WELSH post-16 education and training spending is to increase by more than a quarter as the funding body makes savings on central administration, writes Steve Hook.
The National Assembly has agreed a budget increase of 29 per cent, from pound;363 million to pound;460m, to be channelled through ELWa - Education and Learning in Wales.
ELWa’s running costs are expected to be reduced from pound;20.8m to pound;17.7m by removing the duplication created when the organisation was founded through the merger of five separate bodies. This has led to a row over redundancies (see page 35).
ELWa pledged earlier this year to reduce the amount it spends on bureaucracy - following the lead of the Learning and Skills Council in England, which aims to reduce red tape by 25 per cent.
Its corporate strategy and plan, to be launched next month, will lay out its future plans for the sector.
