157 Group responds to proposals for an FE Guild
1st August 2012
For immediate release
BEGINS
The 157 Group has welcomed the prospectus published by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) for developing a guild for further education.
Lynne Sedgmore CBE, executive director of the 157 Group, said, "Outstanding teaching and learning is the most important priority for the further education and skills sector, and the quest for excellence will be driven by the sector itself, by expert teachers, trainers and leaders, not by Whitehall.
"The government's proposal for a sector-led guild builds on the freedoms and flexibilities that have been created over the past two years, and the 157 Group is keen to work in partnership with other sector bodies as the sector takes charge of its own future. This offers an excellent opportunity for us to help reshape the FE landscape and raise the profile of vocational education, which is so crucial to our economic prosperity and social well-being. John Hayes' vision of a vocational craft guild that meets the needs of the economy and society in the 21st century recognises that vocational education should be held in the highest esteem."
Marilyn Hawkins, chair of the 157 Group, said, "With more autonomy, flexibility and freedom from bureaucratic burdens, colleges and providers will be able to work with sector bodies to develop a guild that builds on the good work already being done in terms of professionalising the workforce and driving up standards, for the benefit of learners and employers."
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
About the 157 Group
The 157 Group represents 27 of the most influential colleges in the FE sector. It was formed in 2006 in response to paragraph 157 of Sir Andrew Foster's report on the future of further education colleges, in which he argued that principals of large successful colleges should play a greater role in policymaking.
CONTACT
Andy Gannon
Tel: 07581 354750
Email: andy.gannon@157group.co.uk
The 157 Group Limited
P O Box 58147
London SW8 9AF
Website: www.157group.co.uk
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