LSC suffers huge staff vacancies
Lauren Higgs
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Local authorities will not receive a full complement of staff from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), which could threaten their ability to manage 16 to 19 education, CYP Now has learned.
Local authorities have always maintained that they need LSC staff's expertise and skills for the £7bn transfer to run smoothly.
But it has emerged that the LSC has a high rate of vacancies in the Greater London region. Where posts remain unfilled, councils will be transferred vacancies as opposed to staff. This means that councils will receive fewer expert commissioning staff than expected.
Aidan Relf, spokesman for the Association of Learning Providers, warned that provision for young people must be protected, regardless of problems with staff.
He said: "If there is a danger that gaps in provision will result because of the transfer, it makes all the more sense for the Young People's Learning Agency to commission services nationally."
This could avert any problems that might occur at local level, he said.
But councillor James Kempton, executive member for children and young people at London Councils, said local authorities are planning how they will handle the vacancies when the transfer takes place.
He said: "It's a risk we're managing. We're hoping for a good dose of common sense. We'll be making sure that we end up with enough LSC staff in every council."
He added that the LSC in London is managing the situation exceptionally well.
John Freeman, director of the React programme at the Local Government Association, which is supporting councils through the transfer, also claimed that local authorities have a good grip on the situation.
"Provided local authorities have a critical mass of LSC staff, they should be all right," he said.
Sally Stewart, director of human resources at the LSC, said the matching process of staff to local authorities is still under way, which means she cannot confirm the exact number of vacancies. But she admitted there are numerous empty posts in London.
She said: "We are unlikely to identify staff for every one of the posts being transferred to the new structures and agencies. By the end of July or early August, we should have a clear picture of the numbers of staff transferring, and be able to advise local authorities accordingly."
