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Children’s Workforce Development Council

My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Children and Families (Tim Loughton) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement. The Department for Education is to cease funding workforce development activity through the Children’s Workforce Development Council, and will bring CWDC’s ongoing core activities into the department. We have taken this decision as part of the arms- length body review; it reflects our commitment to channel as much resource as possible directly to the front line, and to ensure that central government departments are directly accountable. The Secretary of State has written to the chair to confirm this decision, to explain that the CWDC will cease to be a non-departmental public body and to say that he has asked departmental officials to work closely with the CWDC on a transition plan for the transfer of functions and responsibilities in the expectation that all such transfers will be completed by 2012. It will be important during the transition period to continue to engage employers in workforce development. In the Secretary of State’s letter, he has taken the opportunity to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the CWDC's staff and the organisation’s significant contribution in leading workforce reform and improving life chances for children and young people since it was established in 2005.