Could it really be happening? Could the FE sector be about to receive a long-awaited and badly needed windfall?

The signs are cautiously positive. Ahead of next week’s Spending Review, reports have emerged about a leaked Department for Education document containing a list of “back to school announcements planned by the government”. According to the report, the DfE is “battling the Treasury for £800 million for further education and sixth-form colleges”.

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It’s important to stress that nothing is set in stone. The DfE was quick to say it does “not comment on leaks” and will “announce further information on our domestic priorities in due course”, indicating again that any discussions would indeed be still ongoing between the two government departments – as well as Number 10, after prime minister Boris Johnson repeatedly stressed the importance of schools and college funding.

Behind-the-scenes discussions

However, it seems that the stars are certainly aligned for FE to benefit in some way. The £800 million figure would go a long way towards the £1 billion funding boost the Association of Colleges has called for. Chancellor Sajid Javid, too, publicly stated his support for FE colleges in the Tory leadership campaign.

Sector leaders have been engaged in lengthy discussions with officials in Downing Street and the Treasury in recent days about a proposed one-year settlement for FE.

The details, however, are yet to be finalised – sources close to discussions say they are certainly more fluid than the widely trailed proposals for schools. And it appears that not all parts of the FE sector are likely to benefit. Adult education and apprenticeships have been conspicuous by their absence. Rather, it is education for 16 to 18 year-olds that is set to be the focus of any settlement. And not before time as far as those in the sector are concerned – the per-student rate of funding has been frozen for seven years.

An Education Policy Institute report published in May concluded that sixth-form education had been the “biggest real-terms loser of any phase of education”, with funding for 16-18 students in colleges dropping by 18 per cent in real terms between 2010-11 and 2018-19.

Any move to address this would be in line with the Raise the Rate campaign, which has long called for an uplift in the funding rate for that age group. But while the DfE may have asked the Treasury for £800 million, it’s by no means unlikely that a lower figure will end up being announced.

FE sector likely to be kept waiting

The sector may have to wait a little while longer for an answer. While it looks like there will be some sort of statement on school funding over the coming days, most likely on Friday, it is expected that FE will have to wait until the chancellor’s speech next week to find out what exactly will be released from the Treasury’s coffers.

And any investment is likely to come with strings attached, to address Treasury concerns about how effectively the money would be used. Some kind of statement outlining a push for more college rationalisation, in line with the recommendation in the Augar review, could address this.

Finally, even if a grand figure about FE investment emerges in the coming days, keep an eye out for the details behind it. In a quest to announce as big a number as possible, government spin doctors have a habit of totting up as many different pots of money as they can – even if some parts of the package have previously been announced. 

In summary, it's likely there will be some good news on the way, but it may not be quite as good as it initially seems.

Julia Belgutay is deputy FE editor at Tes