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Skills Investment Strategy

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20 November 2009

The Government set out how it will invest in the skills critical to the recovery and long-term success of the UK economy. The Skills Investment Strategy 2010 -11 underpins the priorities announced in the recently published national skills strategy, 'Skills for Growth'. BIS draw attention to the 3% rise in participation spending (from £3,411 million to £3,509 million) but the plan involves further redistribution of money out of the adult learning responsive budget The Skills Strategy is attached. Link to Department for Business Innovation and Skills press release http://nds.coi.gov.uk/clientmicrosite/content/Detail.aspx?ReleaseID=408631&NewsAreaID=2&ClientID=431 Two points to note - Adult Responsive Learning (ALR) rates With the exception of the unemployment training packages, funding rates will reduce by 3% in the 2010/11 academic year compared with the 2009/10 academic year. - With the exception of Skills for Life Entry Level numeracy, the programme funding uplift in funding for Skills for Life provision will be reduced from 1.4 to 1.2 for 2010-11, with a view to further reductions. The automatic disadvantage uplift will continue to apply. An Association of Colleges (AoC) spokesperson said "To call this an ‘investment strategy’ is somewhat misleading since it embodies significant savings. Within the strategy there is a considerable shift in priorities. Although Colleges are the most responsive element of the education sector they will need time to adapt. These savings do represent cuts - particularly to the rates of funding for certain courses - at a time when the services of colleges have never been more in demand. We are therefore looking to work closely with Government and its agencies to ensure that students, communities and businesses that colleges support are protected, as far as is possible, from the consequences of funding changes." NIACE responds to the Strategy http://www.niace.org.uk/news/niace-responds-to-skills-investment-strategy TES 11/12/09 http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6029557 Go 'more' to go the Skills for Growth documentation on BIS website

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