Education and Lifelong Learning
Regional Colleges (Outcomes)
The reform of colleges is predicated on producing a sector that is more sharply attuned to the Government’s priorities of jobs and growth. In order to measure better the sector’s contribution to Government priorities, we have introduced new outcome agreements for colleges and universities, the negotiation and monitoring of which are the responsibility of the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council.
Chic Murray. [Laughter.] I am sorry. Chic Brodie.
Presiding Officer—I think—I thank the cabinet secretary for his reply.
I suppose that I should say: “It’s the way he tells them.”
I never thought that I would have Chic Murray as my warm-up act.
I am absolutely certain that that process will, by ensuring that there is openness and transparency in the process of delivery, after the reforms are completed ensure that we have a more focused and targeted sector that is better able to deliver for Scotland’s young people. This is about young people, not institutions, and I am confident—as many people in the colleges are—that what is being done is exactly what was required and, indeed, that it should have been done some time ago.
I have been contacted by students at James Watt College, Reid Kerr College and Clydebank College who are concerned about transport provision if courses are centralised in a specific location. Will the outcome agreements look at students’ transport requirements to ensure that everyone can participate in places and courses that are on offer?
Hugh Henry raises a good and important issue. I, too, have been contacted by those students and am absolutely clear that the outcome agreements should address access issues. Those issues will be addressed as the outcome agreements develop. In any reorganisation of colleges, how to make it as easy as possible for people to access courses should be considered. There are imaginative solutions in many places in Scotland; Angus College, for example, already runs a system in which it transports students to the college for a variety of courses. I am absolutely certain that the reforms will benefit students—not hinder them.
Colleges (Waiting Lists)
I hope that I can put an end once and for all to the inaccurate and misleading claims that every single application that does not lead to a college place somehow amounts to a person being denied a learning opportunity.
I understand the minister’s answer, and he is perfectly entitled to his perspective. However, we have seen newspaper reports of 10,000 people on waiting lists for college places. The question is a simple one. How many people are on waiting lists for college places?
I have explained it to Mr Bibby on several occasions, but he does not wish to understand. I regret that, because he is creating a false view of what is happening. The suggestion that every learner who appears on a waiting list equates to one who has been turned away is palpably and completely false. Many successful applicants appear on waiting lists for other courses simply because they have made more than one application. Some courses are always popular; it has never been the case that every applicant is guaranteed their first choice. That does not mean that no alternative places are available.
In the light of that answer, will the cabinet secretary tell us how many people in the 16 to 19-year-old group are on college waiting lists?
I have explained to the Labour members, and I am happy to say it again to the other half of the unholy alliance that exists to talk down Scotland’s young people. [Interruption.]
Order.
Thank you, Presiding Officer.
With no preamble and no prejudgment, can I ask a simple question? How many people are on college waiting lists? We are asking for a number.
The concept that Neil Findlay raises is a false concept and a false construct. There are no waiting lists of that nature. The reality is that places are still available in Scotland’s colleges. That is a fact.
Further Education (Access)
Colleges exist to help people towards employment and we have made it clear that that should include all people—whatever their background, needs or circumstances. Our colleges have a very strong record in that regard.
The draft budget equality statement acknowledges that unless the process of restructuring Scotland’s colleges is undertaken carefully, it may have a detrimental impact on the groups that I have highlighted. What assurances can the cabinet secretary give to those groups that their opportunities to attend college will not be vastly reduced, given that the draft budget reveals that the college, adult learning and further education budgets will be cut over the period of the spending review?
I welcome Siobhan McMahon’s confirmation that the equality statement says that the changes in Scotland’s colleges—the regionalisation—should be undertaken carefully. She will therefore be assured—and reassured for all the people she speaks for—that it is being undertaken very carefully and thoughtfully in order to produce the results that we have set out to produce. I am glad that she welcomes that.
Career Guidance (Young People)
The Government places a high priority on quality career services. That is why we published last year “Career Information, Advice and Guidance in Scotland—A Framework for Service Redesign and Improvement”. We are committed to modernising services as a key element of our programme of reform to post-16 education.
Can the minister confirm that she is aware that 100,000 young people are to be encouraged to miss out on a face-to-face meeting with a careers adviser as a result of a decision by Skills Development Scotland to introduce a traffic-light system that categorises most pupils as “green”, meaning that they need no assistance in planning for work and should log on to a website if they have any questions, with 35,000 young people who are deemed to be difficult being coded “amber” and allowed to see a careers adviser promptly, and around 300 of the most troubled pupils being labelled “red” and sent to charities such as the Prince’s Trust? Clearly, pupils in different circumstances will need different levels of assistance, but does the minister honestly believe that it is correct that thousands and thousands of school pupils are to be told simply to log on to a machine or, at best, to have a web chat with a call centre, rather than receive face-to-face information, advice and support? If she does not, will she red-light that scheme now?
It really saddens me that someone of Mr Smith’s ability either misconstrues or misunderstands the important and imperative reforms of career guidance in this country. We are fortunate in Scotland that we have professional careers information, advice and guidance staff. What we need to do is to ensure that more of our young people—[Interruption.] Mr Smith should really listen to this. We need to ensure, particularly in the current climate, that more of our young people get a careers service that actually meets their needs. The purpose of the traffic-light system is to respond to the needs of different young people. Some young people need very intensive support, some young people have deep social problems that need to be addressed before we can get them on a journey to employability, and other young people need a more light-touch approach. Gone are the days when everybody should receive a 10-minute appointment with a professional careers guidance member of staff.
Schools Building Programme (Artificial Sports Pitches)
The provision of school sports facilities is important to the Government and education authorities. Consequently, high-quality sports facilities will always feature as part of the consideration of any proposals for new schools.
Will the minister and the Government ensure that part of the provision for the new Anderson high school in Lerwick, which I welcome as both a parent and a former pupil, will be a full-size artificial sports pitch? Is he aware that I have spoken to the chief executive of sportscotland and that I understand that additional funds are available through a number of its programmes to ensure that such provision is available? Surely during the time leading up to the Commonwealth games and when Scotland has so many other positive sporting aspects, we should ensure that not just Anderson high school but schools across the country benefit from the kind of provision that is desperately needed?
First, I congratulate Anderson high school and its rector, Valerie Nicolson, on the significant achievement of a new school building. Obviously, there is always negotiation between the Government’s schools for the future programme and local authorities around such matters. However, within all the arrangements, the Government puts the interests of the sporting life of the school near the top of the agenda. That is a conversation that continues.
In relation to the school building programme, I know that the minister will be aware that there is currently no statutory guidance in Scotland setting out minimum acoustic standards in new-build schools. In England and Wales, such standards exist and are a prerequisite for Government funding. When will the Government introduce such standards to bring Scottish acoustic standards up to the level of those in England and Wales, thus ensuring that all Scottish pupils can access the curriculum in the same way as their English and Welsh counterparts?
That supplementary question was a bit wide of the conversation about artificial full-size sports pitches. I do not know whether the minister wishes to respond.
I am happy to get back to Neil Findlay, although I agree with your assessment, Presiding Officer.
Dumfries and Galloway Council (Learning Town Consultation)
I call Elaine Murray—I had to be careful there—to ask question 6.
To ask the Scottish Government what impact its recent announcement regarding the schools for the future programme will have on Dumfries and Galloway Council’s learning town initiative consultation. (S4O-01371)
The Government is fully committed to providing financial assistance to Dumfries and Galloway Council, through the third phase of the schools for the future programme, for its proposed new senior phase school at the Crichton campus. We support the council and its partners in exploring the opportunity to create a learning town in Dumfries by integrating on one site senior-phase schooling, further and higher education and research. However, the provision of funding under the programme is subject to a positive outcome to any statutory consultation that may be required for the project. That is a matter for the council and its local partners.
On 26 September, a Scottish Government press release announced that the Crichton 15-plus school “will be built” using non-profit distributing model revenue, despite Dumfries and Galloway Council’s consultation on three options being in its early stages. Shortly afterwards, it was reported that the First Minister would pay a visit to the site. Is the cabinet secretary aware that those announcements by Scottish ministers have caused in the local community serious concern that the decision on the 15-plus school has already been taken, irrespective of the results of the consultation. As appeals under the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 are to Scottish ministers, can he assure staff, parents and pupils that any appeal against the council’s consultation process will be considered without prejudice?
Of course I can make that commitment, which is exactly what is required under the law. I appeal to Elaine Murray, who—this might be the kiss of death—I regard as a friend, following the work that we have done together in Dumfries, to take a progressive rather than a partisan view of the issue. She is, after all, the Labour MSP with the highest majority in Scotland. That shows her good sense in judging such things.
Reading Bus (Aberdeen)
This Government is committed to raising the literacy standards of all children and young people as part of our overall aim of improving the life chances of all.
Research on the reading bus’s Apardion project shows evidence of cross-curricular engagement, including elements of history, heritage, culture and use of information technology in learning, as well as benefits for reading and writing. Will the minister look at that analysis and consider whether that good practice could be extended elsewhere?
I am certainly happy to consider those issues further. I am aware of the cross-curricular nature of much of what is done in the project to which Kevin Stewart referred. Education Scotland has a key role in identifying and sharing innovative practice in a systematic fashion across the country. Education Scotland is already aware of the Apardion project, which is part of Aberdeen’s reading bus project and was launched on Burns day this year. I will ask officials to consider ways in which the key findings on the project can be shared with other parts of the country.
Rights of Children and Young People Bill (Consultation Responses)
We published our analysis of responses to the consultation on the rights of children and young people bill on 11 May 2012. The 300 responses to the subsequent consultation on the proposed children and young people bill, which ran from 4 July until 25 September, are being analysed. All non-confidential consultation responses will be published on the Scottish Government website on 30 October.
I am pleased to hear about the number of responses that have been received. Will the minister confirm that, in the way forward on the bill, account will be taken of the basic tenets of the Scottish Government’s getting it right for every child philosophy, with its key recognition of the importance of play in the early years?
Absolutely. One key driver of the bill is to enshrine elements of the GIRFEC change programme in law so that our unique and distinctive Scottish approach that puts the child at the centre of service delivery is better co-ordinated around the needs of the child. Wellbeing is at the heart of the GIRFEC approach and of the children and young people bill, and play is a fundamental part of a child’s wellbeing. The Scottish Government and I attach a great deal of importance to play, given how it can help with a child’s learning and development. The importance can be illustrated by our successful play talk read campaign, which promotes positive interaction between parents and their little ones through more playing, talking and reading.
Question 10, in the name of Anne McTaggart, has not been lodged, and the Presiding Officers do not have an explanation.
Presiding Officer—
My apologies. We are on question 9, from Duncan McNeil. I am having a bad day.
Further Education (Access)
I welcome the opportunity to respond to Duncan McNeil. We are the first ever Scottish Administration to ensure that every 16 to 19-year-old is guaranteed an offer of a suitable place in education or training through the opportunities for all scheme. I can think of no better way in which to ensure access to further education for young people throughout our country. Further, in the current academic year, we are funding the same volume of teaching activity as we did in 2011-12, and our draft budget makes provision for the same volume in 2013-14.
As Audit Scotland has confirmed, colleges face major reforms and financial challenges, raising further concerns for the future of my local college, James Watt College, which, as the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning will be aware, is in line for a further reduction in grant funding and is now expected to pay for a forced merger that it did not want. In that context, I ask again that access and opportunity for vulnerable students with complex needs be protected fully at this uncertain time. What specific measures are in place to ensure that vulnerable students will be taken into account and their needs will be acted on?
I would be shocked and horrified if any college in Scotland did not wish to have and did not succeed in having the widest reach, to ensure that everyone who needs help, support and access gets that. To suggest anything other than that would be to defame the college sector, and I am sure that the member would not wish to do that.
As I said, question 10 was not lodged.
Employability Fund (Priorities for 2013-14)
The development of an employability fund will mean that existing Scottish Government investment in pre-employment training through Skills Development Scotland and the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council is brought together in 2013-14 through an integrated skills commissioning process. We are working with partners to finalise priorities for the fund in 2013-14.
Last year, the Scottish Government allocated additional money to Skills Development Scotland to allow SDS to fund a set amount of college places with a clear focus on employability. The minister’s letter of guidance to the funding council this year indicates that the funding for that scheme in 2013-14 will consist of £24 million but, on this occasion, that will be transferred out of the college funding line. Does the minister plan to allocate any money directly to the scheme, or is she content to reduce further the funding that goes directly to already cash-strapped colleges?
I reassure Ms Ferguson that there will not be a further reduction in the way that she outlines. The employability fund is an important development. She is right to identify that, as the draft budget says, £24 million will come from the Scottish funding council, which represents an increase of £6 million. We will ensure that a proportion is ring fenced for the use of colleges. On top of that, I will meet Skills Development Scotland to ensure that all its pre-employability funding comes together with the funding from the Scottish funding council. Via those means, we are augmenting provision to colleges.
Further and Higher Education (Renewable Energy Sector Skills)
The key vehicle through which skills demand is articulated and addressed is the skills investment plan, which the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council and Skills Development Scotland jointly developed. The plan has the full support of industry and the energy advisory board. Creating opportunities for colleges and universities to meet the emerging needs of Scotland’s renewable energy industry and its workforce is a high priority. The funding council and Skills Development Scotland are well positioned to fund opportunities and to respond to emerging needs.
The minister is aware of the worrying skills shortage—a shortage of trained engineers—that could stall the Government’s progress towards its renewable energy targets. Despite that, the Government has placed a cap on the number of students who can study engineering in Scottish universities. What plans does the Government have to remove that cap, to ensure that we have an adequate supply of suitably qualified engineers?
I understand that more than 25,000 students in the system are studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics—STEM—subjects. Additional funding of £1.9 million in this academic year has been provided for an additional 300 STEM-related places. That funding and the number of places will increase over the next three years. The member should also be aware of initiatives such as the energy skills academy and our additional investment of £2 million in flexible training opportunities to deal with some of the skills shortages, which relate to industry looking for experienced mid-life engineers.
Mental Arithmetic Skills (Assessment of School Pupils)
That was not the exact question in the Business Bulletin, but I ask the minister, Alasdair Allan, to respond.
All pupils’ mental arithmetic skills are assessed as part of on-going learning and teaching. Education Scotland supports teachers in that in a variety of ways, including through the recent publication of a professional learning resource on numeracy. Mental arithmetic skills are assessed at primary 4, primary 7 and secondary 2 as part of the Scottish survey of literacy and numeracy in order to provide a picture of national performance. The first numeracy survey report was published on 28 March this year. In the senior phase, mental arithmetic skills are assessed as part of national qualifications.
I apologise, Presiding Officer. That was the question that I submitted. I forgot that the wording had been amended.
Mr Stevenson rarely disappoints. I heard members saying, “Hear, hear.” I hope that they understood what they were agreeing with.
Education Services (Children in Hospitals)
The Scottish Government published “Guidance on Education of Children Absent from School through Ill-health” in 2001 to support education authorities and their partners in fulfilling their duty to make provision other than at a school for children and young people who are unable to attend school due to ill health. The guidance includes advice on education in hospitals.
As the guidance is now more than a decade old, I was pleased that the Government responded to Action for Sick Children’s petition and agreed to review the guidance and set up a stakeholder group. The review group met for the first time in March 2012 with a view to producing revised draft guidance for consultation in September. I am disappointed that the group has not met since March.
I can confirm that the stakeholder group will meet again before the end of the year. The Government takes seriously the need to ensure that it receives the group’s full report. I think that we all agree that there is a need for revised guidance on the back of the 2001 guidance. Clearly, education authorities have a duty to provide education in these circumstances, but it is in everyone’s interest that we update the guidance. As I said, with that in mind there will certainly be a meeting of the group before the end of the year.
Energy Sector (Subject Choices for Girls)
The Government has committed £250,000 to careerwise Scotland, which is an initiative to encourage more girls to consider science, technology, engineering and mathematics careers, including in the energy sector. We will work closely with the Scottish Trades Union Congress, industry and our new science, technology, engineering and mathematics education committee to develop the way forward. In addition, Education Scotland promotes careers in the energy sector through its materials and online resources.
The minister will be aware that in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire your future in energy modules are being taught to secondary 2 pupils. The modules help to address the gender balance issue and allow young children to study subjects relevant to their future in energy. Will the minister consider producing guidelines on the matter or encouraging other schools to teach the same modules?
I know that the member has raised this extremely important issue in written questions. The Government is certainly aware of the your future in energy programme, which helps to raise young people’s awareness of career options in the energy sector and to develop the relevant skills. It is vital that we engage with young people at a very early stage in their learning to ensure that they are informed of future career and other opportunities that are available, and subjects such as mathematics, science and technology, which support pathways into energy sector careers, play a very strong role in that respect. Education authorities and schools will make their own judgments about the most appropriate teaching resources but, as I have said, the Government is certainly convinced by the member’s argument that, as with any other area of science and engineering, the energy sector should appeal as much to female as to male candidates for jobs.
Universities (Access)
Discussions on widening access are a regular feature of the Scottish Government’s formal and informal engagements with NUS Scotland, which because of the student perspective it offers on this important topic is an important contributor in widening access to universities. That is why it is represented on the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council’s access and inclusion committee, of which the Scottish Government is also a member, and why it has actively engaged with the Scottish funding council and universities on the development of widening access outcome agreements.
What opportunities exist in the post-16 education reform bill at least to consider placing an obligation on universities and the Scottish funding council to increase admissions of working-class youngsters from our most deprived communities and build on the positive results achieved by schemes such as the Lothian equal access programme for schools, which involves universities such as the University of Edinburgh?
I am familiar with LEAPS, which I think is a very good scheme; indeed, good schemes are operating in other universities. For example, I visited the University of Glasgow’s scheme some weeks ago, and I met two students from the St Andrews scheme at the Scottish National Party conference, where they were speaking at a Universities Scotland fringe event.
Colleges (Access)
As I said in my answer to Duncan McNeil, our commitment to young people through opportunities for all and to the college sector by continuing to fund the same volume of learning as we did in 2011-12 demonstrates this Government’s strong commitment to promoting access to college places, despite the swingeing cuts being imposed on us from London.
Does the cabinet secretary understand that his attitude to the serious questions that were posed under question 2 about the crisis in waiting lists and the 80,000 reduction in college places are leading fair-minded people to conclude that this Scottish National Party Government is no longer trustworthy?
It is tempting to respond to that question in the way that I feel it should be responded to by pointing out that there is no crisis in waiting lists and that the definition of Mr Kelly as a “fair-minded person” would stretch credibility. Not only is the college sector safe in this Government’s hands, but it is being reformed to focus on young people. Unfortunately, the Labour Party continues to defend the Thatcherite Michael Forsyth reforms of the college sector that have been so destructive to Scotland and the prospects of Scotland’s young people. That is the reality of James Kelly and his colleagues.
Medical Students (Costs)
The Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council identifies that the average teaching resource for an undergraduate medical degree is £8,416 per year in the first two years of the course and £16,734 per year for the final three, clinical years.
I think that those costs probably do not include clinical lecturer costs, because I understand that medical students’ full costs are much greater.
My understanding is that clinical costs are met for all students by the national health service, just as when Scots students are south of the border the English NHS meets the costs. I would call that a useful and helpful reciprocal arrangement.
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