Table Of Content

@FEWeek Monday, November 11, 2013 FE Week 1 FE FE Week Week news ~ analysis ~ jobs ~ fun Monday, November 11, 2013 www.feweek.co.uk HHaawwkk hhiigghh Staff at Hawk Training celebrate the first Ofsted grade one result for an independent learning provider in more than a year See picture caption on page 10 Picture by Nick Linford Whitehead’s bonfire of the quals Chris Henwood It was failing to “generate voca- one, the report includes examples the entire landscape as opposed to qualifications would be the second @Chris_Henwood tional qualifications that are valued of how the design principles, which thousands,” said Mr Whitehead. such move in recent months. widely or seen as a signal of market- would be used over Qualifications He added: “I think awarding Nearly 1,900 adult qualifications, Around 95 per cent of the adult able skills,” according to his report. and Credit Framework (QCF) rules, organisations should actually that had little or no uptake, have vocational market’s 19,000-plus Mr Whitehead recommended that might hit the market for certain look at we are proffering here and already seen their public funding qualifications could be axed under Ofqual, the Skills Funding Agency regulated qualifications. recognise that what we are saying is cease, as Mr Hancock pointed out. radical proposals to “de-clutter the and the Department for Business, It suggests a 50 per cent fall in that where there is the opportunity He said: “We are already using system,” FE Week can reveal. Innovation and Skills should use engineering qualifications (to 166), for innovation and where award- elements of his approach to stream- The move, put forward by BAE commission-set “design principles” an 81 per cent fall in adult social ing bodies are really putting their line and simplify the publicly-fund- Systems group managing director as eligibility criteria for public care (to 58) and a 72 per cent fall in thought into it, then that should be ed adult vocational qualifications Nigel Whitehead in a review re- funding of qualifications. retail (to 66). recognised.” offer, and will use it to inform our quested by Skills Minister Matthew The design principles are aimed, Speaking exclusively to FE Week The report also called for more work as we drive to make our skills Hancock, would leave just “hun- among other things, at promot- ahead of Friday’s launch of his information about the impact of system more rigorous and respon- dreds” of qualifications. ing greater collaboration between report, Mr Whitehead said his qualifications, and said: “Our vision sive to the needs of employers and Mr Whitehead’s report, published employers, awarding organisations proposals would therefore mean the is of a de-cluttered skills landscape, learners.” by the UK Commission for Employ- and training providers to make overall number of publicly-funded making it easier for industrial Glenys Stacey, Ofqual chief regu- ment and Skills — in which he is qualifications more relevant to the adult vocational qualifications partnerships to use the regulated lator, said: “We recognise and ac- a commissioner, said there were workplace. should fall drastically from the cur- qualifications system to align skills cept the challenge the report... sets a number of problems with the In conjunction with counting rent figure of more than 19,000. with vocational qualifications in Continued on page 8, including current “complex, over-prescribed” identical qualifications from dif- “It’ll come down to hundreds of their sectors.” a Q&A with Mr Whitehead system. ferent awarding organisations as recognisable qualifications across The potential cull of 95 per cent of WE ARE PROUD SPONSORS OF THE SKILLS SHOW WHERE WE WILL BE HELPING YOUNG PEOPLE TO #OPENDOORS 2 FE Week Monday, November 11, 2013 www.feweek.co.uk Government ‘not doing enough’ over Edition 81 FE Week is the only newspaper dedicated to apprentice illegal wage investigations news, analysis, jobs and fun in the FE sector. And tweet us your thoughts @feweek or Paul Offord that four apprentices were found to have been tices,” he said. with the hashtag #feweek paid below the NMW, which went up 3p to “We want to help employers avoid falling @PaulOfford £2.68 last month. They were owed £7,235 in foul of NMW rules unwittingly and ensure Editor: Nick Linford total. individuals are well-informed about their Deputy editor: Chris Henwood Just five per cent of complaints made over And Mr Byrne went on to point to NMW eligibility.” Sub editor: Paul Offord the summer about bosses paying apprentices government research that had Meanwhile, the government is yet Reporter: Rebecca Cooney below the National Minimum Wage (NMW) shown 29 per cent of apprentices to name and shame any underpay- Head designer: Nicky Phillips had been fully investigated by the received less pay than ing apprentice bosses despite Operations: Shane Mann government by late last month, they were legally moves in the summer to make Sales executive: Hannah Smith FE Week can reveal. entitled to. it easier to identify offending Administration: Victoria Boyle Eight of the complaints, all But Busi- employers. Financials: Helen Neilly registered between July and ness Minister The clampdown, which Contributors: Mick Fletcher September, had been closed, Lord Younger applies to non-apprentices too, Toni Fazaeli prompting a scathing attack (pictured right) came into effect last month. Christine Doubleday from Shadow Skills Minister defended the It comes in addition to financial Carol Snape Liam Byrne (picture right). government’s record penalties, of up to £5,000, employers He said: “The government on investigating apprentices’ face if they fail to pay adequately. isn’t doing enough to deal with pay complaints. A BIS spokesperson said: “The revised For an annual subscription to FE Week for complaints. He said: “The government is absolute- NMW naming scheme will name employers just £75 visit www.feweek.co.uk and click “It is simply appalling that HMRC [Her ly clear everyone who is entitled to the NMW that have been issued with a notice of under- on ‘subscribe’ at the top of the page. Majesty’s Revenue and Customs] has closed should receive it. This includes apprentices. payment by HMRC. only five per cent of cases where apprentices “The government takes the enforcement of “It can take an average of 150 days for have complained about their pay. the national minimum wage very seriously HMRC to complete its investigations before it If you are interested in placing a product or “We need a radical overhaul of the system, and HMRC reviews every complaint that’s issues a notice. job advert in a future edition please click to ensure apprenticeships are a gold referred to it — investigating the com- “The revised naming scheme came into on the ‘advertise’ link at the top of the page standard once again. plaint and, in addition, carrying effect on October 1, so an investigation that on www.feweek.co.uk or contact: “The apprenticeship brand out targeted enforcement where began on this date is not likely to be closed has been badly tarnished on it identifies a high risk of non- until early next year, as this will also have E: [email protected] this government’s watch.” payment.” to factor in the appeals and representation T: 020 81234 778 The complaints situa- He added the government process as part of the naming scheme.” tion emerged following an was so concerned about the Originally, employers had to meet one of enquiry by Labour peer Lord issue that complaints from seven criteria before they could be named. Top data return and funding Beecham (pictured right) with apprentices were now being The minimum amount of NMW owed to software tweets: the Department for Business, “prioritised” by HMRC. workers had to be at least £2,000 and the Innovation and Skills (BIS), ask- “We are also stepping up our average per worker at least £500 before an em- @MJ_BPool ing what steps were being taken to communication activity to increase ployer could be referred to BIS from HMRC After the R03 debacle, funding enforce the NMW for apprentices. the level of awareness of the minimum wage for naming. The revised scheme removes guidance V3 just released. Half Of the complaints investigated, BIS said rules across the board, including appren- these restrictions. our learners enrolled 6 mths ago! This madness can't continue Training provider under investigation @AMadgett Have just uploaded my first R03; Paul Offord I wonder how long it will take to @PaulOfford come back? @SimonFranceFE A London-based training provider is under its I've heard of 3 separate instances second investigation from the same awarding where the FIS software by @The- body following complaints from learners. DataService has wrecked a PC. I Bright Assessing, which provides qualifi- ain't installing that baby! cations for unemployed people who want to re-enter the workplace, is under the spotlight @joncarr1977 of NCFE (formerly the Northern Council for Funding software delayed AGAIN. Further Education) once again. have been made.” propriately, and we have re-examined our own Sorry @TheDataService @skills- The provider boasts a pass rate of between 95 She added that the Skills Funding Agency and procedures in the light of comments we have funding this is unacceptable per cent and 100 per cent, but it is being investi- Ofqual were both being kept informed about the received as part of our commitment to continual gating over claims learners claims that courses latest investigation. improvement in all aspects of our work. are substandard. An Ofqual spokesperson said: “We are moni- “We utterly refute the principal complain- @TheDataService A spokesperson for NCFE said: “Following toring NCFE’s investigation into Bright to make ant’s allegations concerning the management of At close of R03, 807 providers had complaints from a number of learners earlier sure we can be satisfied it is taking necessary their training. Bright has supplied NCFE with sent in 2,706 ILR files. 710 files this year, we conducted an investigation into steps to protect the quality and integrity of its proof that this accusation is unfounded.” were processed on the last day Bright International to ensure that the training qualifications.” She claimed her firm trained 2,710 unem- provider met our quality standards. An SFA spokesperson also confirmed it would ployed people in the last year, resulting in 81 “We concluded this investigation on August also monitor the investigation. per cent getting a job, 11 per cent going on to 16, putting in place a detailed action plan, work- Krissy Charles-Jones (pictured), Bright’s complete further training and 8 per cent remaining closely with Bright International to help chief executive, welcomed the new investigation ing unemployed. learners have the best learning experience that and claimed the previous one had given her firm The SFA spokesperson said that Bright was LLeeaarrnniinngg && SSkkiillllss EEvveennttss,, they can. a “clean bill of health”. a subcontractor and so did not receive public CCoonnssuullttaannccyy aanndd TTrraaiinniinngg LLttdd “On October 14, on the basis of fresh informa- She said: “We welcome this opportunity to money directly. She added that this meant the 116611--116655 GGrreeeennwwiicchh HHiigghh RRooaadd LLoonnddoonn SSEE1100 88JJAA tion shared with us by learners, we launched a have our practices and procedures re-examined, SFA was unable to confirm how much govern- TT:: 002200 88112233 44777788 new investigation into the organisation. even though we have already been given a clean ment funding Bright received. EE:: nneewwss@@ffeewweeeekk..ccoo..uukk “We are currently at the initial fact finding bill of health by NCFE. It is only right that when As a subcontractor, Bright would not be sub- stage, clarifying the nature of the claims that people have concerns they are dealt with ap- ject to an Ofsted inspection of its own. @FEWeek Monday, November 11, 2013 FE Week 3 Call for ‘heads to roll’ amid software delays Rebecca Cooney FE Week online survey @RebeccaKCooney Thursday, November 8 College and training provider data staff have 159 responses demanded action after struggling to submit accurate data because of problems with Have you successfully installed Fis? Skills Funding Agency software. Yes 121 76% An FE Week survey on Thursday, Novem- No 37 23% ber 7 — the day after the deadline to submit Don't know 1 1% the return, known as R03 — found that just five providers out of 159 (three per cent) Did you successfully return said they had a reliable funding report from your R03 ILR data? the new funding information system (Fis) software. Yes 134 84% Delays in supplying Fis meant providers No 14 9% were left with just eight working days to Did not need to 7 4% install it and remedy any errors in the re- Don't know 4 3% turn, and led to a call in a previous FE Week survey from four out of five data officers to If you made a return was abandon the data return completely. your data errorless? Responding anonymously to the latest Yes 56 35% survey, data management staff called for the No 96 60% agency to take responsibility. A data integrity officer at a large college Don't know 7 4% said: “Heads should roll. We are going to be a third of the way into the year without any Approximately how many errors idea of what we have or might earn.” do you have? A data and audit manager, also from a 0 41 26% large college, said: “It is a nightmare. They 1 - 100 35 22% wouldn’t accept this level of incompetence 101 - 1,000 25 16% from us, so why should we have to accept it 1,001 - 5,000 23 14% from them?” Many providers are still struggling to in- 5,001 - 10,000 7 4% stall the software while others have reported 10,001 - 20,000 11 7% glitches in the program once it is running. 20,001+ 3 2% An MIS manager at a small independent Don't know 14 9% training provider said: “The whole R03 was a farce from start to finish. I cannot yet get Fis Do you now have a reliable to work properly. funding report from Fis? “Putting not fit for purpose software into Yes 5 3% the public domain is ludicrous and then expecting people to submit data was the straw No 124 78% that broke the camel’s back.” Don't know 30 19% A data analyst at one large college said: “We’ve had six people doing two Saturdays of overtime and we still can’t get a reliable reliable. IT’S TIME TO TALK TO US ABOUT picture of funding from the Fis.” Fis is part of a wider agency data col- A learner systems manager at a local lections and funding transformation LEARNING PROGRAMMES authority said: “They should pay all provid- programme, which has been developed to ers a compensation payment to cover all the comply with the Cabinet Office’s new digital additional work that providers have needed strategy, which includes using a range of With our vocational heritage and outstanding credentials, to do to cover the SFA’s failure to provide both large and small software development there is no one better qualifi ed to help empower young the system required.” companies. people for employment and life. Of the total responses to the latest FE Another element of the software upgrade Week survey, which was posted on the infor- which has still not been released is the We have a full package of support services that will help mation authority Feconnect forum as well Learning Aims Reference System (Lars) — ease the burden of change and support your curriculum as the CMIS-Network — a Jiscmail email an online tool which enables providers to, planning and delivery. discussion group, 83 providers said they had among other things, look up qualification 1,000 or more errors, of which 11 had more funding values. For more information on Vocational Learning than 10,000 and three had more than 20,000. The agency said it would release a simpler, A total of 134 (84 per cent) said they had desktop version of Lars before the end of the Programmes visit ocr.org.uk successfully submitted R03 data by the 6pm month, and in time for the next data return deadline on Wednesday, November 6, but deadline (R04) on December 5. more than half (81) said the data they submit- An agency statement said: “We have ted contained errors. decided to publish Lars Lite as we will be Just five providers out of 159 (three per unable to publish a fully functioning Lars cent) said they had a reliable funding report search capability on The Hub in time to sup- from the Fis software, with 124 (78 per cent) port R04. saying their report was unreliable and the “We still intend to implement the Lars remaining 30 (19 per cent) saying they did service and will publish a revised delivery not know whether or not their data was plan in due course.” 4 FE Week Monday, November 11, 2013 www.feweek.co.uk Elmfield probe Surprise highs and lows for apprentices ‘ongoing’ despite pre-pack sale An investigation into Elmfield Training will continue despite part of the company having been sold to a nursing homes training provider, FE Week can reveal. Elmfield, which was slapped with a notice of concern in June following a grade four Ofsted inspection result, contacted staff more than two weeks ago to say it was taking steps to put the company into administration. Last week it announced that it had appoint- ed Deloitte as administrators and the majority of the company would be sold to EQL, a subsidiary of CareTech. The move followed allegations against Elmfield of malpractice, in relation to its apprenticeship contract with supermarket giant Morrisons, that featured in a BBC investigation. It was alleged that Elmfield signed Mor- risons staff up to apprenticeship programmes they had declined, enabling the provider to claim public funding for training. A separate probe into such allegations was launched by the Skills Funding Agency which, it said, was continuing despite the sale of Elmfield’s non-Morrisons business. Picture by South and City College Birmingham student Dave Patterson An agency spokesperson said: “Our investigation into the allegations we have received From left: Peter Leyton, Crossrail Whitechapel site agent, with students Joe Buckmaster, aged 24, Lindsay Berry, 30, and Mohammed Borhani, 21, and Crossrail site concerning Elmfield is ongoing and we are agent Rob Smith. Inset: Luke Morton, 24 currently reviewing additional evidence college that they would be off to explore the apprenticeships could lead to. Rebecca Cooney which has been supplied to us.” under-construction tunnels of the Level three construction student Luke A Deloitte spokesperson said the sale had @RebeccaKCooney capital’s new 73-mile Crossrail railway line. Morton, aged 24, said: “It has been a great secured more than 300 jobs and would ensure They also got to scale the dizzy heights of experience, getting out and seeing large con- that around 5,700 learners on former Elmfield Six construction and engineering students the Leadenhall Building — better known to struction projects. It has given me an insight programmes would have continuity. saw buildings from a whole new perspective Londoners as the Cheesegrater. to what my future options and prospects A CareTech spokesperson said the acquisi- as they were whisked away on a surprise The trip, organised by awarding body City may be.” tion has been completed as part of a pre-pack tour of two large-scale projects in London. & Guilds as part of the Open Doors The day finished with the students taking insolvency of Elmfield for a total “cash con- The South and City College Birmingham project ahead of the Skills Show, was in the view from another of London’s iconic sideration” of £1.5m. The on-going working students had no idea when they arrived at designed to show the opportunities buildings, The Shard. capital costs of the business would be funded from CareTech’s cash, they said. Farouq Sheikh, CareTech’s executive chair- College boards man, said: “CareTech is a principled provider right checks and balances in of social care with a strong public service place and that the boards reflect warned about ethos. their communities. We need “Our support services for young people to refresh and we need to do it complacency in transition to adult life are well known for now.” their outstanding results and for some time She praised the association we have felt that a new division focusing on Paul Offord for carrying out a survey check- apprenticeships would enhance and support ing the make-up of colleges’ @PaulOfford many aspects of our outcomes-based ap- boards, which will be unveiled proach.” at the association conference. Meanwhile, all new Morrisons apprentice- The leading figure behind a major review of Dr Pember said: “The results ships are provided by NCG (formerly New- the role of college boards warned there was “no are still being collated bit this castle College Group), but Elmfield still has room for complacency”. report is a good thing because responsibility for the learners it started. Dr Sue Pember, who led the Association of we will actually know more But with Elmfield’s contract to provide Colleges’ Governors’ Council’s review, spoke about now who is actually on training to staff at supermarket giant Morri- about her findings in an exclusive FE Week the boards. From left: Dr Susan Pember, Nick Linford and Carole Stott sons not included in the sale, a number of staff webinar. “The colleges need to do more comes to recruiting new board members. working on the contract now face redundancy She called for an overhaul of the make-up of to refresh because the make-up really affects “There are some boards that have no trouble, if no buyer can be found. many boards, to ensure they represented the their credibility. where people are almost queuing up to join, but However, Elmfield staff working on the interests of local communities. “One of the things needed is more employers, it is not always the case. Morrisons contract were told by administra- It also warned governors had a more impor- who the apprentices work for, as governors.” “But it is a continuous task, where you have tors, in an email seen by FE Week, that: “We tant role than ever in ensuring colleges were Association chair Carole Stott, who complet- to constantly refresh, constantly look at the are in advanced discussions with another run properly, as they were no longer monitored ed the webinar panel along with FE Week edi- balance.” provider with a view to transferring this by the Learning and Skills Council/Skills tor Nick Linford, agreed more representatives They both warned governors faced a chal- contract to that provider. We hope to complete Funding Agency or local authorities. from the business community were needed. lenge interpreting government policies been this transfer in the next few days.” Dr Pember said: “Complacency, that’s what She said: “You get a different perspective, passed in recent months affecting FE and skills. At the time of going to press, no buyer for I’m talking about. Some people are just feeling a different way of working, a different way of Dr Pember said: “It is one thing to see what Elmfield’s Morrisons contract had been found. very comfortable and they are not really ques- scrutinising information. You also get different ministers want, but another to see how these There is no suggestion of wrong doing on the tioning whether the board is fit for purpose. networks and contacts. actions are actually going to be managed by the part of Morrisons, EQL or Care Tech. “People need to make sure they have got the “I think it is a very patchy picture, when it colleges.” @FEWeek Monday, November 11, 2013 FE Week 5 6 FE Week Monday, November 11, 2013 www.feweek.co.uk Editor’s comment The Skills Show is our best kept secret, unfortunately More than 650 of our most talented and skilled young people will be in Birmingham over the coming days. Not too many people outside of FE may know it, but they will competing to be crowned our best young craftsmen and women. The competitions take place at the UK’s largest skills and careers event, spanning an area equivalent to seven football pitches. Yes, it’s time for the Skills Show 2013. HRH the Princess Royal will pay a visit, but more importantly, will you and your students? Royal seal of The sector speaks of raising participation, standards and aspirations — the Skills Show is approval for an opportunity for exactly that. We don’t need the Skills Show implementation of a pass, merit or distinction system to inspire young people to be the best. The Skills Show will be given the royal seal Look at what’s achieved at the of approval by Princess Anne through her competition finals next week role as president of City & Guilds. for yourself, along with your The Princess Royal, a member of Great learners. Britain’s 1976 Equestrian team, will attend the event at the NEC Birmingham on No- Experiencing these skills vember 15, midway through the three-day competitions and the Skills Show event which closes the following day. will raise aspirations. Skills Minister Matthew Hancock, who The Skills Show is far too last year won a charity horse race at New- important be the UK’s best kept market, was due to attend on day one. secret. Up to 75,000 people, including primary and secondary school children, FE students and Nick Linford, editor adult learners, are expected to attend the Skills Show, which will cover an area equiv- Correction alent to the size of seven football pitches. Chris Jones, City & Guilds director-general, said: “We believe the Princess Royal’s Profile interviews are best done when the attendance will inspire young people about writer and the subject meet face-to-face in all of the options out there and go some way a relaxed environment and have plenty of towards overcoming the false perception of time for a good old chat. academia as the only pathway to success. The profile interview with Institute “She shares our commitment to helping for Learning president Penny Petch, young people fulfil their potential.” published last week, happened in exactly The centrepiece of the show will be 70 that way — there was no need for a WorldSkills UK national competition finals, second sit down with the Chelmsford in disciplines including welding, bricklay- College head of teaching and learning ing, industrial electronics, game design, web development. design and hairdressing. Although the standfirst to our piece More than 650 competitors will take part. could have led readers to believe They qualified ahead of 5,000 people who otherwise, stating that Mrs Petch “talks to took part in 500 heats across the UK, during talks to FE Week”. the spring and summer. She did talk to us for the profile, but just The finalists will battle it out over three the once. SM days of tough competition, with the aim of winning gold and being named the best in Have you spotted something wrong their skill. with this edition of FE Week? Keith Smith, the UK’s official delegate for WorldSkills and Skills Funding Agency If so, feel free to tell us about it, executive director, said: “I wish every com- including the page number and story petitor the best of luck. headline, and explain what the problem “It takes hard work, determination and is. Email us at [email protected] with a high level of skill to compete against the Corrections in the subject line. UK’s most talented apprentices and learners.” @FEWeek Monday, November 11, 2013 FE Week 7 FE Week profile Don Hayes ~ his story Rebecca Cooney for three-and-a-half years because she wanted to become a nurse and she was training at the @RebeccaKCooney Nightingale School, at St Thomas’ Hospital. It’s surprising it lasted with me stuck in Notting- The board member of the Education ham,” he says with a grin. and Training Foundation talks to The couple were married shortly after Chris- FE Week. tine returned from London. The second time a youth club altered the It is somewhat ironic that Don Hayes was fabric of Hayes’ life was when he took on some not a fan of education as a teenager and left voluntary youth work in his late twenties. school at the first opportunity to start work. “I was running a predominately afro- Straight after finishing his O-levels, he got a Caribbean youth club on a deprived estate just job as a trainee manager at a concrete and clay outside the city and that opened my eyes a bit manufacturing company, before leaving to help really, in terms of some of the difficulties facing with his father, Gordon’s knitwear and hosiery young people there,” says Hayes. wholesale business. “It was a bit of an epiphany — I stopped “It’s funny how I’m in FE now, because I wanting to work for profit and started to work don’t think education was something I took too more towards the good of the community and much,” he says. that’s how I still feel.” “I wanted to get out, I wanted to work. So I So Hayes took on a job on a community left and my father said, ‘Well you’ve got to get a project, helping unemployed people back in to job’, and I had three interviews in a week. work and has never looked back. “One was with the civil service at the local He was, he says, hoping to take a break, but tax office, one was with an insurance company so far, that hasn’t materialised, and instead he and then there was this one with the concrete found himself in his current role at Enable, an and clay company. organisation that represents smaller voluntary “Actually, getting a job in those days wasn’t FE organisations. so hard, so I got three interviews and three jobs “Enable was formed just after the start of and had to choose. the Learning and Skills Council [LSC] and it “I don’t know whether my dislike of school was a sort of a response to it — local voluntary came from bad teaching or whether it was just organisations were concerned about the forma- me. tion of this massive government body and they “Everyone else seemed to get on ok. It was a wanted to be able to have a dialogue with this good school I went to. I think it was probably organisation,” he says. Inset: Don Hayes on holiday in Italy just that I wasn’t ready to buckle down and be receptive to what was being taught — I only “This happened at a time when I was leaving “I still believe absolutely that voluntary “It’s funny how engaged with sports really.” my previous employer and I’d kept in touch organisations have a vital role to play,” he The world of work, however, was an entirely with what was going on with this forum. explains. I’m in FE now, different ball game for the dad-of-three, who “I was going to have some time off after that “My particular interest is in deprived com- declines to give his age. job and see the places maybe I’d always wanted munities — people who are not accessing the because I don’t “I seemed to have employability skills. I to go to and think about what I was going to do opportunities that are available and always seemed to take to it straight away. The drive for think education next. seem to be left behind. me was there, but I don’t know why that was, “But then I thought ‘maybe I quite fancy “Where there’s the creation of employment it wasn’t anything I’d been taught in school,” was something I getting involved with this — I’ll spend a year opportunities in cities, it’s about making sure he says. trying to see if I can develop the idea, and then they’ll actually get the jobs, and I see voluntary “Possibly, it was a personality thing — it took too much” I’ll go off and do something else’. That was 10 organisations as being key to that. must have come from my parents, I guess. years ago.” “We have to keep fighting because the volun- They were very supportive, but they were hard He and Christine visit Italy most years, tary sector kind of gets discounted or forgotten workers and they were entrepreneurial.” “The Nottingham Council Voluntary Service “where there’s always something to see”, but if about.” Hayes explained his mother, Doris, may got all these organisations together as a forum, he were to take-off on his travels tomorrow, he The reason the sector gets “discounted” he have been from a generation where women which the LSC could come and talk to, and says, Japan would be his ideal destination. says, is a lack of awareness of what voluntary were expected to concentrate on bringing up organisations managed to persuade the LSC But it looks like Tokyo may have to wait, as organisations do, and a perception that the their children, but she still went on to launch a to give them £40,000 to make this forum more he’s also now a board member for the Educa- voluntary sector might be good at engagement costume jewellery wholesale company. effective, so they could have a newsletter and so tion and Training Foundation (ETF), and plans but cannot deliver “hard outcomes” such as When his father needed help with his busi- on and what they actually decided to do was to to use the opportunity to promote the voluntary qualifications and jobs. ness, he went to work for him before moving on employ someone. sector. “What I find really, really frustrating is to to a similar fashion and textile company. still have to be saying the same things after Hayes was born in Birmingham, but the fam- 10 years about the sector, because people still It’s a personal thing ily moved with his father’s job, first to Leicester haven’t got it or people have moved on, so we and then to Nottingham. do tend to get left behind,” he says. What’s your favourite book? games. I also dabble in photography, but not “I think I can say I’m from Nottingham, as But he is hopeful the foundation will “very I don’t really read many books, but the last as much as I used to I’ve been in Nottingham since my teens,” he one was Winter in the Hills by John Wain. much have an impact” on this situation. says. I quite like Bill Bryson’s Neither Here Nor What would your superpower be? “I’m on it because I want to see the quality of “But I still go back to Leicester for the foot- There too Teleportation FE driven up, and teaching in particular,” says ball, so I’ve left something behind there too.” Hayes. What did you want to be when you were If you could invite anyone to a dinner Youth clubs, it seems, have played a signifi- “But I also want to see the ETF not forget younger? party, living or dead, who would it be? cant role in Hayes life, as it was during his own A sports reporter My parents, my late brother Robert and the voluntary sector and remembering there’s time attending one as a teenager that he met John Lennon and Yoko Ono actually a massive number of people out there his future wife Christine. What do you do to switch off from delivering FE learning. work? “She was 17 and I was about 19 when we “We must make sure the sector’s not I support Leicester City, so I go and see their started dating. Then she left to go to London forgotten.” 88 FFEE WWeeeekk MMoonnddaayy,, NNoovveemmbbeerr 1111,, 22001133 wwwwww..ffeewweeeekk..ccoo..uukk Continued from front ... Adult vocational qualifications Q&A Bonfire of the quals Chris Henwood Picture by Nick Linford for us as regulator, working with others. @Chris_Henwood We will reflect carefully on the report’s recommendations as we review the QCF, and more generally as we develop The London HQ of BAE Systems strengthened arrangements for regulat- played host to a Q&A session with ing vocational qualifications. We will be Nigel Whitehead on Tuesday evening. saying more in the coming months about The UKCES commissioner was our plans.” interviewed on his review of adult Chris Jones, director-general at lead- vocational qualifications by FE Week ing vocational awarding organisation deputy editor Chris Henwood. City & Guilds, said: “Cutting the number of adult vocational qualifications from Why was the review needed? almost 20,000 to a few hundred seems There are two markets for skills in the UK drastic at first glance, but we are in this — that which is funded and progressed position because of QCF accreditation by employers and the regulated government- rules and the role of the Sector Skills funded market, and the two don’t mesh. Councils. There’s a lot of government money spent “We fully support de-cluttering of on the creation of skills and capability in qualifications. The ability to localise the UK and largely speaking employers, and each qualification to meet the needs of particularly small employers, look at it and both employers and individuals, without think, ‘what’s that all about?’ and potentially having it reaccredited, will certainly therefore that is an inappropriate use of achieve this. public funds. “What it really comes down to is Nigel Whitehead (right) is interviewed by FE Week deputy editor Chris Henwood ensuring employers own the require- What do you mean by “inappropriate use through the process in good faith believing Who decides on the qualifications to stop ments for their industry. The number of public funds”? that there’s something at the end of it. publicly funding? of qualifications should be an outcome We see evidence that training providers I’ve made no attempt to do that at this stage. of their needs, rather than a centralised are being paid to provide qualifications You refer to decluttering the system — As we go through the process of putting quota. Our recent research showed for individuals, but those individuals have does that include reducing the 19,000-plus principles in place and we test the qualifica- that over half of employers want to be sets of qualifications which aren’t necessarily regulated vocational qualifications? tions against the new design principles in involved in qualification design. That’s matched to the needs of the market. It hink it does. Having been through the the report, and Ofqual looks at whether the why it’s so important that the Whitehead There is a sense in the existing system that arithmetic of it, there are some simplifica- awarding bodies have lived up to those new Review focuses on employer ownership courses are being selected on the basis of ease tions you can make where you acknowledge a design principles, that will naturally end up of occupational standards. Awarding of passing them, as opposed to whether they qualification once rather than having 140 ver- with a selection and deselection of particular organisations should not be guided by actually qualify you to work in a particular in- sions of it, which actually takes the numbers qualifications. the whims of the SSCs.” dustry and sector and then become a passport down significantly. So there’ll be a natural filtering of it as op- A Pearson UK spokesperson said the for mobility within that sector. But one of the fundamental problems is posed to something that happens on day one awarding organisation would welcome a that the system is impenetrable for either the and so from that perspective I would see it as a sensible streamlining of qualifications,” Successive governments have attempted to learner or the employer. natural washing out of the old and an arrival and Rod Bristow, its president, said: “We reform the adult qualifications market, so As an engineering employer I know my way of the new as people embrace the new design look forward to working closely with what’s different about your review? around the principal engineering vocational principles. UKCES, employers and other partners It hought that what I was going to be talking qualifications. If there’s government money going into to consider the implementation of each about was something that was really quite I can count on one hand the qualifications this then the throttle on that money would be recommendation in detail and ensure radical and unpopular and throughout the I could name and my counterparts across whether qualifications and training providers the proposals impact positively on the process of consultation I’ve gone out of way to industry will talk in those terms, but if you are actually meeting the new expectations set employer and the learner.” try and get all the potentially angry people in actually expose them to the many qualifica- out in this report. Charlotte Bosworth, director of skills one room and get it thrashed out. tions that are on offer they would scratch So in terms of the flow of government and employment at awarding organisa- their heads and say ‘I don’t really know where money there’ll be a point which you say it ei- tion OCR, said: “The qualification moun- What reactions were you expecting? to start with this’. So there does need to be a ther does or it doesn’t satisfy, so in that sense tain and the inhibiting infrastructure of Currently there are 176 awarding bodies decluttering of it. there will be an ability to switch on and off the the current system has to go. Under the that we’ve found and I’m making some Part of it is the titling and naming, but also money and at the moment that falls through QCF, we’ve seen a vast inflation in the recommendations about how they interact the system has allowed I think, a plethora of the Skills Funding Agency (SFA). number of qualifications, driven by fund- with employers; the implication being that potential solutions which has led to confusion, The adoption of the principles I would ex- ing incentives not by genuine demand.” they’re not doing that or they’re not doing it so I think with what we are recommending, in pect to see happen through the Department for Jill Lanning, chief executive of the well enough. particular the issue about recognisable quali- Business, Innovation and Skills and the SFA. Federation of Awarding Bodies, declined I thought they would see that a gross criti- fications, we should get a coalescence around The adoption of the principles and the regu- to comment. cism and that in some way I was taking away some major recognisable qualifications. lation of the awarding bodies and ultimately a from the very nature of what they do. training provider is through Ofqual. What I actually found is that those organi- What feels like the right amount of quali- And if we’re getting two ‘no’s at that stage will be grading will result in learners wanting sations or the people in them come to work fications? than I be very surprised if government money to do better because they can. wanting to do a good job and if you can say to My personal view is that it’ll come down was sanctioned and I would be surprised, in them this is what better looks like they actu- to hundreds of recognisable qualifica- particular, if [Skills Minister] Matthew Han- Was your conclusion that there needs to ally respond very well. tions across the entire landscape as opposed to cock would allow that situation. be fewer qualifications, one that you were thousands. instructed by the Skills Minister to reach? When you said that learners are taking Why introduce grading for competency- No, he didn’t give any instructions. He the wrong qualifications, is there a criti- So from more than 19,000 to potentially based qualifications? asked for my view of the vocational skills cism there of awarding organisations? under 1,000? It’s a personal hang-up that simply passing a landscape. The government gave me free Ih ave a personal view that some organisa- Yes. One of the examples drawn to my atten- course is not enough. rein to say my opinion and it cuts both ways tions have pandered to the government tion was retail and the difference between I’ve yet to meet an employer who doesn’t because they can say ‘that’s just his opinion’. rules on what it takes to actually get funding Scotland and England were 140 recognisable want to employ anybody other than the best But equally they can say ‘we value his opin- as opposed to focusing on what the employers qualifications in a particular branch of retail people that come through, so in the greater ion’. So it stands alone in that regard, and no, need first and foremost, and to some extent in England, but in Scotland the same area was scheme of things, a simple pass/fail works for I have not responded to any instruction from that lets down the learner because they go covered by just five qualifications. some qualifications, but for the majority it government. @@FFEEWWeeeekk MMoonnddaayy,, NNoovveemmbbeerr 1111,, 22001133 FFEE WWeeeekk 99 FE Week expert Continued from front ... Whitehead and the £40bn claim Bonfire of the quals Is the claim, most recently made in the Just under half (£24.3bn) consists of the taxpayer.” looked at taxpayer support for private training Whitehead Review, that employers in Eng- wages paid to those undergoing training, This is simply not true. through tax relief. It also added to the estimate land spend £40bn on training true, asks whether on or off the job, routine induction or Many of the employers that spend the of public funding the amount spent on higher Mick Fletcher. advanced skills. Any comparison with spend- largest amounts on training are public bodies education teaching (but not research) and the ing by the SFA or other bodies needs to be on funded by the taxpayer. contribution of other government depart- Ministers and government officials the same basis. The armed forces, for example, spend about ments. increasingly quote a figure of ‘more than £5bn per year; the National Health Service the It did not however include the huge invest- £40bn’ as the amount spent by ‘employers’ on “Only £4bn, less same. ment by the Department for Education in the training. The implicit and sometimes explicit Local government and the civil service have education of those under the age of 19. comparator is the £2.7bn spent by the Skills than a tenth of considerable training budgets. The research also estimated the opportunity Funding Agency (SFA) — a much smaller A full picture of who pays for training would cost of the time spent by individuals on educa- total. the total, is spent need to include expenditure by individuals as tion and training on the same basis as the The figures are often used, as in the White- well as employers and the state. NESS estimates of trainee wage costs. by employers on head Review, to lend weight to the argument A true comparison would have to include (or The analysis can be summarised as follows: that employers should have greater power to exclude) the cost of trainee, or students’ time, On a UK wide basis, total expenditure on external training direct public spending. and a fair comparison would need to compare adult learning provision amounts to approxi- This article is not concerned with the policy all the education and training of adults funded mately £55bn, or 3.9 per cent of gross domestic providers” implications of the data; that is for others to by the taxpayer with that funded by private product. debate. employers and by individuals. Roughly £26bn of the total is spent from the It simply seeks to answer three linked ques- The £40bn headline figure glosses over this public purse, £20bn on training by private and tions: are these figures accurate, do they tell Only £4bn, less than a tenth of the total, complexity. non-profit organisations and £9bn by individu- the whole story and is the comparison fair? is spent by employers on external training Fortunately the Inquiry into the Future als (including the self-employed). The figure quoted comes from the National providers. of Lifelong Learning, hosted by the National The scale of public subsidy on vocational Employers Skills Survey (NESS) which re- This would be a fairer figure to use for any Institute of Adult Continuing Education com- training is large; our estimate is that the vari- ports findings from over 87,000 employer inter- comparison with SFA spending. missioned work on this very topic. It sought ous forms of tax relief amount to £3.7bn. views scaled up to reflect the total number of The implication in many ministerial state- to separate out spending by public employers In conclusion the figure of £40bn comes from enterprises across the UK. ments is that this is all expenditure by private from private expenditure, and added to the a reputable source. It is, however, wrong to The total, £49bn, is a UK-wide figure; the employers. NESS estimates of private spending the consid- represent it as expenditure by private employ- total for England on this basis would indeed be Skills Minister Matthew Hancock for erable sum invested by self-employed people in ers and very misleading to compare it with the nearer £40bn. example, recently stated in an Edge lecture: themselves. £2.7bn spent by the SFA. It is important however to look to how the “Of the £40bn market for adult training in It estimated the amount spent by individu- Mick Fletcher, education consultant and visit- total is made up. 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Please contact... • Consultancy support services 01388 777129 0845 094 9110 • Capacity build services [email protected] [email protected] www.learning-curve.co.uk www.learning-work.co.uk 10 FE Week Monday, November 11, 2013 www.feweek.co.uk Hawk swoops for a grade one while employers hit bottom two years to get up the teaching and learning of software and additional learning resources been dished out. Chris Henwood and assessment. We work very hard for all our well to enhance the learning experience for There have also been 55 grade three, or re- @Chris_Henwood people to get a certificate in teaching and learn- apprentices in the workplace.” quires improvement, judgments along with 67 ing and assessment.” Stewart Segal, chief executive of the Associa- at grade two, or good, plus Hawk’s grade one. The 14-month wait for an outstanding He added: “At the end of the day, it’s all tion of Employment and Learning Providers, “We hope that more providers will achieve independent learning provider (ILP) under about hard graft. It’s about getting your head visited the firm on the day its Ofsted report outstanding and good ratings from Ofsted, but Ofsted’s current common inspection frame- down, making sure your organisation is a qual- was released. He said: “Meeting the Hawk the new inspection framework is only a year work is over. ity organisation, working with quality people. team, it is easy to see why the provision has old and we will continue to work with Ofsted The education watchdog visited Twicken- “I think one of the good things that always been graded as outstanding. to ensure that the key elements of work-based ham-based Hawk Training (pictured below) stood me in good stead, is always try and do “The facilities, the attitude and commitment delivery are fully recognised within the frame- late in September and on November 1 issued it business with nice people. You can’t always do of the staff are second to none and it is good to work,” said Mr Segal. with a glowing, grade one inspection result. it, but if you can it helps a lot. see that this has been recognised by Ofsted. “Examples like Hawk Training can only It was the first ILP to achieve the feat under “I think we’re fiercely proud of what we’ve “Hawk Training is a real example of how help improve the understanding of what a Ofsted’s latest inspection regime after 134 done and what we’ve developed.” work-based learning can deliver high quality, work-based learning provider can deliver for visits. Hawk, established in 1988, delivers training flexible programmes across a wide range of employers and learners.” Hawk, a 1,300-apprenticeship provider, in early years and playwork, business and employers. was rated as good in 2008, but this time won administration, and team leading and manage- “We are delighted that Hawk Training has Picture caption from front page — back outstanding ratings overall and also for its ment to a range of employers, including the agreed to share some of their experiences at an row, from left: HR director Vanessa leadership and management, and — key to its government and Xerox. AELP conference on December 10, when we Jones, learning development team man- overall grade one result — teaching, learning Among its areas of praise from Ofsted will hear the feedback from the Chief ager Clare Burden, operations manager and assessment. It was also rated as good for its were “considerable investment…in Inspector’s annual report.” Kathryn Osborn, learning development learner outcomes. improvements to accommoda- Of Ofsted’s 135 ILP inspections team manager Lianna Hulsdunk and ap- “Highly-skilled and enthusiastic staff serve tion, information technol- under its current inspection prenticeship recruitment manager Karen as outstanding role models for learners,” it ogy and resources for regime, in which providers Penny. said in the report, which added: “Leadership learning”. must achieve outstanding Front row, from left: commercial and management are outstanding, leading to The report con- for teaching and learn- director Crawford Knott, finance director significant improvements in the quality of tinued: “Tutors ing to stand a chance Joanna Hayes, managing director Terry provision.” use their modern of getting the same Barnett, operations director Jo Barnett Its managing director, Terry Barnett, said: ICT equipment, grade overall, a dozen and management information specialist “We’ve worked very, very hard other the last a broad range inadequate ratings have Andy Tyrer. From the control room to swivel chairs, FE Week on tour From left: Nick Linford, FE Week editor, and Kathryn Osborn, Hawk Training operations manager Chris Henwood, FE Week deputy editor, tries out a ‘Node’ chair With the ink on Hawk’s outstanding the firm’s premises, where I got to sample report. cates ready to send out. inspection report barely dry, FE Week first-hand the warm hospitality of Terry Bar- Looking beyond the ultra-clean and mod- In fact, visually everything was almost too editor Nick Linford and deputy editor nett’s close-knit team of directors and manag- ern facilities, it was attention to detail and perfect. For example, it was hard not to giggle Chris Henwood paid the Twickenham ers, I am the first to broach the ‘grade one’ investment in IT hardware that Terry was at the carefully spaced bottles of juice in the provider a visit. issue. keen to show off. boardroom fridge — but that’s no grounds for Clearly proud of their achievement, they One room was full of ‘Node’ classroom criticism. Set on the fourth floor of a grey, 10-floor were equally humbled by it and, in all hon- chairs from America (pictured above right) Ultimately, it’s not possible from my visit office block next to Twickenham train sta- esty, seemed a little unprepared for the result- that swivelled relentlessly to accommodate to comment on the quality of teaching, Ofsted tion, one thing that Hawk Training seems to ant attention it was always going to bring. left or right-handed learners, and also offered (the experts) have done that, but if training do well — apart from delivering work-based But that’s not necessarily a bad thing — their own little storage space under the seat. providers and colleges want to see what can learning, of course — is understatement. this is a provider, education and training is In another room, the latest high-definition be achieved with a serious amount of invest- The relatively non-descript home of their business and that’s what they’re good cameras were remotely turning and zooming ment in facilities and IT, then certainly head this very special outfit is bookended by a at. Very good, in fact. in and out to record a lesson, for the benefit down to Twickenham. Travelodge at one end and a sports bar at the From the moment I set foot in the slick of absent learners, from the ‘control room’ other. Hawk offices and typed my details into a (pictured above left). Ni c k L i n f o rd There’s no suggestion to the passer-by touchscreen pad that then took my photo, And the use of technology extended beyond that within these walls is the first independ- before I was presented with a name badge the classroom, as the Skills Funding Agency ent learning provider to have been graded sticker (complete with my mugshot), it was has given Hawk permission to use electronic outstanding in more than a year. clear that there had been serious investment signatures, which means the few bits of And, having enjoyed a one-hour tour of here — as mentioned in the Ofsted inspection paperwork on show are simply learner certifi-