The first issue, and one we expect clarity on soon, is grammar schools. Supposedly accidently leaked to the media at the beginning of September, the re-introduction of grammar schools is one of many options currently being discussed by government as part of its schools reform, and we anticipate more detail to follow in a subsequent consultation.
It’s possible that the grammar schools issue has been bought into the public eye to detract from other issues the Education Secretary needs to focus on, such as the deployment of the National Funding Formula, the ongoing teacher recruitment shortfall and the introduction of the actions outlined in the Education White Paper, to name but a few. It may also be a concession to the Conservative backbenchers, to appease them in the event of a Brexit deal that does not meet their requirements.
The key financial events of the next year will be the Autumn Statement – expected on 23 November – and the Budget in March 2017. The main focus of these will be Philip Hammond’s new fiscal direction, following confirmation that he would not be pursuing continued austerity, and his vision for rebalancing the economy away from the European Union in line with the EU referendum result. We’ll be keeping a close eye on the settlement that Education and Skills receives from these events, but these may be side-lined even more than usual given the Chancellor’s other priorities.
That being said, the Treasury will be very interested in the launch and performance of the Apprenticeship Levy on 6 April 2017. This tax is intended to ultimately replace central government funding for apprenticeships but, following a recent consultation, a lot of the details are still to be confirmed, namely around the Digital Apprenticeship Service, final detailed funding and eligibility rules. We’re expecting further updates in October and December, with the onus on government to clearly set out what’s expected of employers, and how they can pay for apprenticeships under this new funding system. We certainly need clarity, as initial modelling has shown the new funding system will mean large numbers of frameworks stand to lose funding under these changes.
Following the publication of the Post-16 Skills Plan, we’re also anticipating further detail around these plans, particularly around which job roles will be included in the occupational outlines initially set out. We’re also working closely with the Department for Education (DfE) to see what form the proposed ‘Tech Level’ qualifications will take.
Speaking of the DfE, following the summer’s many government changes, we’re keeping a close eye on the merger of the Skills Portfolio into the DfE’s brief. The new ministers for Education and Skills have a large workload ahead of them, implementing policy decisions that neither of them were involved in making. We’re also keeping an eye on former Department for Business, Innovation and Skills budgets as they’re merged into the DfE – will they be ring-fenced? We expect further clarity after the Autumn Statement.
All in all there’s a lot going on and we anticipate many more developments and announcements over the coming months. We’ll be covering all the latest news on the NCFE blog as always, so watch this space.
