five national missions – through setting long-term goals on the economy, energy, safer streets, breaking down barriers to opportunity and building an NHS fit for the future”. 

One of the finest, most credible and widely experienced proponents of whole-systems change, who worked with the Conservative government as an adviser on skills delivery, Barber’s appointment should be feted by adult, further and higher education sector leaders and training providers.

Here is another piece of the good news jigsaw that is gradually emerging from the Labour administration as it fills out policy intent and manifesto commitments with detailed proposals.

Furthermore, as Baroness Jacqui Smith, minister for skills, further and higher education indicated at the Association of Colleges conference this week, the government wants to develop detailed and effective implementation plans in partnership with sector leaders and practitioners – another welcome foray into the world of co-creation and impact measurement – an approach so clearly taken in the government’s consultation on the industrial strategy. 

This reinforces the centrality of skills to all five of the government’s missions, a point AoC CEO, David Hughes among others (including myself) voice consistently. It is further confirmation of a possible brighter future for colleges, universities, training providers and adult and community educators.

However, if we are to shape this future, we must remain laser-focused on the following: delivering high quality courses, developing innovative partnerships, achieving significant productivity gains to help the growth agenda, meeting expectations of local leaders of place across the diversity of devolution arrangements, and satisfying the needs and ambitions of employers, students and communities. 

We can take the lead by scrutinising our own activities

Skills and training through adult, further and higher education providers have a pivotal role to play in supporting the personal mission the secretary of state for education, Bridget Phillipson, who recently described her goal “to spread opportunity far and wide, to give every single child the very best life chances”. 

In this “new era of child-centred government”, the liminal space occupied for so long particularly by adult and further education institutions seen as the means to redress social justice can, and should, extend, fill out, and move beyond.

Like the nurseries and schools that nurture the young people who move into our colleges, training centres and universities, we should be proud that “our public institutions are civic in their outlook, anchored in their communities”.

The discourse of collaboration and partnership is key to bringing about the systems change at the heart of the government’s missions, which Sir Michael Barber has been brought in to help deliver. 

So I suggest we work together to help him. We can take the lead by scrutinising our own activities, ideas and practices to see if we can do better.

We can find ways of working more creatively and innovatively to help government departments work collaboratively.  We can model the way forward by showing that we can break down our own siloed thinking and stereotypical habits. We can think and act differently. 

I leave this year’s AoC conference feeling energised and positive about the possibilities, and recognising that it’s not going to be easy.

We are used to working in a competitive culture. Walking around the AoC conference, attending workshops and chatting to participants, I was reminded of the plethora of individual and combative interests at stake, conscious that in play are a range of diverse stakeholders who, of necessity, place a clear boundary around their own jurisdiction.

Sharing, ceding territory and finding ‘win-win’ solutions require strategic energy, emotional maturity and generosity.

If we want whole-systems change that will move the five missions forward and maximise the benefits for the many, what is needed now is a not just a collective reaching out to Michael Barber but a concerted reaching out to each others, across all partners in the tertiary sector.

First rise in teachers’ pension contributions since 2015 proposed

The government is proposing the first rise in employee contributions to the teachers’ pension scheme since 2015 to avoid a shortfall in the fund.

However, the Department for Education said rates would not rise for the lowest-paid, and the monthly impact for an employee earning £110,000 a year is estimated to be £17 – which equates to just under £200 a year.

The department is also consulting on changing Teacher Pension Scheme (TPS) legislation to extend a pensions guarantee policy to college teachers who are compulsorily transferred to private companies providing public services.

It comes after the skills minister Jacqui Smith announced earlier this week that FE colleges will get a “crown guarantee” the local government pension scheme (LGPS), expected to lower contribution rates and save around £30 million.

In a consultation published today, the DfE explained the six “contribution tier” rates had remained the same since 2015, but the thresholds at which each rate is paid had increased annually in line with inflation.

Increases in thresholds leaves shortfall

As a result, the “estimated yield” from the current structure is now 9.45 per cent, whereas members are “required collectively to contribute 9.6 per cent across the whole scheme membership”.

This is “primarily because of the member contribution tier thresholds increasing at a higher rate (based on CPI) than average salary growth, which has affected the expected distribution of the membership in the contribution tiers”.

The DfE said it had accepted a “unanimous recommendation” from the Government Actuary’s Department and TPS advisory board “to retain the current six-tier structure with the forecast shortfall met by an increase of 0.3 percentage points for tiers 2-6”.

The result would be…

  • No change in the 7.4 per cent rate for those earning up to £34,289.
  • Those earning between £34,290 and £46,158.99 would see their rate increase from 8.6 to 8.9 per cent.
  • Those earning between £46,159 and £54,729.99 would see their rate increase from 9.6 to 9.9 per cent.
  • Those earning between £54,730 and £72,534.99 would see their rate increase from 10.2 to 10.5 per cent.
  • Those earning between £72,535 and £98,909.99 would see their rate increase from 11.3 to 11.6 per cent.
  • And those earning between £98,909-plus would see their rate increase from 11.7 to 12 per cent.

Increases of up to £200 a year

The DfE said the “particular circumstances of a member will determine the precise effect”, but provided “the estimated impact on take-home pay (i.e. after tax relief has been applied) for the majority of members”.

It said a teacher on £30,000 would pay no extra contributions, a teacher on £50,000 would pay an extra £10 a month or £120 a year, and someone on £110,000 would pay an extra £17 a month, or £198 a year.

New Fair Deal for colleges

The DfE confirmed it would have to amend the TPS regulations to extend the New Fair Deal (NFD) to college teachers, who would maintain access to their TPS pension when they are transferred over to private sector companies providing public services.

The Treasury today (November 14) confirmed that the NFD will be opened up to colleges. In September, it proposed to unlock non-statutory policy to colleges now they are public sector organisations.

“As a result of the reclassification and the resulting policy change, continuing access to the TPS will be permitted for employees of FE establishments where the transfer provides for this,” the Treasury consultation document outlined.

“This will allow them to retain access to the scheme, while they remain employed on that public service contract,” it added.

FE Week reported when the consultation opened in September that the reform is more likely to impact members of the LGPS in colleges i.e. cleaners and support staff rather than teachers.

“This should apply to tendering and outsourcing exercises currently in progress, where the transfer of staff has not yet been concluded,” said Nick Donlevy, the Treasury’s director of public spending.

NEU announces sixth form college strike dates

Teachers at 32 sixth form colleges will begin three days of strike action later this month after being snubbed from the government’s pay award for school teachers.

Non-academised sixth-form college members of the National Education Union will walk out on November 28, December 3 and December 4.

NEU announced earlier this week it achieved a 97 per cent vote in favour for strike action in 32 of the 39 sixth form colleges balloted. But it held off announcing strike dates while it sought “urgent clarification” from the government on whether the £300 million announced at the budget could be spent on staff pay.

A spokesperson said today that “no such clarification has been received” so strikes will follow.

The row stems from the announcement in the summer that a 5.5 per cent pay rise for 2024/25 will be funded for schools and academised sixth form colleges. Non-academised sixth form colleges, alongside further education colleges, were excluded from the deal.

Daniel Kebede, NEU general secretary, said: “Our dispute has highlighted the lack of care shown to the further education sector as a whole and the urgent need to bring college staff pay up to at least the same level as in schools. 

“We remain concerned by the disregard shown by the DfE to the longstanding, effective collective bargaining arrangements in sixth form colleges and would expect that this situation would not arise in the future.”

Smith supports pay equality

Skills minister Jacqui Smith told the Association of Colleges annual conference yesterday she acknowledged widespread disappointment that colleges were not included in the government’s decision to award the school teacher pay rise. 

“We have a different situation in FE in terms of the government’s role in pay, and that was the reason why we weren’t at that point able to fund the same pay increase,” she said.

“I know it will have felt like a lack of recognition of the FE workforce, but genuinely we understand the crucial role that the FE workforce plays … and I think we need to think about the architecture around FE teacher pay for the future.” 

Asked directly if she would like to see FE and school teacher pay match, Smith replied: “Yes, yes I would.”

Kebede welcomed Smith’s comments and said his union “remained hopeful the government will guarantee that colleges may utilise additional funding now allocated to them for pay”.

The 32 sixth form colleges that voted in favour of strike: 

Aquinas College (Stockport) 

Barton Peveril Sixth Form College (Eastleigh) 

Bolton Sixth Form College 

Brighton Hove and Sussex Sixth Form College 

Cardinal Newman College (Preston) 

Christ The King Sixth Form College (Lewisham) 

Christ The King Sixth Form College Aquinas 

Capital City College – Angel (Islington) 

Greenhead College (Huddersfield)  

Henley College 

Hills Road Sixth Form College (Cambridge) 

Holy Cross College (Bury) 

Itchen College (Southampton) 

Joseph Chamberlain Sixth Form College (Birmingham) 

Leyton Sixth Form College 

Loreto College (Manchester) 

Luton Sixth Form College 

Notre Dame Catholic Sixth Form College (Leeds) 

Peter Symonds College (Winchester) 

Richard Collyer, The College of (Horsham) 

Scarborough Sixth Form College 

Shrewsbury Colleges Group 

Sir George Monoux College (Walthamstow)  

St Brendan’s Sixth Form College (Bristol) 

St Charles Catholic Sixth Form College (Kensington) 

St Francis Xavier Sixth Form College (Clapham) 

St John Rigby RC Sixth Form College (Wigan) 

Varndean College (Brighton) 

Wilberforce College (Hull) 

Winstanley College (Wigan) 

WQE and Regent College Group (Leicester) 

Wyke Sixth Form College 

Xaverian College (Manchester)

DfE told to abolish ‘overwhelmingly negative’ T Level transition course

A think tank has called for the “overwhelmingly negative” T Level transition programme to be scrapped after finding one in four learners who progress to a T Level drop out within the first year.

A report published today by the Education Policy Institute (EPI) also found T Levels are not “currently suitable” for many level 3 learners as over one-third of drop outs leave education and training altogether.

The think tank recommended the government completely overhaul or abolish the “failing” T Level transition programme (TLTP), which was renamed the T Level foundation year this academic year, and pause the defunding of existing alternatives to T Level qualifications.

The quantitative research report analysed data from the National Pupil Database (NPD) and the Office for National Statistics to investigate the early-stage trends and impacts of the technical qualifications that were launched in 2020.

One-quarter of T Level transitioners drop out

The TLTP was rolled out as a one-year post-GCSE study programme designed to get students T Level ready. But fewer learners are moving onto a T Level from the programme.

Just 15 per cent of the 915 students who took the TLTP in 2020/21 progressed to a T Level, falling to 8 per cent in the subsequent year’s cohort of 3,578 young people.

Of those who do progress to a T Level, more than one in four withdraw within their first year, researchers found.

“For a programme whose paramount focus is on helping students transition to a T Level, this is an alarming result,” the report said.

It recommended that the Department for Education abolish or completely overhaul the TLTP as the results to date are “overwhelmingly negative”.

“The programme is failing in its primary objective – promoting transitions to T levels,” it added.

The findings follow Ofsted’s 2023 thematic review, which found the weakest TLTPs “do not prepare students to move on to a T Level course”.

According to the TLTP framework, the Education and Skills Funding Agency expects “all” TLTP students to undertake appropriate work experience as an “important component” of the year.

But the EPI found less than a third of TLTP students engage in any formally recognised work experience or placements. Engineering and manufacturing has the lowest rate with less than one in five students receiving formal work placements.

Researchers suggest the low take-up is “likely” due to the wider difficulties with finding placements for T Level students.

The report also found the proportion of TLTP students taking some form of English or maths resit has fallen “considerably” over time and a “large” make-up (20 to 30 per cent) are not resitting despite being below the level 2 threshold.

“This could be because these students are exempt from the condition of funding due to having an EHC plan or because the provider allows them to be non-compliant as part of their 5 per cent allowance,” researchers said.

Smaller T Levels should be available for drop outs

The report found T Level students are less likely to complete their qualification than students studying alternative qualifications, with disadvantaged and female students particularly more likely to withdraw.

While 88 per cent of academic students and 72 per cent of vocational learners passed their level 3 qualification, just 44 per cent of T Level students achieved a full level 3 qualification in 2021/22.

However, T Level learners were most likely to take up apprenticeships and further vocational study. Out of a total 3,729 T Level sample size, 9 per cent progressed to advanced apprenticeships and 5 per cent went to higher levels of vocational study – the highest proportion out of academic, vocational, mixed and T Level learner groups.

Researchers also expressed “concerns” that half of T Level drop outs end up “missing from the education and training system”.

Of those who remain in education, just over half go on to study a full level 3 programme or an apprenticeship (30 per cent). 8 per cent of students who withdraw go on to study a partial level 3 and 16 per cent go on to study at level 2 or below.

Earlier this year, FE Week reported that 90 per cent of T Level drop outs that switched to other technical courses went on to qualifications due to be defunded.

The EPI advised the government’s curriculum and assessment review to consider introducing “smaller alternatives” to T Levels to allow a broader spectrum of access to level 3 provision.

“For example, students could take A levels and T Levels like many currently do with A-levels and BTECs, or a mixed level 3 and level 2 programme,” the report hypothesised.

David Robinson, director for vulnerable learners and post-16 at the Education Policy Institute (EPI), said: “As part of the curriculum review the government must carefully consider vocational and technical provision for 16 to 18 year olds, ensuring enough flexibility for students whilst also continuing to streamline the overwhelming number of qualifications to choose from.”

Cath Sezen, director of education policy at the Association of Colleges, said: “We have long said that T Levels are not for every student, and that students need to be on the programmes most suited to their needs and progression plans.  

“More work is needed to ensure that the content, assessment and work placement element of T Levels are set at the right level and work for the students we want them to work for.”    

Kevin Gilmartin, post-16 specialist at the Association of Schools and College Leaders, said: “We completely agree that the government should pause the defunding of existing alternatives to T level qualifications. It’s obvious that T Levels are not currently suitable for all level 3 learners and this process must be paused until it’s demonstrably clear that all young people will have a future pathway to the workplace or further study.”

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Our mission is to make sure young people get the skills they need to seize opportunity and kickstart great careers in the most in-demand sectors.

“We welcome these findings that show T Level students are more likely to go onto advanced apprenticeships and other higher levels of study than other vocational qualifications.

“T Level student retention rates are also improving as providers grow more familiar with delivering the courses, although we know more work needs to be done.”

FE lacks capacity for major reform, says curriculum review chair

Staff shortages are among “capacity issues” in the post-16 system that will limit the reforms recommended by the government’s curriculum and assessment review.

Review chair Professor Becky Francis told the Association of Colleges annual conference today that “major change” in 16 to 19 education is unlikely to be proposed because resources are “stretched very thin”.

Francis said: “I’ve talked about the issues around teacher and lecturer supply and so forth, and we’re aware that it’s no good trying to engineer a major change if there’s not the implementation on the ground to deliver it”.

So the focus will be on “key issues” rather than recommending major changes that could destabilise the wider system, and avoid reform to parts of the system that are currently “going really well”.

Dilemmas and trade offs

The keynote speech hinted at the potential direction of recommendations, including around the English and maths resit policy, as part of the review’s “rigorously evidenced and data-informed” approach.

Francis said: “As we know, a grade 4 in maths and English is a relatively random indicator.

“Those that just scrape their grade 4 are likely to have significant gaps in their knowledge, but they escape having to retake further, whereas their peers, who just miss their grade 4 must continue to retake, sometimes with very limited success.

“And I guess the key point here is that there are many trade-offs – addressing things often implies putting things in as well, which we want to avoid.”

Francis flagged the resits policy as “a good example” of “a difference between curriculum in theory and curriculum in practice” because there are “constraints on the ground in relation to teacher supply and so forth.”

Flagging the government’s parallel rapid review of level 3 qualifications, Francis told AoC delegates she was working closely with DfE officials to “minimise disruption or mixed messages.”

The level 3 review is expected to clarify the new government’s position on what qualifications should be available to young people following the row over the defunding of applied general qualifications, like BTECs. That review is due to report by the end of next month.

Other FE trends

Feedback from engagement events so far suggest that many in FE value the “diversity of options” available to students.

However, there are concerns about “an ongoing lack of awareness about some routes” such as T Levels, apprenticeships, and other vocational routes.

At the same time, complexity of pathways between level 2 and 3 has also issue raised with the panel.

The panel’s public call for evidence closes next Friday, November 22.

Principals Lisa O’Loughlin, from Nelson and Colne College, and John Laramy, from Exeter College, are members of the panel alongside Francis.

An interim report from the review is expected in early 2025 with a final report due in autumn 2025.

College social action awards finalists revealed

Staff and student fundraisers and social action volunteers up for this year’s Good for Me Good for FE awards have been announced.

There are 24 teams and individuals on the shortlist this year for the second annual awards recognising exceptional social action efforts in colleges.

The finalists were announced from the main stage of the Association of Colleges annual conference in Birmingham. 

Good for Me Good for FE was launched in 2021. It is now a network of nearly 150 college and charity partners coordinating and calculating the value of staff and student volunteering and community fundraising.

There are eight categories, each with three finalists. Winners will be announced at a ceremony in the House of Lords on December 6, hosted by Baroness Barran.

Students Norman Smith from Dudley College, Beth Williamson from Nottingham College and Jack Stone from LSEC are each up for student volunteer of the year. 

And staff members Nichola Thomson Dewey from Barnsley College, Rich Williams from Nottingham College and Rob Stevenson from Burton and South Derbyshire College are vying for the staff volunteer of the year award.

Among this year’s judges were the FE Commissioner, Shelagh Legrave, AoC chief executive David Hughes, NCFE chief executive David Gallagher, and the awards patron and former education secretary, Baroness Nicky Morgan.

Lincoln College’s Penny Taylor has been shortlisted for the second year in a row. Taylor won the staff volunteer of the year award last year for her work with local supermarkets and businesses to create a non-means tested foodbank at each of the college’s sites.

Announcing the shortlist, Good for Me Good for FE co-founder and London South East Colleges CEO Sam Parrett, said “standards for this year’s awards were exceptionally high, reflecting the inspirational social action that is taking place at colleges across the country.”

“We are very much looking forward to revealing the winners at the House of Lords on 6 December and celebrating the many exceptional teams and individuals who make our colleges so very special.”

COP29: It’s time to embrace education’s vital climate role

As COP29 kicks off in Baku, Azerbaijan, sustainability has moved to the forefront of global discussions, with leaders negotiating how best to fund and formalise climate action.

Yet, while these crucial talks continue on the international stage, it’s worth asking ourselves back in the UK: how well are we preparing the future workforce to face the challenges of a sustainable economy?

Our further education and skills (FES) sector stands in a unique position to play a leading role.

COP29 highlights the urgent need for sustainability across every industry, and it’s clear that we can no longer treat this issue as an optional add-on in education. Instead, sustainability should be present across all subjects.

Tomorrow’s workforce needs more than just an awareness of climate problems; young people need practical skills and the critical thinking ability to succeed in an economy that’s increasingly gearing towards sustainability.

I don’t believe this is just wishful thinking. With COP29 focusing on new targets for climate finance and adaptation strategies, the message is clear: sustainability skills will soon be essential across a wide range of industries, from construction and energy to public services and healthcare.

Nationally, we must shift our thinking, treating sustainability education as a foundation for preparing students both for the job market and the wider world they’ll be stepping into.

This aligns directly with Professor Becky Francis’s curriculum and assessment review, which emphasises the need for themes that cut across disciplines and help students develop a well-rounded approach to solving today’s pressing issues.

For FE institutions, this means rethinking how we bring education for sustainable development (ESD) into the curriculum.

Imagine a curriculum where sustainability is not a stand-alone subject but is integrated across every field. In English, students might explore themes of environmental ethics in literature. In maths, they could work with climate data to hone their statistical and analytical skills. In history, they could explore the environmental impacts of industrialisation.

Sustainability is both a climate target and an important economic strategy

COP29 also reminds us that sustainable development goes far beyond purely environmental concerns; it includes economic resilience and social justice. Talks at COP29 around the Loss and Damage Fund highlight this, recognising the social impacts of climate change on vulnerable communities.

Here in the UK, our future workforce should understand that sustainability encompasses broader challenges, such as addressing economic and social inequity.

With substantial government funding being directed towards green research and development, it’s clear that sustainability is both a climate target and an important economic strategy.

For FE students, understanding sustainable business practices, ethical resource use, and circular economy principles will be crucial as industries adapt to meet evolving policies and consumer expectations.

FE colleges can also lead by example. With government investment in public sector sustainability, the sector is in a unique position to model sustainable practices.

By installing energy-efficient technologies, adopting renewable energy sources, and implementing waste reduction measures, campuses can serve as practical examples of sustainability in action.

When students learn in environments that visibly prioritise sustainability, it transforms these principles from abstract ideas into lived practices.

For over 20 years, initiatives like the EAUC’s Green Gown Awards have celebrated achievements in sustainability across education. These awards showcase the meaningful strides that many FE and HE institutions are already making and provide models that others can follow.

COP29 shows the world that climate action and social responsibility aren’t separate from the rest of society, and the same holds true for education.

Embedding sustainability into the heart of the FE curriculum is now essential, not optional.

By approaching it this way, we can create a framework that prepares learners for careers in a greener economy but also instils a lasting sense of responsibility towards building a more equitable, resilient world.

If we want to meet the ambitious goals emerging from COP29, education must be the starting point. By aligning curriculum content, institutional practices, and teaching priorities with sustainability goals, FE institutions can ensure that today’s students are ready to become tomorrow’s responsible and skilled leaders in a world that needs them more than ever.

Jacqui Smith has spelled out a vision for FE we can all get behind

The minister for skills’ speech at the AoC conference today highlighted an ambitious vision for further education at the heart of the government’s renewed mission-led approach. In my view, her words bring an optimistic energy to our sector which has long advocated for a stronger, clearer role in driving economic and social progress.

This new focus promises to transform the way FE engages with both government and local communities, making it a central player in building a prosperous, skills-rich nation. At the core of this mission-led approach is a vision of opportunity and economic growth for all – a belief that success should reward hard work and enterprise, regardless of background.

This completely aligns with the work we are doing at LSEC, and indeed across the sector. It is recognising the critical role that FE plays, not just in skills development but in generating social value, empowering individuals to achieve their career ambitions and, as a consequence, supporting social mobility.

Colleagues across the sector know how pivotal FE is when it comes to reducing economic disparities, by creating career pathways for all. We know that talent is indeed everywhere – and it was reassuring to hear Jacqui Smith echoing our belief that education and opportunity must exist everywhere too.

It is also positive to hear acknowledgment of the significant challenges we are facing as a sector. Smith highlighted that nearly one in eight young people are not in education, employment, or training (NEETs), and around nine million adults lack basic literacy, numeracy, or digital skills. These are facts that need to be shared if they are to be effectively addressed.

For too long, the skills landscape has been fragmented, requiring colleges to compete for small funding pots rather than allowing us to collaborate on meeting pressing national needs.

The minister’s recognition of this issue, alongside the announcement of £300 million in additional revenue and capital funding, demonstrates a commitment to making the improvements necessary to reverse our sector’s decline.

FE is positioned at the core of this ambitious agenda

Importantly, funding has also been confirmed to help cover additional national insurance costs, an acknowledgment of the financial strains FE faces.

However, the real ‘meat on the bones’ of this speech was Smith’s focus on the government’s new mission-led approach. And for me, this is what feels different from previous planned reforms.

Outlining three key shifts – a move to support learners more holistically by recognising and addressing the barriers they face; streamlining the complex network of agencies, funding bodies, and organisations involved in skills provision; and a move from competition to coordinated partnership – gives the sense of very positive reform ahead.

Moving beyond the prescriptive measures that have been in place for so long, and instead engaging colleges in the development of policy is for me, critical to the success of the mission we are all striving for.

A more flexible, unified approach, with true collaboration between stakeholders, including colleges, employers and local authorities will lead to more flexible working. This will help us to meet the needs of our communities and have measurable impacts on our local and national economies.

But perhaps most important for me is the acknowledgment of the civic role colleges play – an approach we have been advocating for and leading on for some time. Colleges provide so much more than just education. Our sector is unequivocally mission-based, in the very sense that the minister is talking about.

From what we have heard today, the government’s national mission for growth and opportunity is very much rooted in an ambition to encourage closer working across public services. Encouragingly, FE is positioned at the core of this ambitious agenda.

Working together, we now have a real chance to influence policy and shape the skills system, lleading to prosperity and economic growth in our communities.