FE & Skills: the latest from the BIS Further Education and Skills team
Friday, 11 May 2012: 46th Edition
 

NIACE Adult Learners Week

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Statement from the Prime Minister

"Adult learning is part of this country’s life-blood.  Every year millions of vocational learners, apprentices and other adult learners develop important skills that contribute to the economic recovery and promote growth in our country.

Adult Learners’ Week is our largest annual celebration of adult learning in all its forms, reminding us that new knowledge and skills can open up new horizons and new chances in life, creating new bonds across communities and between people of all ages, backgrounds and heritages.

I would like to congratulate the outstanding individual learners and inspiring learning projects that have been nominated and receive awards. I hope their example will inspire as many people as possible to go out and see how learning can change their own and their families’ lives for the better.”


Adult Learners' Week (ALW) runs from 12 to 18 May this year and is the largest independent annual celebration of adult learning in the UK. ALW involves national and regional award ceremonies that recognise the achievements of outstanding individuals and inspiring learning projects ranging from apprentices, work based learning and community learning.

It is a chance to celebrate the achievements of individuals whose lives at work, at home and in their communities have been transformed by learning. It also helps inspire others to discover the positive impact learning can have on their lives. As well as the national awards ceremony there are many regional and local events taking place. Organisations, employers and groups should take the opportunity to get involved.

Find out more about Adult Learners’ Week.

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24+ Advanced Learning Loans - Latest Briefing

The latest briefing on loans in Further Education is available. This month’s update includes:

  • key dates
  • the new name for loans
  • the policy rationale
  • new market research
  • an update on meetings with unions and provider
  • representatives
  • loans and Apprenticeships
  • how is the work being managed
  • key contacts.

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Call for Community Learning Trust Pilots

On 11 April John Hayes, Minister for FE, Skills and Lifelong Learning, invited community learning providers directly funded by the Skills Funding Agency to develop pilot proposals for innovative local community learning trusts.

Launching the prospectus, the Minister emphasised that providers must work closely with local organisations on their applications.  This will ensure that local people have a real say in community learning and help get good value for taxpayers.  The Government will select 10 to fifteen pilots to begin in  August. 

John Hayes said:

“Our community learning trust pilots will give people…the chance to discuss, design - and in some cases deliver - the kind of learning they want. These pilots will liberate community learning from top-down bureaucratic controls and give it a new direction, based on what people tell us.”

Two roadshows were held on 8 and 9 May for potential applicants already working with their communities.  For information from the roadshows see the FAQ page below.

Download the Prospectus.

Visit our BIS webpage and FAQs

Here is the press notice.

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John Hayes writes to Chairs of FE corporations

On 11 May Minister John Hayes wrote to the chairs of FE Corporations.  He thanked colleges for their responses to his letter about strategic governance and provided an update on two key policies:

  • the quality of teaching and learning and
  • ensuring colleges were making the necessary arrangements for the introduction of 24+ Advanced Learning Loans. 

The letter can be read here.

The market research on 24+ Advanced Learning Loans referred to in the letter can be found here.

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New National Council to raise standards of Careers Advice

Skills Minister John Hayes has appointed careers expert Dr Deirdre Hughes OBE as the Chair of the new National Council for Careers.  The council will be a driving force for excellence in careers guidance and will provide independent, expert advice to the Government on the development of the National Careers Service launched in April.

Dr Hughes has a wealth of experience in the careers guidance sector, she is a Commissioner and member of the Executive Board of Directors at the UK Commission for Employment & Skills and was awarded an OBE in the 2012 New Year Honours List for her services to careers guidance.

Dr Hughes will be supported on the council by ten members with expertise in the sector.  They include: Rajay Naik, David McNerney, Steve Higginbotham, Jennifer Rudge OBE, Linda Taylor OBE, Heather Jackson, Chris Heaume, Kieran Gordon, Tony Watts and Ruth Spellman. Simon Surtees, Nick Chambers and Brian Lightman will be Associate Members.

The Government publication, The Right Advice at the Right Time, is here

The press notice is here.

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Apprenticeships: Driving Up quality

The vast majority of Apprenticeships are high quality, and most colleges and other training providers are working hard to achieve this.

Apprentices deserve no less. The Government has introduced extensive measures to ensure Apprenticeships continue to be the gold standard for vocational training, building on statutory standards introduced last year.  On 1 April we announced that, in line with frameworks developed by employers and other stakeholders. Apprenticeships will last between one and four years, and in all cases at least 12 months, unless for older apprentices prior learning means a shorter period is possible and funding is reduced.  The new rules come into force from August 2012.

The Government also remains committed to rooting out any poor provision. Where there are allegations of this, such as raised in the recent BBC Panorama programme, the Government will act swiftly to address it, including reclaiming funding where there is evidence of misuse.

Here is the press notice.

The NAS website has further information. 

The Skills Funding Agency funding rules are here.

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The 'Youth Contract' is here

The Youth Contract initiative provides £1 billion over three years to lift 16 to 24-year-olds out of unemployment and into training and work.

How can you get involved?

  • Develop programmes combining employability skills, including English and maths, with vocational training and work experience that help young people into Apprenticeships and other jobs.  We fully fund foundation learning, full Level 2, full Level 3 and full GCSE English and maths for 19-24 year olds through the adult skills budget.
  • Offer a sector-based work academy programme to meet the recruitment needs of local employers. The Youth Contract provides for 25,000 places for 18-24 year olds for next three years.
  • Build strong local partnerships with Jobcentre Plus and Work Programme providers and others to support local disadvantaged young people.

Want to learn more?

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Skills Minister leads delegation to Siemens in Lincoln and Berlin

On 23 – 25 April, Skills Minister John Hayes led a delegation of senior trade unionists, UK commissioners for employment and skills, business leaders and BIS officials to visit Siemens turbo machinery plants in Lincoln and Berlin.

Mr Hayes and Jill Stewart, Head of Lincoln School of Engineering

(Above, Minister Hayes and Jill Stewart, Head of Lincoln School of Engineering)

The delegation saw the enthusiasm of apprentices, their trainers and union representatives for their training programme, which lays the foundation for a rewarding career with a global organisation. 

Mr Hayes said: “This visit is about looking at how Government, industry and education can work together to service the common good and the national interest”.

The delegation moved on to the Siemens Technical Academy and plant in Berlin for meetings. There was also an exchange of views on the social partnership approach with the Minister at the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training and representatives from the German Chambers and Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training.

Here is the University of Lincoln’s press notice.

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English Business Survey

FE colleges and training providers will be interested in the English Business Survey (EBS).  Its data can help them plan their work with local businesses.

The EBS is a monthly survey of 3,000 workplaces across England, asking a series of directional questions (e.g. higher, lower or same) on key variables, such as output, employment, investment and prices. It therefore provides a monthly assessment of current, past and expected future economic conditions in each English region.

Thursday 26 April saw the latest publication of data from the EBS.  Key findings from this month are:

  • Output: In line with other surveys, on balance respondents reported higher levels of activity relative to both three months ago and one year ago. Respondents were even more optimistic about output in three months’ time.
  • Employment: Most workplaces reported no change in employment intentions, both relative to three months ago and in three months' time.
  • Investment: Workplaces accounting for 30 per cent of employment reported making investment in the past and planning to do so.
     

More information on EBS is available.

Data tables and statistical release info is also available.

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Graduate Talent Pool

FE providers and their partners may be interested to know about BIS’s Graduate Talent Pool.

Aimed at small and medium sized organisations, this web-based service offers free advertising to employers who are offering graduate internships, and free access to those vacancies for all recent graduates (2008 to 2012). The site has already handled more than 46,000 graduate internship vacancies since 2009 but is still looking to attract more employers and graduates.

The Graduate Talent Pool website includes guidance on offering and undertaking internships, an employer helpline and a feedback facility for graduates. All vacancies are subject to a quality assurance process, and more than 90 per cent of current vacancies are for paid internships.

Internships can be an excellent way for graduates to gain valuable work experience and get into the professional jobs market. They offer businesses a short term boost and an opportunity to tap into graduate knowledge and skills. They also allow employers to test the benefits of employing graduates in the longer term.

You can find out more here.

Here is information for recent graduates.

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FE and Skills eNewsletter: edition 46 (May 2012)

You can subscribe to this newsletter by visiting our website: www.bis.gov.uk/site/connect/newsletters/fe-skills

 

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