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Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill

My Lords, I shall briefly pick up a couple of points as I do not want to repeat everything that I have said. To be clear, we see the enhanced complaints procedure and the opportunity for local authorities to respond quickly and in-year as a very important step in driving a much more responsive service. This is really about meeting the needs of young learners but it is also about meeting some of the concerns voiced by the Association of Colleges, as the noble Baroness highlighted. Following this debate, it may be appropriate for me to write again to Members of the Committee, but with a little more notice, setting out the progress that we have made and why we think it makes a difference. However, we believe that the complaints provision that we are introducing in Clause 54 should ensure that local authorities listen and react to young people’s transport needs. In respect of the point raised by the noble Lord, Lord Low, concerning Clause 112, we will make it clear to the chief executive of Skills Funding, through guidance issued by the Secretary of State, that the organisation must consider access issues in carrying out its responsibilities and consult local authorities about transport requirements for learners over the age of 19 with learning difficulties but without a learning difficulty assessment. I should have mentioned that and I put that on the record too. I am not sure that I have anything further to add but I hope that, with additional background briefing, noble Lords will consider this matter further on Report. Amendment 136C agreed.