Mind the gap. Williamson should look at education in the round

The FE sector will be pleased to have a champion in the new secretary of state, writes Ruth Gilbert, but as long as this false separation of schools and colleges continues we’re unlikely to “beat Germany by 2029”

Gavin Williamson’s announcement of the government’s ambition to make English technical education rival Germany’s within a decade makes it clear that there is now a political will to improve the fortunes of further education. But improving and expanding technical education will not have the desired effects unless the same happens for careers education – and that means reform of admission policies.

The education secretary’s well-publicised support for FE is welcome, as are the raft of policy measures he has announced, including eight more institutes of technology and a commitment to £400 million extra funding for 16 to 19 provision.

But continuing to treat schooling and further education as separate silos is a big part of the problem. Investing in technical pathways will be of limited value if schools aren’t supported to promote educational options. The recruitment struggles of UTCs and the national colleges are testament to that.

Our education system is, at heart, set up around the needs of secondary schools, which are incentivised to achieve good academic results – for the past decade they have done this while managing ever-shrinking budgets. As a result many schools have had no choice but to reduce their curriculum offer, slashing creative options to focus on subjects favoured by accountability measures.

Our education system is, at heart, set up around the needs of secondary schools

This is a tragedy for young people who shine in the arts and other “non-academic” areas. Not only do they miss out on developing a wide range of talents, but they are given the wrong message that only “academic” routes can lead to future career success. Indeed, many only access FE after having gone through unhappy years learning subjects they can’t or don’t want to engage in, culminating in failure, and leaving colleges with the job of picking up the pieces – most easily done by accentuating and reinforcing their difference from schools.

The irony is that while the government is reforming the qualifications system and talking up the importance of skills education, the funding and admissions frameworks haven’t changed. Schools need to fill places, ideally with children who will achieve good grades at GCSE and A-level. As a result, those that inform young people fairly about alternative pathways do so despite every incentive not to.

Young people and their parents put trust in the school they attend, yet advice is rarely impartial. It makes a mockery of the government’s careers strategy. This well-intentioned document includes eight “Gatsby benchmarks” to ensure careers education reaches certain standards. Yet, somewhat predictably, few regions achieve them.

We should capitalise on the lessons we can learn from some of our international counterparts, including Norway, Finland and Canada, and their efforts to ensure long-term sustainability to their education systems with reformed school admissions and funding policies. Many give regional authorities autonomy over careers services to meet local need. Canada actively uses industry investment to bolster careers education in skills shortages and new growth areas.

It makes a mockery of the government’s careers strategy

There are great examples here already. In the East Riding of Yorkshire for example, a regional careers hub is being built by a partnership between a property developer, the local enterprise partnership (LEP), four local councils and employers. The Qdos Careers Hub will bring students, employers and others together to provide impartial careers advice. This collaborative approach could easily be replicated elsewhere in the country.

It’s frustrating to see so much positive reform on technical education developed in a silo. The government needs to take a much more holistic approach, empowering schools to offer real choice and to support students’ individual career ambitions. Without that, it’s hard to see how we will deliver Mr Williamson’s ambition of matching Germany’s technical and vocational education by 2029, let alone truly tackle the skills needs of our economy.

FE and AP: A match made in heaven

An FE-led trust has benefited her alternative and special provision schools, says Jo Southby. They have contributed great things to the college too, but, most of all, it has influenced positive changes for young people at all stages of their education

In 2017 our successful federation of alternative and special provision schools joined a multi-academy trust, a unique transfer as the trust was led by a further education college.

Much can be learned from our experience over the past two years, and it’s clear that bringing together expertise from diverse institutions can create real success.

London South East Academies Trust is led by a large FE college, with campuses in our own and two surrounding boroughs. This brought immediate benefits, opening up partnership opportunities inside and outside our home turf and a different overview of how different local authorities (LAs) work. This alone improved our negotiation powers.

Joining up back office support has been a learning experience

We decided to become part of a trust for several reasons, but primarily to be part of an organisation that gave us a louder voice and more influence with the LA and other stakeholders. 

Alternative provision (AP) in particular has a tendency to be viewed as an extended LA service rather than as a school sector in its own right. Becoming part of a successful educational trust has, however, helped to change this – enabling us to reposition ourselves and ultimately shift the mindset of the people we work with.

It hasn’t been without its challenges. Joining up back office support has been a learning experience for college and schools alike. With AP and special schools, you cannot predict numbers or set targets in the same way a college does with its recruitment. Basically, you don’t know who is coming through the door! But having back-end support from the trust has been of real benefit, enabling our staff to concentrate on the main task of looking after students.

Staff recruitment and development across the trust have also been enhanced as, as part of a larger organisation, we are able to develop more attractive packages in terms of accredited external training and progression opportunities.

We advise students without schools’ accountability-led in-house bias

At first glance, AP deals with very different cohorts to a general FE college: children who are at risk of or have been excluded from school, with little interest in learning or partaking of a school community, and who are likely to be facing many challenges.  And our special provision (SP) schools cater for pupils with increasingly complex social, emotional and mental health needs that require significantly higher levels of intervention and support.

Ultimately though, these are the young people who we are preparing to enter college or workplace. College can be a great progression route when young people leave us – and with a possible renewed focus on young people achieving level 2 qualifications, that is increasingly where they are likely to go.

Not only are we now in a prime position to identify suitable FE routes for our students, but our expertise is of great value to our partner colleges who are going to be receiving these young people. We advise students on their next steps, in line with what is appropriate for them and their individual needs and without schools’ accountability-led in-house bias, and my staff are experts well beyond their school gates on safeguarding, knife crime, mental ill health and many other issues facing the trust’s students.

At the same time, we are benefiting from a louder voice, economies of scale and increased opportunities for students and staff – so it has most definitely been a win-win for us all.​

Agnew’s appointment shows colleges are now being taken seriously

The Department for Education has appointed Lord Agnew to take responsibility for the FE Commissioner and college financial oversight and intervention. Kirsti Lord explains why this is something to be pleased about, not worried

Colleges should welcome the announcement that Lord Agnew has become the third government minister to have further education as part of their brief. Especially given the concern some had when Anne Milton was not immediately replaced after resigning from government to protest a no-deal Brexit. He is a distinguished minister, respected by the government, the department and the wider education sector.

Of course, there will be disagreements over policy and implementation, but his appointment shows the seriousness with which colleges are now being taken. And that’s one of the things we’ve been pushing for with #LoveOurColleges ­ – to be taken seriously at the highest levels of government.

We should also be pleased, not worried, that Lord Agnew has been tasked with looking at FE quality and improvement because ours is a sector with a great story to tell. The vast majority of colleges are delivering high quality education and training for more than two million people in England each year. 

It’s important to remind ourselves that colleges are run incredibly well

A key part of Agnew’s expanded role will be financial accountability and we shouldn’t feel defensive about this. Despite recent headlines, it’s important to remind ourselves that colleges are run incredibly well on the tightest of budgets, in incredibly difficult circumstances.

They have faced cut after cut, reform after reform ­ and these have had consequences on staffing, on pay, on provision, and ultimately on the country’s ability to train and skill its workforce. Though the recent funding announcement was welcome, it was only a start. 

It was reassuring to hear Agnew discuss the need to support struggling colleges and that’s what we’ll be pushing for him, and government to do ­ to fix the roof before the storm hits.

We need to move beyond punishing leaders for things outside of their control, and encourage them to spot, report and reduce potential issues before they become big problems, in a way that does not risk their reputations and livelihoods if they do so. Having a climate that supports leaders, rather than punishes, is the best way to prevent issues becoming crises. 

Strengthening college governance was the right thing to do

Talk will inevitably turn to senior pay, as it so often does. I understand that salary stories always make for good headlines and clickbait ­ though they don’t often tell the full and true story. All public sector institutions, including colleges, must be transparent and decisions about finance and pay should be made appropriately with the support of clear guidance.

That is why, last year, Association of Colleges developed the Remuneration Code which amended the existing AoC Code (of Good Governance for English Colleges). It was seen at the time as the most appropriate way to respond to developments in the sector and the wider context in which colleges work. Considerable political debate, media and public interest and a consultation with members showed that strengthening college governance was the right thing to do.  

Our three core principles in the code ­ fairness, independence and transparency ­ are still as true today as they were when we published the code. And fairness, independence and transparency are at the heart of how colleges approach financial management and pay. As Lord Agnew gets to grips with his new brief, he will soon come to see that for himself.

Monthly apprenticeships update: July starts up just 2% on last year

Apprenticeship starts for the month of July 2019 are up just 2 per cent on the previous year and 5 per cent higher for the full year.

The figures published this morning show 25,700 starts in July compared to 25,200 the previous year.

Provisional starts for the full 2018/19 year are 21 per cent down on 2016/17, nine months of which was prior to the levy being introduced.

The Department for Education says: “There have been 389,200 apprenticeship starts reported to date in the 2018/19 academic year (August 2018 to July 2019). This compares to 369,700 reported in the equivalent period in 2017/18, 491,300 in 2016/17 and 503,700 in 2015/16.

“Of the 389,200 apprenticeship starts reported so far in 2018/19, 63.2 per cent (245,900) were on apprenticeship standards.”

FAB chair to make 5 wishes to education secretary

Federation of Awarding Bodies chair Paul Eeles will make five wishes to education secretary Gavin Williamson at the membership organisation’s annual conference today.

His first request will be the return of a dedicated skills and apprenticeships minister.

After Anne Milton quit the role ahead of Boris Johnson becoming prime minister, the FE and skills brief was taken up by Williamson when he was appointed.

But he shared responsibilities with Lord Agnew, Kemi Badenoch and then Michelle Donelan when Badenoch went on paternity leave.

On Williamson taking up the role, Eeles will say: “I admire his interest in FE and the work he is doing.

“But that is not the same as having a daily ministerial champion like we had in Anne Milton.”

He will also call for a move to a single regulator for all external quality assurance for apprenticeships, saying: “I will be encouraging Gavin Williamson to work with us and Ofqual, the Institute of Apprenticeships and Technical Education, and the Office for Students, in finding more efficient ways to externally quality assure our apprenticeship model in future.

“That means funding EQA as a national infrastructure cost; and ironing out many of the inconsistencies that have resulted because of a lack of a singular regulatory approach.

“It means ensuring a level regulatory playing field for all EPAOs – regardless of whether they have operated in the assessment market for 10 years or 10 minutes.”

Under FAB’s designs, the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education would remain legally in charge of EQA, but Ofqual would lead on it in the future. The current professional and employer bodies would then work to the single EQA regulator as subject matter experts.

Eeles will also use his speech to warn the government not to “kick away the ladder of opportunity under people, adult learners and vast parts of the country,” with its reviews of qualification programmes at below level 3, and at levels 4 and 5.

There are lots of other world-class qualifications already competing in this space

His objections follow fears that the government’s consultation on plans to withdraw funding for thousands of applied general qualifications, including BTECs, is manipulation of the market to ensure T-levels are a success.

While Eeles will say FAB supports T-levels, he will add that the potential “real problem” is that the “underlying thinking is one of the state saying to learners, employers and the wider economy, that ‘it knows best’”.

The government ought not to “throw the baby out with the bath water”, he will say, and should recognise “there are lots of other world-class qualifications already competing in this space”.

“We need to continue with a diverse qualifications marketplace driven by the needs and ambitions of learners.”

Eeles will also reiterate FAB’s call for the DfE to establish an independent reference panel to review the needs of the market before the secretary of state makes any future decisions on which qualifications to fund.

Lastly, the chair wants to “put rocket boosters under” the continued export potential of the UK’s “world-class“ qualifications, and will be calling on Williamson to work more closely with the devolved administrations, the Department for International Trade, and regulators to do just that.

He will say that over one million Ofqual-regulated qualifications were exported by FAB members last year.

Eeles’ speech comes ahead of a meeting with Williamson on October 28, where FAB will put these points to him.

Fourth content review of apprenticeship standards launched

Apprenticeships covering agriculture, environment and animal care will be probed by the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education in its fourth route review.

Eleven of the standards, including arborist, forest operative and golf greenkeeper, will be reviewed in total, and there will be a supporting eight-week consultation, running from today until 4 December.

The institute’s chief executive Sir Gerry Berragan said the review “will help us improve the quality of those apprenticeship standards to make sure they meet the needs of both employers and apprentices”.

He continued: “This is a great opportunity for those who are involved with apprenticeships in these occupations to have their say and I look forward to seeing some of the feedback.”

Recommendations from this review will be published in the summer of 2020.

The route panel chair for agriculture, environment and animal care, Dr Jude Capper, said: “It is great to be starting this review to make sure the standards are of the highest quality and meet the demands of the both employers and apprentices.”

The first route review of apprenticeship standards was a year ago and saw 12 standards in the digital sector cut down to nine.

Two further reviews, of creative and design and hair and beauty, were launched over the summer and are ongoing.

The standards covered by this latest review are:

  • Arborist
  • Forest operative
  • Golf greenkeeper
  • Horticulture and landscape operative
  • Sports turf operative
  • Pest control technician
  • Landscape/horticulture supervisor
  • Stockperson (beef, pigs, sheep, dairy)
  • Equine groom
  • Senior equine groom
  • Animal trainer

Nottingham College staff call for their CEO and chair to resign

Staff at a college embroiled in a bitter contracts row have delivered a vote of no confidence in their chief executive and chair of governors.

At a meeting last night, around 110 members of the University and College Union unanimously backed the motion which said the “continued mismanagement” by Nottingham College’s top leaders has “caused extreme harm and distress to staff and students”.

It came just hours after the college’s chief executive, John van de Laarschot (pictured above right), said news of another 14 days of strikes planned for November was “extremely disappointing” and warned it would “serve only to increase the detrimental impact on our students”.

He added: “We are committed to ongoing dialogue and action to resolve the situation but we need our striking teachers to return to work.”

Staff at Nottingham College, whose chair of governors is Carole Thorogood (pictured above left), will have already walked out for 15 days in September and October by the end of this week.

UCU members at the college say they have been forced out on strike because of the college’s attempts to impose “inferior” contracts that will cut holiday entitlement and see some staff take a pay cut.

Andrew Harden, UCU’s head of further education, said: “This unanimous motion of no confidence shows the strength of feeling amongst our members that the management’s position is becoming increasing untenable.

“Industrial action is always a last resort for members but the college’s refusal to negotiate in good faith has left staff with no alternative but to announce further action.”

He added: “The ball now firmly in the college’s court. They know what is required to resolve the dispute and there is no good reason for the college not to reach an agreement and let staff get back to work.”

A Nottingham College spokesperson said: “We’ve made a series of significant concessions specifically to address concerns relating to trust, pay and workload. We have not reneged on any commitments made – we have conceded and improved the offer on all points of issue and were hopeful that this would succeed in ending strike action.

“A number of options are now on the table for both UCU and the college and we are currently reviewing our position and looking at these options, as well as any possible alternative solutions.

“Our priority is our students and ensuring they suffer no further detriment to their studies. We are keen to get back round the table as soon as possible.”

The 110 UCU members represents 20 per cent of Nottingham College’s current full-time and “sessional” teaching staff, which currently sits at around 550.

Ofqual wants to ‘rebuke’ rule-breaking exam boards

Ofqual is proposing to change how it punishes awarding organisations who are non-compliant with new “public rebukes” and fixed penalty notices for those that flout regulations.

The exams regulator has launched a consultation to update its Taking Regulatory Action (TRA) policy, which was first published in 2011 and was last revised in 2012.

Currently, awarding bodies that are found to be breaking the rules can be fined. Ofqual issued its first fine in 2016 and six fines have been issued since then.

But fines are issued “only in the most serious cases”, Ofqual said. “In a small number of other cases we have given directions, which also demonstrate that we consider the non-compliance to be serious, but that power is not available unless the non-compliance is ongoing or likely to occur.”

The watchdog is now advocating two new ways in which awarding bodies could be punished – rebukes and issuing fixed penalties.

These could be used as a way for the regulator to draw attention to instances of non-compliance which, although not serious enough to be fined, “should nonetheless be highlighted as serious issues which we would not expect to see occur elsewhere”.

A rebuke would promote public confidence, deter future non-compliance and inform other awarding organisations how to avoid non-compliance, Ofqual said.

The proposals do not elaborate on the circumstances in which a rebuke might be issued.

Ofqual proposed rebukes would name awarding organisations and details of the nature and impact of non-compliance would be published.

Fixed penalties “would be imposed in relation to breaches of the conditions which are straightforward to establish”, Ofqual said.

Ofqual does not currently publish information about non-compliance where no formal action has been taken. However, the exams regulator said it will “keep under review” the possibility of publishing general information about the non-compliance recorded, without naming the awarding organisation concerned.

“The purpose of our proposals is to bring the policy up to date, so it reflects how we use our powers in practice,” the document reads.

Sally Collier (pictured), Ofqual’s chief regulator, said: “Where awarding organisations breach our rules, we take appropriate and proportionate action to put things right and to deter others from making the same mistakes.

“The sector we regulate continues to change and we are proposing changes to how we use our regulatory powers. We welcome contributions from awarding organisations, schools and colleges, and other users of regulated qualifications.”

The consultation will be open for eight weeks, between October 8 and December 2.

Last month it was revealed that the number of complaints received by Ofqual about England’s largest exam boards nearly doubled over the past two years.

Another 14 strike days announced at college involved in contracts row

Nottingham College will be hit with yet more “unprecedented” strikes next month after staff accused their leaders of reneging on promises over workload.

Members of the University and College Union will take to the picket lines for another 14 days after the next half-term.

The action has been announced after staff entered their fourth week of strikes yesterday. They will have walked out for a total of 15 days this academic year over an increasingly bitter dispute.

It centres on the college’s alleged plans to impose contracts which would leave some staff more than £1,000 a year worse off, as well as reducing holiday entitlement and removing protections against work overload. Staff at the college have not received a pay rise since 2010.

The UCU said that the college has now backtracked on a commitment to limit teaching hours to 24 hours a week while a new contract is negotiated. It added that the college’s refusal to negotiate in “good faith” has left members with no alternative but to announce more strike dates.

UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: “For months we have been trying to negotiate with the college, but it has refused to budge and has forced staff to take this unprecedented action. The college’s refusal to work with us has left staff with no choice but to continue their action. 

“The support for the strikes among staff and from elsewhere has been really encouraging. UCU members have made it clear that they are willing to fight against inferior contracts that will ultimately diminish the learning experience for students in Nottingham.”

Nottingham College chief executive, John van de Laarschot, said UCU’s intention to escalate industrial action is “extremely disappointing” and warned it will “serve only to increase the detrimental impact on our students”.

“We’ve been in constant dialogue with UCU at national level over the last few days, over the weekend and this morning, in an attempt to bridge the gap between the reported concerns of their members and the College’s offer,” he added.

“We’ve made a series of concessions specifically to address these concerns relating to trust, pay and workload but today it looks as if this was to no avail.”

Laarschot continued: “The college has not reneged on any commitments made. We are committed to ongoing dialogue and action to resolve the situation but we need our striking teachers to return to work so that we can deliver for our students and work together, collaboratively, to secure a long term solution that works for all.”

UCU claims some staff have already been “bullied” into signing new contracts.

In the strike ballot, 96 per cent of union members who voted backed the action.

UCU said almost 4,000 people have now signed a petition calling for Nottingham College staff to be given the contracts “they deserve”.

Nottingham College was approached for comment.

The second wave of strikes will consist of three and four-day walkouts over a four-week period covering most of November. The full strike dates for the second wave are:

.              Tuesday 5, Wednesday 6 and Thursday 7 November

 .              Monday 11, Tuesday 12, Wednesday 13 and Thursday 14 November

.              Monday 18, Wednesday 20 and Friday 22,

 .              Monday 25, Tuesday 26, Thursday 28 and Friday 29 November

(Picture: UCU)