LSC to blame for suspension of Building Colleges for the Future

Sir Andrew Foster's review of the suspension of Building Colleges for the Future says the crisis was "predictable and probably avoidable".

In December last year, the LSC declared a three-month moratorium on future projects because it was hugely oversubscribed. Building projects worth £2.7bn at 79 colleges, which were granted initial approval, have been put on hold and a further £3bn will be required for another 65 colleges that have submitted proposals for approval in principle.

Last week Mark Haysom, LSC chief executive for the past five years, resigned, saying he wanted to take personal responsibility for problems with the programme.

"I believe that the most significant responsibility for these problems rests with failures in the general management and financial management of the LSC," Sir Andrew Foster says in his report. But he also concludes that senior staff in the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) could have monitored the LSC more robustly.

Among Foster's recommendations is a call for an "early and open process of engagement and consultation" between the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS), the LSC and the college sector, and a needs-based rather than demand-led approach to the programme. Skills Secretary John Denham said he would accept all of Foster's recommendations.