Why is the Skills Minister Reforming FE and Skills?| FE Soundbite Edition 771

Welcome to FE Soundbite Edition 771: 9th October 2024 | Why is the Skills Minister Reforming FE and Skills?

This week’s Soundbite is sponsored by Turnitin

This is the weekly e-newsletter and e-journal by FE News: ISSN 2732-4095. We know life is busy, so here is a snapshot of the latest announcements and epic thought leadership articles, from sector influencers and cool thinkers across FE and Skills this week on FE News

Hope you enjoy this week!

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Gavin’s Reflective Perspective

Why is the Skills Minister making Reforms?

Skills Minister, Jacqui Smith had an interesting speech at the AELP Autumn Conference, unpacking more plans for skills reform. No more ‘reveals’, but some solid hints! What was interesting to me, was why she is making the Skills Reforms. Jacqui Smith highlighted:

• 26% of UK workforce is underqualified (compared to 18% OECD average)
• Only 4% of people in England have Level 4 and 5 qualifications as their highest qualification (compared to 20% in Germany)
• UK employers invest half as much per employee in vocational training as EU average
• Around 7.5 million working age adults lack basic digital skills

So you can now see why the increase in flexibilities, the priorities of the new Government to address the above challenges. Plus you have a 80% employment target, but we have more Economically Inactive people than those claiming Employability Benefits, and around 12% of 16-24 year olds are NEETs! So you can get the scale of the challenge.

Tuition fees will rise in April. What could the impact be on FE and Skills?

University Tuition Fees will be £9,535 from 2025/26 in England. This is a 3.1% increase and the first time there has been an increase in fees since 2017. It is only £285, but could that be the straw that broke the camels back for some future students?

What does this mean for FE and Skills? Will more learners want to go down the Degree Apprenticeship route? Or will more opt for Levels 4 and 5? There is mass uncertainty on what and will not be covered by the Levy for Level 7 Apprenticeships, what does this mean for progression for employees, but also everyone, thinking holistic lifelong learning and social mobility?

Will the ‘missing middle’ of Levels 4 and 5 finally be addressed?

As Jacqui Smith said in her AELP speech in England, only 4% of people have Level 4 and 5 qualifications as their highest qualification, compared to around 20% in Germany and 34% in Canada. The ‘missing middle’ of levels 4 and 5, have literally been missing from our Skills Strategy for as long as I can remember. Will this now be addressed properly?!

Personally, I think addressing levels 4 and 5 is massively important for our future Skills Policy and development. I know we have Foundation Apprenticeships coming, but if it is now harder financially for an employer to take on an entry level Apprentice (eg they have an 18% pay increase and increase in National Insurance announced in last week’s budget), surely this needs to be addressed next to make it easier for employers to take on more foundation level Apprentices?

How can we make the Skills System easier to navigate?

Baroness Taylor of Bolton, Chair of the House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee recently wrote to Jacqui Smith. She wrote an exclusive article this week unpacking this more and highlights that Government needs to Provide Greater Direction to the Skills System. It appears Jacqui Smith agrees, as she said in her AELP speech that the Skills System is currently too complex to navigate.

Now Labour are still new’ish into this early stage of reform, but this ‘transition phase’ is difficult to navigate, not just the systems, but if there is a pay gap between School Teacher and FE Educators of £9k, employers with a hike in National Insurance contributions (AoC said this will cost colleges alone £50M per year), but what will the impact be when employers are reeling from Employer National Insurance increases and also increases in staff pay (Apprentices have a 18% increase in April). These extra layers are not making the Skills System easier to navigate!

Cool Reports:

Edge had a great report on Ofsted and NCFE released their social impact report.

We also launched Unlocking Opportunities Livestream – Ep1 was Labour’s First 100 days. Get ready for Ep2 on Thursday (Live at 10am – Curriculum and Assessment… here is the link to join live on LinkedIn

Also, a massive thank you to Turnitin, who are this week’s FE Soundbite Sponsor.

Epic Exclusives Thought Leadership Articles

Our Top 3 Thought Leadership Articles This Week

Firstly, Government needs to Provide Greater Direction to the Skills System By Baroness Taylor of Bolton, Chair of the House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee

Secondly, AI and its Impact: Opportunities and Challenges for Further Education and Skills By Jen Deakin, Course Leader of Graphic Design and Advanced Practitioner at Runshaw College, and Nathan Rogan, Senior Education Advisor at the Education and Training Foundation.

Finally, A Skills Perspective: Labour’s First 100 Days and Beyond By Nichola Hay MBE, Director of Apprenticeship Strategy and Policy at BPP

This Week, We Have Also Had Some Other Epic Exclusives!

Leveraging Technology to Enhance Educator Engagement and Retention By Nicola Pearce, Head of Education, BenQ

Skills England: What’s Needed to Complete the Picture? By Dr Fiona Aldridge, CEO of the Skills Federation (also known as the Federation for Industry Sector Skills and Standards (FISSS)

Tuition fee rise will limit Autumn Budget damage for universities By Danni Croucher is policy and public affairs lead at the National Centre for Universities and Business – NCUB

What’s New in the World of FE?

Unlocking Opportunities – Ep1 – Labour’s first 100 days in office

Announcements

Skills Minister Jacqui Smith Sets Out Vision for Skills Reform By the Department for Education (DfE)

University tuition fees to rise in England next year By the Department for Education (DfE)

Report

Stark and growing inequalities in adult participation in learning revealed by national survey By Learning and Work Institute

NCFE Report highlights charity’s impact on deprived communities By NCFE

Edge Foundation release a new report on Ofsted Inspections in FE and Skills. Sector Reaction By the Edge Foundation

The Princess Royal Hears the Challenges Faced by Young Adult Carers in Education and Employment By Learning and Work Institute

Voices

Making the case for lifelong learning By Emily Jones, Deputy Director at Learning and Work Institute

How NCFE is Staying Focused on its Mission By Deborah Jenkins, Chair of the Board of Trustees at NCFE

In The Know

Do you want to be In The Know?

Why don’t you sign up for Daily News Alerts?

FYI it’s free!!

New Livestream Season Announcement: Unlocking Opportunities – EP2 live at 10am on Thursday 14th Nov – Curriculum and Assessment.

Literally yesterday we launched a new group on LinkedIn called Skills England Hub. So if you want to join and get involved, here is the link.

We hope you enjoy FE Soundbite this week. Stay curious, keep innovating, and let’s shake up the world of FE together – catch you next week!

By Danny O’Meara, Digital Project Manager, FE News

By Gavin O’Meara, CEO and Founder, FE News and FE Careers