Press Release - Partnering for success: Preparing to deliver
the 14-19 education reforms in England
13 December 2007
The government’s reform programme to improve attainment and
participation in education and training for 14 to 19 year olds has
wide support at local level, including for the new Diplomas, which
seek to blend general education with applied learning. The National
Audit Office has today reported that the reform programme has met
its key milestones so far, but there are substantial risks which
the Department for Children, Schools and Families is managing.
Central to the reforms are local 14-19 partnerships, made up of
key organisations including schools, colleges, independent training
providers and employers. These partnerships are working with local
authorities and the Learning and Skills Council, who have a
responsibility to to make sure that every young person in their
area has access to the full curriculum they are entitled to –
including the Diplomas - by 2013.
Effective local collaboration through the partnerships is
fundamental to the successful implementation of the reforms.
Institutions need to work together to provide the full range of
Diplomas because most institutions will not be able to provide
every Diploma in full. This joint working has to be built on trust
between institutions who may not have worked together before.
Partnerships which have a history of collaboration have benefited
from their earlier experience.
The NAO found wide variations in the preparedness of the local
partnerships at this early stage in the reform programme. Those
which are less well prepared will need to make full use of support
from the Department and other organisations to make sure that every
young person has access to the full range of courses by 2013.
The local 14-19 partnerships need to establish a complete
picture of where staff resources, skills and facilities are within
their areas, to make the most of them and meet the needs of pupils.
The logistics also need careful management so that young people can
gain practical access to the whole curriculum – with effective
transport between the different points of learning and avoidance of
timetable clashes. Most importantly, the partnerships must give
young people good, clear information about what is on offer so they
can make the right decisions about their future.
Involving employers is a crucial element of the reforms, and the
introduction of the Diplomas is likely to put significant demands
on employers. Over two-thirds of partnerships reported problems
with engaging sufficient numbers of employers to meet current work
experience requirements, and many expressed concerns that it will
be difficult to engage the number and range of employers that will
be required.
Local partnerships, individual institutions and training
providers need to be confident that the reforms as a whole will be
delivered effectively. It is therefore paramount that the
Department gives clear funding arrangements and consistent guidance
to partnerships.
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, said
today:
"Getting these reforms right will be vital to the
futures of many of our young people. In many cases, local
institutions and people on the ground are responding impressively
to the need for genuine collaboration to deliver the best education
possible for all young people. But the less well developed areas
still have much to do to provide all the options young people will
be entitled to by 2013."
Notes for Editors:
- The 14-19 reform programme involves major strands of
interdependent work being carried out in parallel. The NAO report
focuses on the progress local 14-19 partnerships are making in
preparing to deliver the reforms and did not, for example, examine
the development of the content of the Diplomas, for which the first
five specifications became available in September 2007.
- Press notices and reports are available from the date of
publication on the NAO website, which is at www.nao.org.uk. Hard
copies can be obtained from The Stationery Office on 0845 702
3474.
- The Comptroller and Auditor General, Sir John Bourn, is the
head of the National Audit Office which employs some 850 staff. He
and the NAO are totally independent of Government. He certifies the
accounts of all Government departments and a wide range of other
public sector bodies; and he has statutory authority to report to
Parliament on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which
departments and other bodies have used their resources.
Press Notice 59/07
All enquiries to Phil Groves, NAO Press Office
Tel: 020 7798 5339
Mobile: 07770 678 477