In the White Paper Further education: raising skills, improving life chances (March 2006), the Quality Improvement Agency (QIA) was asked by the Government to lead the development of an integrated Improvement Strategy that would support the further education system 1 in its drive for excellence and help it implement the Government's major reform programme. This programme is set out in the 2006 White Paper, in two earlier White Papers 2, and in the current programme of legislative reform. It aims to transform the further education system so that it offers the highest quality and value, and equips young people and adults for employability and personal fulfilment. QIA was asked to undertake this work in partnership with colleges and providers, representative bodies and the national partners 3 that make up the further education system.
In developing this Improvement Strategy, we have taken into account the recommendations made by Lord Leitch in his recent review of skills, Prosperity for All in the Global Economy - World Class Skills. 4 In 2004 Lord Leitch was commissioned by the Chancellor of the Exchequer to 'identify the UK's optimal skills mix in 2020 to maximise economic growth, productivity and social justice, and to consider the policy implications of achieving the level of change required'. Lord Leitch's report recommends that to ensure the UK is a world leader in skills, the further education system should transform itself to become market-driven and respond to demand from learners and employers for world-class skills and become market-driven. Responsibility for gaining skills should be shared between Government, learners and employers. National partners are already committed to activity in this area, and here we set out our headline plans for supporting the further education system in delivering Lord Leitch's recommendations. During spring 2007, QIA and the national partners will work on the detail of these outline plans with employers and colleges and providers to ensure their needs are met.
The Improvement Strategy, and its associated website, has been developed in partnership with national partners and representative bodies and takes proper account of the vast wealth of feedback and advice received through the consultation process.5 It recognises that colleges and providers will take the lead on improvement and that the national partners are not there to impose improvement but to support colleges and providers and help them achieve their plans.
The Improvement Strategy takes forward the FE White Paper and its overall themes - including the economic mission, employability and greater emphasis on user needs and choice, and such key policies as performance assessment, intervention, personalisation, workforce development and the drive towards self-regulation - in support of the skills, 14-19 and schools strategies. Thus the Improvement Strategy forms part of a much bigger policy package, covering the 'new relationship' for the further education system.
The individual strategies mentioned above help to form a coherent approach to raising quality and meeting customer needs. Performance and quality will be assessed by colleges and providers themselves, by inspection and, in the future, through Framework for Excellence. The Improvement Strategy will support college and providers to improve themselves in the context of the introduction of the LSC's Framework for Excellence and of moves towards greater self-regulation. It will support colleges and providers to undertake robust self-assessment and to become part of peer-referencing groups as a means of validating their self-assessment, transferring good practice and pursuing excellence. Where necessary, the Improvement Strategy will also support the system in tackling failure and underperformance, as set out in the LSC's statement on identifying and managing underperformance.
An increased focus on responsiveness to users' needs, leadership and workforce development, personalisation and intervention will all be major contributors both to improvement and to meeting the skills challenges in the Leitch report. The actions set out in the Improvement Strategy, and those in the associated strategies, will be developed and implemented as part of a coherent package of reform, each activity with self-improvement at the core. The result should be to develop the quality and maturity of the further education system, which should support steps towards future self-regulation.
The Improvement Strategy sets out the vision and what needs to be done to make this a reality. It is divided into five sections: the first presents a vision of a better future, the second looks at the current position of the further education system and outlines the aims for meeting the vision, the third sets out the principles underpinning the Improvement Strategy, the fourth outlines the different roles and responsibilities for improvement in the further education system, and the final section sets out how the impact of the Improvement Strategy will be measured. A detailed implementation plan is available here.
1. The term 'further education system' refers here to the wide range of organisations that make up the learning and skills sector and the national partners responsible for planning, funding and quality improvement. It includes the staff and governing bodies working in these organisations. Collectively the system provides opportunities for individuals from the age of 14 upwards to participate in programmes of learning, training and skills development and for learners of all ages to participate in a range of activities, including educational or vocational courses. In their work with school sixth forms and on the 14-19 reforms, the national partners will work within the existing arrangements for accountability and improvement in schools as a whole, including, as required with the Secondary National Strategies for schools, local authorities, School Improvement Partners, the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, National College of School Leadership and the Training and Development Agency for schools.
2. Further education: raising skills, improving life chances, March 2006; Skills: Getting on in Business, getting on in work, March 2005; 14-19 Education and Skills, February 2005 - download pdf
3. The national organisations involved in developing this strategy include QIA, DfES, LSC, ALI, OfSted, LLUK, CEL, SSDA and Jobcentre Plus and are hereafter referred to in shorthand as the 'national partners'. An account of the separate responsibilities of these national partners is given here (PDF).
4. The Leitch review of skills published its final report, Prosperity for all in the global economy - world-class skills on 5 December 2006 - download pdf
5. In June 2006, QIA and partners launched Pursuing Excellence: an Outline Improvement Strategy for consultation to find out the views on their draft proposals from colleges, providers, learners and employers and all those with an interest in improvement in the further education system. We received over 130 written responses, had six consultation events with over 300 attendees and had over 50 in-depth discussions with stakeholders.