The Government’s skills “revolution” could turn into a “damp squib” without student funding and subsidies, FE sector leaders warn

Government reforms aimed at boosting skills and lifelong learning, unveiled in the Queen’s Speech yesterday, could fail to reach the sections of the population that need it most if learners are not given the financial support to undertake the training, sector leaders have warned.

Ministers are due to publish the Skills and Post-16 Education Bill on May 18, following the publication of a White Paper earlier this year which promised more local training and learning opportunities.

At the centre of the government’s reforms will be local skills improvement plans, led by employers and in collaboration with colleges and training providers. Colleges will be expect to align the courses they offer with the needs of local employers.

According to the White Paper, the government “intends to legislate to put the employer leadership of local skills improvement plans on a statutory footing, strengthening the voice of employers in local skills systems across the country”.

The reforms also offer a student loan entitlement. The Prime Minister’s ‘lifetime skills guarantee’ will make people eligible for four years’ worth of student loan funding across further and higher education providers, enabling them to do modular courses while continuing to work.

The FE White Paper said: “For the lifelong loan entitlement to be a success it is crucial that the user is at the heart of these reforms. Creating a more efficient and user-friendly system, meeting the needs of individuals, employers and the economy will require new legislation to move away from a system grounded in the concept of full years or courses of study. It will also require significant changes to Student Loans Company systems.”

But Professor Bob Harrison, Governor at Oldham College and Visiting Professor at the University of Wolverhampton, said that while Boris Johnson had promised a “revolution” in adult learning, the government was in danger of “delivering a damp squib”.

“Putting employers in the driving seat fails to understand the complexity of adult and lifelong learning, and given it too narrow a focus,” he said.

“Employers tend to have immediate skills needs and are not necessarily interested in long-term development, especially if they can poach ready-trained workers from other companies. They might also be reluctant to spend time and money training people who will then up and leave to another job.

“Linking courses to the needs of employers fails to recognise the intrinsic value of learning for self-improvement and personal development. Many people will not have enough money to consider the risk of taking out student loans. This is a fundamental issue that Ministers don’t understand because this isn’t their personal experience. They can’t see why the State should be subsidising working class people to get them back into education.”

David Hughes, chief executive of the Association of Colleges, told the Guardian that while he welcomed “an important step on the journey to ending the snobbery around technical and vocational education”, there was no mention of finance so people could support themselves.

“It will only work if people can afford to live whilst studying through a mixture of loans, grants and welfare support,” he said. “Without this, many simply won’t be able to afford it.”

The White Paper will also give the government new powers over FE colleges, allowing the Education Secretary to intervene “where local providers are consistently unable to deliver the skills priorities for that area” or they refuse to deliver courses decided through local skills improvement plans.