DIUS FE and Skills e-Newsletter

Audience: All

On 1 April we published the report of the independent review by Sir Andrew Foster's Report, 'A Review of the Capital Programme in Further Education'. The SoS also made a statement to Parliament. Sir Andrew was appointed on 27 January to conduct a review of the FE Capital Programme to understand how the current situation arose and lessons to be learned for the future operation and delivery.
The statement from the Secretary of State said, 'Sir Andrew’s report is very clear and he has gone through the issues with great care. My Department and the LSC will accept all of his recommendations. I also wish to record my thanks for the speed and efficiency with which he has conducted his review. Click here for a copy of the statement and full report.

Audience: All

Chris Banks, Chair of the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) has announced that the LSC’s Chief Executive, Mark Haysom has tendered his resignation and it has been accepted.
Chris Banks says: “Mark Haysom is stepping down from his role as Chief Executive of the LSC, with immediate effect.
'The LSC has made great progress under Mark’s leadership and on behalf of the LSC’s National Council, I would like to thank him for the outstanding contribution he has made to the organisation and to its role of improving the skills of people in this country.
‘It is typical of Mark to want to take personal responsibility, as Chief Executive, for the difficulties we have experienced with our Further Education capital programme. He has offered to resign and I have reluctantly accepted his resignation.”
 

To find out more information, please see the official LSC press release or John Denham's statement.

Latest official figures just released by the Government show that the performance of its flagship employer skills services - Apprenticeships and Train to Gain - continues to rise, while the total number of young people gaining qualifications at FE colleges is also on the up.
Apprenticeships hit their highest ever number with 112,600 framework achievements secured in 2007/08 (a completion rate of 63.7%, up from 58.9% the year before) while the number of starts was 224,800, up by almost 22% on 2006/07.
On Train to Gain, 346,200 adults started a qualification in 2007/08, an increase of 68 per cent from 2006/07, while 386,200 started a qualification in the first six months of the 2008/09 academic year, an increase from 253,600 adults starting in the same period a year before. And new research published by the Learning and Skills Council shows that both employers and employees continue to be highly satisfied with Train to Gain. It found that 92 per cent of employers who have accessed Train to Gain have been satisfied with the training, and the provider who delivered it, 68 per cent of employers stated that Train to Gain training has improved long-term competitiveness of their business and 46 per cent of employers stated that Train to Gain has had a beneficial impact on their “bottom line”. Click here to view the press notice Click here to the factsheet

The official statistics also show that:

• 138,600 young people (16 – 18 year olds) and 320,600 adults (aged 19 and older) achieved full level 2 qualifications in 2007/08, increases of 3.4% and 36.5% respectively.
• 159,800 young people (16 – 18 year olds) and 134,500 adults (aged 19 and older) achieved full level 3 qualifications in 2007/08, increases of 7.8% and 17.0% respectively.
• The overall success rate for FE funded provision for adults (excluding apprenticeships and Train to Gain) was 80.2% in 2007/08. This is an increase of 3.4 percentage points on 2006/07.

Further headlines and background information can be found on the Data Service website click here to view. 

Audience: All

In March the Government published a White Paper, The Learning Revolution, which will bring to life a new 21st century vision for informal adult learning.
The Learning Revolution outlines what the whole of Government can do to support learning for pleasure, including:
• setting up a £20m transformation fund to support innovative informal learning partnerships and projects
• helping to broker improved access to learning, especially for disadvantaged groups and older people
• encouraging the growth of self organised learning (like reading groups, neighbourhood history groups, knitting clubs and drama groups)
• building a vibrant culture of learning though a new informal adult learning pledge, campaign and festival.
The campaign is backed by organisations ranging from the Women's Institute, the Church of England and the National Trust to Microsoft and BUPA. The White Paper and further information can be viewed by clicking the following links. Learning Revolution  and DIUS news

Audience: All

In the current economic climate, getting a job depends as much on a candidate’s qualifications as on his or her ability to demonstrate employability skills such as being able to work in a team, communicate clearly, solve problems and take criticism. 
The UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) launched the Employability Challenge in response to employers’ concerns, about why, after years of discussion about and definitions of employability skills, too few candidates for recruitment have these skills.
The report draws on the expertise and practice of over 200 organisations and boils their experiences down to six core principles aimed at helping learners develop employability skills. Chris Humphries CBE, chief executive of the UK Commission said: "Employers are rightly frustrated at having to teach new recruits how to write reports in English, rather than text-speak, or how to turn up for work on time.”  The Employability Challenge is available here

Audience: All

Ten new Quick Reads were launched on 5 March. The books written by well known authors and celebrities are aimed at engaging adult ‘emergent’ readers to help them develop a love of reading.
Quick Reads have proven to be a success in literacy classes. Tutors said in a recent survey there are 16% more learners at literacy level1 following the use of Quick Reads.
Authors are:
A Cool Head - Ian Rankin (Orion)
The Cave - Kate Mosse (Orion)
All Those Lonely People - Gervais Phinn (Penguin)
Black-Eyed Devils - Caitrin Collier (Accent Press)
The Dare - John Boyne (Transworld)
Doctor Who: the Sontarian Games – Jacqueline Rayner (BBC Books)
The Tannery - Sherrie Hewson (Macmillan)
How to Get Your Child Reading – Patience Thomson, intro Michael Morpurgo (Barrington Stoke)
Reach for Your Dream - Lola Jaye (HarperCollins)
Dragon's Den: Your Road to Success by the Dragons (HarperCollins)

More information at www.quickreads.org.uk

The ESOL curriculum is now available online on the Excellence Gateway through an interactive online tool that:

• promotes flexible and creative use of the curriculum content in a variety of learning contexts, including embedded learning;
• enhances content and resources with additional guidance, exemplification and vocational material;
• provides tools and features that will enable practitioners, including the wider embedded-learning audience, to create effective personal learning experiences; and
• provides an online community where ideas and innovation can be shared and developed.

Audience: All

The seventh edition of the 16-18 and post 19 funding transfer bulletin is now available by following this link: 16-18 and post 19 funding transfer bulletins
 

Audience: all

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) are encouraging young people to get involved with the creation of their Charter, with an interactive consultation launched 09 March 2009 on the HMRC Charter Online Consultation site.
HMRC collects money to help fund public services for example education, NHS and the police. The Charter is an agreement between HMRC and their customers to say what they will expect from each other in terms of service and behaviour.
Charterpelago is an interactive tool that brings the draft charter statements to life through a series of animations. People can then select their favourites and rank them in order of preference.
HMRC are hoping to encourage responses from students, school leavers and those new to the workforce aged between 15 and 24.
It is the first time HMRC has targeted a specific group of customers in this way and are hoping this will help educate young people to understand how they work, as well as make them realise their responsibilities as citizens.

Audience: All post 16 providers

An invitation to develop and deliver professional development for teachers
Sir Peter Williams’ Independent Review of Mathematics Teaching in Early Years Settings and Primary Schools was published in June 2008. The key recommendation was to introduce a Maths Specialist in every Primary School by 2019, training a total of 13,000 teachers.
The Department for Children Schools and Families (DCSF) wishes to appoint a number of Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) to develop and deliver training for the first Maths Specialist cohort in January 2010. Bids are now being accepted from HEIs in partnership with LAs. Bids will be accepted from individual HEIs or those in consortia, the consortia may additionally include any other expert bodies.
Training programmes must be ready for delivery by 31 December 2009.
Click here to download the invitation to tender (ITT)
For any queries, please contact Sarah Amer - sarah.amer@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk or 020 792 56016.
Deadline for tender responses: 30 April 2009.

Audience: All

John Denham visited four regions during March to highlight sectors that will help create and sustain the jobs for the future. During the visits he focused on the creative industries, healthcare and life sciences, clean technologies (particularly low carbon technologies) and high value manufacturing. The Secretary of State described the tour as "ensuring the Government is doing all it can to make sure local workers get their share of the jobs of the future in the key industries, technologies and services that will drive the UK’s future economic growth ... To do this, we need to use the levers of Government where they will have most effect – in the sectors and markets in which we are strong as a nation, where government action can be effective and where there is significant potential for economic growth and new employment." During the visits John Denham viewed new facilities in these sectors and met with employers to discuss developments in the sectors and what more the government could do to help education and business work together on innovation and knowledge transfer to promote jobs and economic growth.

Audience: All

The Department of Health (DH) is pleased to announce the launch of the Healthy FE Programme web portal hosted on the Excellence Gateway.
The pages provide an introduction to the Healthy FE Programme, outlining how the FE sector can integrate health and well-being of learners and staff as a cental theme in their organisation's success. In time the web portal time will become the central mechanism for sector practitioners to share and develop good practice, access guidance and resources, and as a platform for collaborative working.
The Healthy FE programme is funded by DH with support from DIUS and DCSF.

Click here to view the website.

The Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS) and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) are conducting research into best practice of FE colleges tackling Guns, Gangs and Knife Crime. They are particularly interested in examples of effective leadership and management practices and would be grateful for input from providers , as they want to capture as much as possible of the innovation present in the sector.
The research is structured around the following strands:

• Effective multi-agency working
• Positive engagement strategies
• A relevant curriculum
• The creation of a safe environment for all learners
• Values-led leadership
• A trained and confident workforce
• Policies and procedures

If you have any questions or feel that your institution has a potential best practice to contribute in one or more particular areas, please contact Martin Steinmuller at martin.steinmuller@lsis.org.uk or Joe Martin at joe.martin@lsis.org.uk

Audience: All

The Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS) are holding 5 masterclasses across England over the next 3 months to provide expert guidance on the use of their sexual orientation, equality staff training DVD, “Visible and Valued”. This will help you
• Lead on implementing sexual orientation and transgender equality
• Train staff, governors and board members
• Support learners
• Deal with homophobic bullying and harassment
• Enrich equality and diversity policy and practice
• Meet legal requirements
• Plan how to use the DVD
You will have access to a dedicated virtual learning environment and will receive a free copy of the DVD and a CD of extensive training notes.
The cost is £40 per delegate. Subsidies may be available. For more information and booking information, download the flyer

Audience: All

The process for requesting changes to the 2010/11 individualised learner record (ILR) is now underway and key documents are available to download from the information authority’s website.
Any requests for changes to the ILR need to be submitted by 26 June 2009.
Later in the year, learning providers and stakeholders will be encouraged to share their comments on the proposed changes.
Una Bennett, Head of the information authority, said: “My advice to anyone thinking about requesting a change to the ILR is to talk to us as early as possible. It takes time and effort to draft a change request and by contacting us early on you will be more able to benefit from our advice and guidance.”
All learning providers in receipt of funding from the LSC have to complete an ILR return, which contains data about their learners and their learning.
Find out more on the information authority’s website

Audience: All

The Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS) wants your help to identify the unsung heroes of the further education (FE), learning and skills sector. We are looking for tutors, trainers, managers and support staff who make a real difference and regularly give over and above what is expected of them in their every day roles.
Since the launch of the STAR Awards in 2003, over £150,000 in development funding and prize money has been given to winners and highly commended nominees who have used this money to improve their skills, gain new experiences and ultimately benefit learners. With a wide range of categories for individuals and teams, the STAR Awards cover all aspects of FE provision and are open to those in teaching and non-teaching roles. Anyone can nominate including learners, colleagues and managers.
Nomination packs have now been posted to all further education providers. If you’re yet to receive your pack, visit the STAR website to request one today.

Audience: All

The Further Education Tutorial Network (FETN) is a forum for managers and practitioners working to improve tutorial provision in Further Education. The Network began in 2004 and currently has over 60 member institutions with a national spread and growing reputation.
Network members meet at least four times per year to discuss relevant topics affecting tutorial provision, influence future developments and share ideas and resources. In addition to these regional meetings, a national conference is held in November each year. The conference raises the profile of tutorial and seeks to disseminate the latest in good practice and innovation. FETN has worked collaboratively with the LSN, the QIA, the DCSF and NAMSS in a bid to achieve excellence in tutorial provision and the learner experience.
To find out more about the work of FETN or to join the network visit www.FETN.org.uk or contact Dr. Sally Wootton, Tutorial Manager, Wakefield College s.wootton@wakefield.ac.uk

myguide is a free, ‘brilliantly simple’ and motivational introduction to computer and Internet skills. An 'open use' tool, it can be used by individuals and by any organisation, including FE colleges, training providers and adult learning providers. People can learn alone and at their own pace or as part of a formal course, getting help with emails, the internet, ‘e-safety’, online shopping and online public services. myguide is designed to help novices and those who are excluded from the benefits of digital technologies, including disadvantaged groups. It has an impressive success rate, converting nine out of ten people into confident Internet users. It is already being used successfully by thousands of UK online centres and other organisations. Developed and maintained with the support of the government and key partners including NIACE, it is now being offered as a shared cross-sector resource.

Try myguide now with the ‘Feeling fine online’ game or contact val.hewson@dius,gsi.gov.uk for more information.