Further education in England: at the crossroads between a national, competitive sector and a locally collaborative system?

ABSTRACT

During the 25 years since Incorporation, when further education (FE) colleges were taken out of local government control, FE in England has been shaped by processes of marketisation to become a competitive national sector that has increasingly diverged from the more ‘collaborative system logic’ of the other three countries of the UK. However, following recent government reforms, FE in England appears to have reached a crossroads with the opportunity to participate in a more collaborative skills-based landscape at the local and sub-regional levels. This article brings together evidence from historical and international comparative system analysis, a series of UK-wide seminars and in-depth research on the Area-Based Review of FE colleges to assess the strategic direction of FE in England at this critical juncture. We argue that English FE providers can take advantage of these trends to make a transition from a reactive, competitive national sector towards a more collaborative, regional and sub-regional system focused on inclusive economic and skills development. The article concludes that the potential for cross-UK policy learning depends on whether FE in England gradually transitions towards a more collaborative future that could bring it closer to FE and skills systems in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

KEYWORDS:

• Further education
• skills
• localities and regions
• England
• policy
• collaboration

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. A number of colleges are still in the process of merging as a result of the Area-Based Review process undertaken between 2015–2017 (HoC 2018a).

2. The Scottish education system followed its own path well before democratic devolution.

3. The concept of ‘expansive policy learning’ and its evolving distinctions have, among other influences, drawn on Fuller and Unwin (2003, 2010) conceptual couplet of ‘Expansive/Restrictive’ which they have applied to apprenticeships and their workplace environments. Our use of the term expansive, therefore, has some affinities with but also differs from Fuller and Unwin, as we have acknowledged (see Hodgson and Spours 2017).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ann Hodgson

Ann Hodgson was Professor of Post-Compulsory Education and Co-Director of the Centre for Post-14 Education and Work, Department of Education, Practice and Society, UCL Institute of Education, London. She has experience of directing international, national and London-related projects and publishes on topics related to post-14 education policy across the UK; further education and skills, including organisation and governance; vocational education and training: curriculum and qualifications reform. Ann is now retired

Ken Spours

Ken Spours is Professor of Post-Compulsory Education and Co-Director of the Centre for Post-14 Education and Wor, Department of Education, Practice and Society,UCL Institute of Education, London. Ken specialises in post-14 curriculum and qualifications, organisation and governance and further education and skills.