The future of a flagship government scheme aimed at introducing pupils to vocational education and creating closer ties between colleges and schools is in doubt, due to funding changes.
Foundation Apprenticeships are currently in their first year, following a pilot scheme. But college leaders have told TESS that institutions have received less funding to implement the apprenticeships than expected, putting the sustainability of the scheme at risk at a time when college finances are tight.
Starting in the senior phase, learners on the scheme spend time out of school, at college or with a local employer, and complete the Foundation Apprenticeship alongside other subjects such as National 5s and Highers.
College managers expected to not only receive Skills Development Scotland (SDS) funding for their institutions’ part in the delivery of Foundation Apprenticeships but also to have that offer count towards their Scottish Funding Council (SFC) credit target. However, it has emerged that there will be no credits for Foundation Apprenticeships.
This makes it potentially more difficult to make the programme sustainable, and also raises questions over the potential impact of a drop in numbers. Because the funding is specific to the programme and is non-transferable, fewer participants would mean a drop in funding.
One college manager said: “If numbers are high and we hold on to numbers then it’s a feasible programme. If we lose numbers, the cost and reputation damage lies entirely with the college.”
College leaders also said that because the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework level of the scheme had been set at the equivalent of Highers, marketing in schools had been a challenge.
Articulation to university and into graduate apprenticeships was also unclear, they stressed.
‘Difficult to sell’
Shona Struthers, the chief executive of Colleges Scotland, said that colleges were committed to delivering the Foundation Apprenticeship programmes. But she added: “The sector does, however, have some concerns around the sustainability of the current arrangements, the risk for recruitment and retention falling to colleges, and the parity of esteem of the qualification in relation to Highers.”
She said that none of these issues were insurmountable and that Colleges Scotland was continuing discussions with SDS and the SFC.
Edinburgh College principal Annette Bruton said that the funding method had changed unexpectedly in December.
“We had been led to believe that there would be credits for Foundation Apprenticeships. SDS wrote to colleges to say that there would be no credit value to the courses. We had worked hard to promote the route to schools and had done our sustainability calculations on that basis,” she said.
Ms Bruton added that the SFC had later confirmed that this was the case. “Some colleges, I believe, decided not to go ahead but we felt that we had made a commitment to our schools and we wanted to honour our commitment. We will run them this year and review them with our school partners. We are offering 120 Foundation Apprentice places for 2017-18 and see the potential in the model if it is funded going forward,” she said.
Dundee and Angus College principal Grant Ritchie agreed that there were problems with the way the Foundation Apprenticeship contracts were handled this year.
“The process was changed midway through and the funding we will receive is less than we were initially expecting, and budgeting against,” he said.
“We have also been informed that we cannot claim credits for Foundation Apprenticeships, which again impacts on their attractiveness for the sector. However, we are working very hard with SDS on a local level to recruit Foundation Apprentices and to take the message out to schools that Foundation Apprenticeships are a really good route into employment.“
He added that many people expected the apprenticeships to be positioned as pre-apprentice training, but “as they are SCQF level 6 and equivalent to a Higher, they are a harder sell to parents”.
TESS understands there are also concerns over the fact that Ucas recognition for the scheme is not yet consistent and the levelling on this is not likely to be completed before 2018. This, TESS has been told, could be too late for students applying to courses starting in 2017-18.
Diane Greenlees, SDS head of foundation and graduate-level apprenticeships, said that Foundation Apprenticeships were designed by industry based on level 3 Modern Apprenticeship frameworks, and that the length and level of the apprenticeships reflected this.
She said: “Foundation Apprenticeships are designed to expand the range of progression routes available to young people on completion, directly into a job; accelerated entry to a Modern Apprenticeship; Graduate Level Apprenticeship; college, or university.”
SDS was working with Ucas to agree a tariff for Foundation Apprenticeships and this was not currently a barrier to university admission, she said. Admissions policies had been agreed with eight universities.
