DfE cuts put vocational training in peril, warn providers

Members of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP) have reported reductions of between 20 and 30 per cent in their funding allocation from the Department for Education to deliver training for 16- to 24-year-olds.

A spokesman at the trade association said it has been contacted by a “significant number” of concerned providers after they received letters from the DfE’s funding delivery agency – the Education Funding Agency (EFA) – informing them of their 2013/14 allocations.

The amount allocated to providers is determined by the number of young people they will train in preparation for occupations such as building, plumbing and hairdressing, among others.

Paul Warner, director of employment and skills at the AELP, said the drop in funding could prevent young people from taking part in the government’s forthcoming traineeships programme, which is due to begin in September.

“Constructive discussions have been going on with the EFA about the recent issuing of final allocations for 2013/14, but our members still need clarity on how the allocations have been calculated in order to properly judge the implications on their capacity for delivery,” said Warner.

“This was already a concern – the raising of the participation age already required longer vocational programmes for more learners, which inevitably posed challenges for providers even before the allocations were issued.

“But the allocations that have been communicated may well adversely affect the overall numbers of learners that can be funded, with some providers having to in fact reduce their capacity if no growth funding can be made available in-year.”

The DfE announced plans to provide 16- to 24-year-olds with skills to secure an apprenticeship or job in January, saying the scheme would be open to all young people, including those classified as not in education, employment or training (Neet).

It suggested traineeships would provide skills such as CV writing, interview preparation and how to search for jobs.

They would also include a work placement and English and maths tutoring for young people who had not achieved a GCSE grade C or equivalent.

“AELP will maintain urgent dialogue with the department as none of us want the raising of the participation age to get off to a troubled start when we already have almost 900,000 young people in the Neet group,” added Warner.

A DfE spokeswoman said the 16 to 19 education system needed to be reformed "so that every young person is able to undertake high-quality study, which will lead to better education and employment opportunities".

“One of the principal barriers to this has been the current funding system – based on funding per qualification – which has acted as a perverse incentive for schools to enter students for easier qualifications.

“Funding schools, colleges and learning providers per student instead will free them up to deliver demanding and innovative courses which meet the individual needs of all young people.”

According to AELP, about 200 independent training providers are contracted by the EFA. The organisation's spokesman said it would continue to gather information to establish the size of the funding cut.

The raising of the participation age comes into force this year, meaning all young people must continue in education or training until they are 17.