Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
* In order to focus spending on frontline services, BIS will reduce spending on administration by £400 million a year by 2014-15. The number of Arms Length Bodies will be reduced from 57 to 33, with 9 still under consideration. This includes abolishing Regional Development Agencies as announced in the Budget, saving £1.5 billion a year by 2014-15, some of which will be reinvested elsewhere.
* Colleges will be freed from bureaucracy by simplifying the funding system, streamlining Arms Length Bodies and abolishing central targets. The Government will also improve the quality of information and advice for students, including through the development of an all-age careers service. Alongside these greater freedoms and reductions in bureaucracy, colleges will be expected to make savings including through greater efficiencies and pay restraint.
* The Government will significantly lower the overall cost of the further education system by abolishing Train to Gain and by reducing spending on budgets which do not directly support learners. Meanwhile, the balance of funding will be shifted from the taxpayer towards the individuals and employers who benefit, including though the introduction of student loans, and by exploring mechanisms to increase employer contributions such as voluntary training levies.
So we all thought this spending review was going to be radical!
I feel we have once again lost a great opportunity to get the system right.
Colleges, providers and community groups have a key role in preparing this country for the next 10 years, so why has funding being taken away from the wealth generators.
Small providers and community groups are already starting to struggle in this climate and from Geoff Russells recent comments will find it harder to compete.
Bigger is not better.
Quality should be king, not the finances.
I do hope all the great work achieved through engaging adult learners and small employers does not get wasted.
We need to realise that you can train/ upskill a workforce to create more wealth, but cuts alone will not only leave a hole in our knowledge bank for future challenges, but will also impact on our ability to push the economy forward through improved productivity in the workforce.