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Further Education and Training Bill [Lords]

I am grateful to have the opportunity to contribute, and to follow the hon. Member for Peterborough (Mr. Jackson), who I am sure will not be too disappointed if I do not agree with everything that he said. I should like to bring to the House my personal experiences both in industry and the further education sector. For 20 years before coming to the House, I ran my own business. During that time, I spent a number of years on the board of management of my local college, which has now merged with Falkirk college to form Forth Valley college. My hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield, Hillsborough (Ms Smith) spoke about engaging employers, which I believe is vital. I was disappointed when I was a further education student at the age of 19, as I was five or six years ago on the board of management, with the role of employers. The hon. Members for Havant (Mr. Willetts) and for Daventry (Mr. Boswell) talked about the diplomas for 14 to 19-year-olds. These diplomas can assist in achieving the aims and objectives of the Bill in addressing the skills shortage. The role of FE in delivering the diplomas is fundamental to student progression into full-time FE foundation degrees and then into additional higher education or employment. It is vital to highlight the importance of FE colleges’ vital partnership with schools, universities and employers. If we fail to get all the links in the chain right, we fail full stop. I want to repeat a plea that has been made tonight about adult learning. I had experience of FE when I was 18 or 19; I also had experience when I was 46 or 47, and my later experiences were much more positive than my earlier ones. In order to strengthen the qualifications and the experience that FE can give, we need to make more demands and create more opportunities for employers to enter the system. When I was 19, I was busy as an assistant planner working on the development of a multi-storey shopping complex and parking facility in Stirling. I was going to the Glasgow College of Building, where what I was being taught bore no resemblance to what I was seeing on the other four days of the week. I gained nothing from that period other than a qualification. We need qualifications that students can put into practice day in day out, whether on day release or in full-time education. They must be relevant and practical. I do not mean to be over-critical of an establishment in the 1970s, but at that point the thought of employers being engaged in the system did not exist. We want employers to be engaged now, but we cannot expect them always to put up their hands and say that they want to be involved. We have to ask them and, in some cases, demand that they become involved. No further education college has come to ask what skills my business needs to grow and to develop, and to see whether relevant courses are available in the college. The hon. Member for Northampton, South (Mr. Binley) referred to SMEs, which are important. We have heard a lot tonight about how larger plcs can make a contribution, but many regions do not have large plcs and are driven by SMEs. They are the backbone of the economy up and down the UK. We must be imaginative in expressing the need for SMEs to become involved and we must make them understand that they can benefit from their involvement, that there will not necessarily be a financial or a time cost, and that there will be a benefit to them and their sector if they become involved. Possibly we need to make even greater demands. We also need to think about the additional skills that we need. As an employer, I need someone with the skills to do the job, but I also need communication skills, punctuality, presentation and interaction, which are fundamental to delivering skills learned through further education or higher education. Earlier today, I asked the Secretary of State to clarify accessibility around FE colleges delivering foundation degrees. Many areas have access to FE colleges but do not have access to higher education facilities. The availability of FE colleges to deliver such courses addresses a social aspect of education and training policy, something of which Government Members can be proud. I ask the House to consider why we need these changes. The world and the economy are changing. We know about the huge economic growth in India and China, which is impinging on many countries. Low-skill and low-cost jobs have been eroded—frankly, UK plc should not want to be a low-skill, low-cost employer again. As the world changes, so do the things that the UK and individuals need to do. Individuals must recognise that they have a role and responsibility, too. We cannot stand still. The Bill recognises the ever-changing situation in the economic environment. It is an important piece in the jigsaw, and it will allow the UK and individuals to benefit from improvement in learning.