More money for Learning and Skills Beacons

Citation

(2004), "More money for Learning and Skills Beacons", Education + Training, Vol. 46 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/et.2004.00446dab.005

More money for Learning and Skills Beacons

More money for Learning and Skills Beacons

The Government has announced further development of the role of Learning and Skills Beacons and new criteria and selection arrangements. Additional funding will be made available to enable Beacons to take forward a range of activities, and the new selection arrangements will give greater recognition to the efforts of all types of further-education colleges and other providers across the learning and skills sector. The Government also announced the appointment of UK Skills to manage the Learning and Skills Beacon status arrangements, on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills.

Alan Johnson, Minister of State for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education, said: “Learning and Skills Beacon status is about celebrating excellence in teaching and learning, sharing good practice and encouraging others to follow suit. I am confident that these new arrangements will provide a broader mixture of provider types to act as role models for the sector as a whole. The new selection criteria, coupled with the assessment by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), will remain a significant challenge for any learning provider aspiring to gain Beacon status. Learning and Skills Beacons represent the very best performers in the sector.” The announcement was made during Mr Johnson’s visit to Barnfield College in Luton, which was the first general FE college to be awarded Beacon status in April 2003.

The DfES has specifically asked UK Skills to:

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  manage the selection process of suitable candidates for Learning and Skills Beacon status;

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  co-ordinate and deliver the award ceremonies;

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  facilitate national networking of Beacons to raise standards and promote excellence across the sector; and

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  raise the profile of Beacons and dissemination of good practice across the sector.