11. Memorandum submitted by the Association
of Colleges (AoC)
INTRODUCTION
1. The Association of Colleges (AoC) is
the representative body for further education colleges in England
and Wales established by the colleges themselves to provide a
voice for further education at national level. Some 98% of the
440 colleges in England and Wales are members.
2. Colleges make a significant contribution
to higher education. In addition to Universities, HEFCE funds
229 FE colleges to deliver higher education. They deliver higher
education to around 170,000 students, approximately 10% of all
higher education students.
3. Additionally over 40% of new home entrants
to HE have previously studied in FE sector colleges, and the proportion
is rising. As the main providers of vocational education, colleges
provide the key to developing robust progression routes from 14
years through to higher education and play a significant role
in developing and delivering new higher education provision, in
particular the Foundation Degree.
WELCOMED—WITH
SOME RESERVATIONS
4. The Association finds much to welcome
in the Government White Paper "The Future of Higher Education",
in particular the confirmation that colleges have a significant
role to play in the delivery of the Government's widening participation
targets.
CHAPTER 1: THE
NEED FOR
REFORM
5. The Association broadly endorses the
White Paper analysis of the issues facing higher education and
in particular the acknowledgement that the system is under pressure
and at risk of decline. We therefore welcome the commitment through
the Spending Review 2002 to substantially increased investment
in HE in the period up to 2005-06, but note that the overall increase
in resources for HE is marginally greater than the increases allocated
for FE and for schools (although with particular emphasis on research).
The Association also notes that the settlement allows for only
modest growth in student numbers, with consequent likelihood of
only slow progress towards the Government's participation target
(especially after account is taken of underlying demographic growth).
6. The Association endorses the recognition
that HE expansion is needed to meet the rising demand for higher
level skills and strongly supports the need to improve access
to HE for those from the more disadvantaged social groups.
7. The Association shares the belief that
greater recognition needs to be given to the importance of teaching
and welcomes the emphasis on maintaining a diversity of institutional
missions.
CHAPTER 3: HIGHER
EDUCATION AND
BUSINESS—EXCHANGING
AND DEVELOPING
KNOWLEDGE AND
SKILLS
8. The Association endorses the importance
placed on improving links between institutions providing HE, business
and sector skill councils and regrets the absence in this section
of references to colleges. The Association believes FE Colleges
must be tied into regional developments and build on their existing
good links with RDAs and the developing good practice of Partnerships
for Progression. Similarly it will be crucial to involve those
FE colleges delivering higher education in the proposed Knowledge
Exchanges.
9. The Association welcomes the affirmation
that the Government intend the bulk of expansion to come through
driving forward Foundation Degrees, making them the main work-focused
higher education qualification. We particularly welcome the further
development funding Foundation degrees will attract to enable
key employment sectors, Universities and Further Education Colleges
to design new foundation degrees in new subject areas and that
HEFCE are to be asked to review funding levels so they adequately
reflect the relative costs of delivering Foundation Degrees. If
Foundation Degrees are properly designed and delivered they are
expensive courses to deliver. Designing provision with an emphasis
on work-based learning that meet the needs of large cohorts of
students with little recent experience of study necessitates inclusion
of APL processes and identification and training of work place
mentors.
10. The status of Foundation Degrees with
employers and students will be raised by the recognition in the
White Paper that foundation degrees are awards in their own right
and graduates will have the right to use the letters FDA or FDSc
after their names.
11. The White Paper indicates that one way
the Foundation Degree will be taken forward is by enabling Higher
National Certificates and Higher National Diplomas to be incorporated
into the foundation degree framework. The full detail of how this
will be accomplished has not yet been released.
12. Many colleges will welcome this rationalisation
of intermediate level qualifications and the consequent absorption
into the Foundation Degree of a nationally validated qualification
for which colleges can be directly funded. Studies of the American
college experience (for example Professor David Robertson's report
to HEFCE on "Intermediate-level qualifications in higher
education—an international assessment") indicate that
it is vital for colleges to access direct funding and be independent
of universities in order to grow demand for the Foundation Degree.
13. Others, however, have already raised
concerns about the potential loss of, or change to, a qualification
valued by employment sectors such as construction, engineering
and hospitality. Some colleges offer a large programme of Higher
National Certificates and Diplomas with an internal progression
route through National Diplomas, often targeting a different audience
than the Foundation Degrees they offer, particularly in respect
of the Higher National Certificate, which is achieved through
fewer units than the Diploma. They do not wish to lose this market
differentiation.
CHAPTER 4: TEACHING
AND LEARNING—DELIVERING
EXCELLENCE
14. The Association welcomes the additional
funding for excellence in teaching with new money for pay modernisation
that will address the erosion in pay levels over the last decade
and we welcome the proposed establishment of Centres of Excellence
to reward good teaching and promote best practice.
15. The Association supports the requirement
for better information for students to improve student choice
and the proposed Teaching Quality Academy to establish new national
professional standards for teaching and promote good teaching.
CHAPTER 5: EXPANDING
HIGHER EDUCATION
TO MEET
OUR NEEDS
16. The Association welcomes the elaboration
in the White Paper for the first time of the case for the goal
of 50% participation in higher education. AoC shares the belief
that increased participation is desirable both to meet the growing
demand for higher level skills and to foster individual aspiration.
17. The Association welcomes the recognition
that much of the growth in demand will be from young adults who
have followed vocational rather than academic routes, and for
whom provision will need to be closely linked to employment needs
and delivered close to home and to work. The Association particularly
welcomes the emphasis on Foundation Degrees as the main vehicle
for securing this, with FE colleges playing a major role in delivery.
We support the importance of developing Foundation Degrees in
conjunction with employers, and the creation of better pathways
for progression both from level 3 into Foundation Degrees and
from Foundation Degrees on to honours degrees.
18. The Association welcomes the introduction
of incentives for students to study Foundation Degrees and improved
support for part-time students but regrets that as yet Government
does not appear to have a strategy for stimulating demand for
higher education, either through encouraging more young adults
to progress to level 3 or by encouraging more of those reaching
level 3 through vocational routes to progress to HE.
19. The Association welcomes the recognition
that not all Further Education Colleges have been able to find
a local University with either the expertise in the Foundation
Degree subject or willingness to be involved in Foundation Degree
development and validation through the establishment of Foundation
Degree Forward, a new national network of Universities to offer
a dedicated validation service for foundation degrees as well
as a centre for foundation degree expertise.
20. The Association will want to be assured,
however, that Foundation Degree Forward will comprise a network
of universities that have a track record of working productively
with employers and colleges to design, develop and validate high
quality Foundation Degrees. We recommend that Sector Skill Councils
and the Sector Skill Development Agency be consulted to identify
Universities with good reputations with particular employment
sectors and ensure the full range of employment sectors is represented.
21. The Association does, however, have
concerns about the increased steer towards funding of higher education
in colleges through partner Universities. As the establishment
of Foundation Degree Forward recognises, not all FE Colleges have
found willing University partners. Indirect funding of HE in FE
Colleges also removes the autonomy of colleges to quickly respond
to identified local need and may hamper development of the flexibly
delivered and locally available higher education provision necessary
to widen and increase access to higher education.
22. The Association particularly welcomes
the commitment to provide increased flexibility through funding
and incentivising "2+2" and "2+1" models and
scaling up credit systems.
CHAPTER 6: FAIR
ACCESS
23. The Association supports the emphasis
in the White Paper on strategies to widen participation and on
measures to build better links between schools, colleges and universities.
The emphasis on raising student aspiration needs to rest more
heavily on those following vocational routes, given that overwhelmingly
those following an academic route already progress into HE.
24. The Association welcomes the recognition
of the higher costs involved in recruiting and supporting students
from non-traditional backgrounds. We particularly therefore welcome
the proposed increases to reflect this, in the widening participation
premium, in Access to Learning Funds for more vulnerable students
and in support for part-time students.
25. The Association particularly welcomes
the commitment to, and further development of, Access courses,
which are an important "second chance" route to HE for
adults.
26. The Association questions why the Association
has not been invited along with UUK and SCOP to examine best practice
for admissions procedures as we represent FE Colleges both progressing
students to Higher Education and admitting students to their Higher
Education provision.
27. The Association fully supports the proposal
to consider the question of post-qualification applications, a
development we have long argued for.
CHAPTER 7: FREEDOMS
AND FUNDING
28. The Association welcomes the re-introduction
of means-tested grants for maintenance and tuition for students
from the poorest families but is as yet uncertain whether this
will be sufficient to overcome the disincentive effects which
the prospect of large student debts will continue to have for
some young people and their families. We note in particular that
the maximum grant available will be lower than many young people
in this category will receive through Education Maintenance Allowances,
as they move through the 16-19 phase.
29. The Association has reservations about
the proposals for a Graduate Contribution Scheme, and believes
that the introduction of top-up fees will not only act as a disincentive
to poorer students to access the more prestigious universities
and higher cost courses but will also lead to differential funding
between institutions able to charge such fees and those which
cannot.
30. The Association welcomes the abolition
of up-front tuition fees, the deferral of payment until after
graduation and the move to repayment of both deferred fees and
loans for maintenance on a wholly income contingent basis.
31. We also welcome the retention of a zero
real interest rate on deferred fees and loans, and the raising
of the repayment threshold.
February 2003
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