THE FOUNDING chairman of the Scottish Further Education Funding Council is to be Robert Beattie, community activities co-ordinator with IBM and chairman of the Government’s committee on post-school education of young people with special needs.
The Secretary of State described Mr Beattie, aged 50, as “a committed supporter” of FE. His two-day-a-week Pounds 27,800 post will run from next year until 2002. The funding council will be separate from the one for higher education but will have a joint staffing structure.
With funding of the 43 colleges due to pass from Scottish Office direct control in January, the Association of Scottish Colleges welcomed Mr Beattie’s appointment and said it looked to the council to put in place fairer and more stable principles of funding.