Agenda item

The Director of Tourism, Culture and Investment submits a report to provide details of the impact of COVID-19 on the Adult Skills and Learning Service, the service’s initial response in the 2019-20 academic year and the impact on the Autumn 2020-21 programme.

Members of the Commission are recommended as follows;

1)    That the successful transition to online and distance learning is noted and the service staff commended for their commitment and hard work in challenging circumstances.

The Director of Tourism, Culture and Investment submitted a report to provide details of the impact of COVID-19 on the Adult Skills and Learning Service, the service’s initial response in the 2019-20 academic year and the impact on the Autumn 2020-21 programme.

The Head of Adult Skills and Learning Services presented the report and noted the efforts of addressing the impact of Covid-19 on the service. Enrolment figures were strong at the beginning of the academic year 2019-20 and following lockdown most courses still continued but in a virtual format and some also moved to an informal model. Due to digital exclusion factors including lack of confidence, this caused for a decrease to 60% of people that continued on the course however some people who didn’t engage before were now engaging due to this online option. Following OFSTED’s visit in September, a report was received which gave positive feedback. Another impact of the pandemic were the required venue changes and 2 metre social distance restrictions which restricted class sizes at the beginning of the 2020-21 academic year. Many positives derived from online and distant learning and it was therefore anticipated that this aspect would be retained moving forward. However, many learners still preferred the classroom option. The financial implications to the service remain unclear however the Government announced expansion of free level 3 qualifications. Plans for September courses had commenced.

The Commission welcomed the report and made the following points during discussion:

·         A Member of the Commission asked for clarification of the mechanism whereby the government could request back funds for underperformance. What was these percentage in previous years, and could these claw back decisions be appealed?

Response from the Head of Adult Skills and Learning Services:

The percentage of fund received for each learner dependant on the chosen course, their achievement and progression was explained. It was further noted that if the learner completion amount was under 97% of allocation, the government could claw back some of the funding.

·         Are the Council able to provide money to help people get on courses and reskill, for example to be able to get into employment for construction work?

Response from the Head of Adult Skills and Learning Services:

The new Textiles Training Academy launching later in the year would support individuals looking to work in fashion and textiles sector.

Response from the Head of Economic Regeneration:

Funding had been secured from CITB to establish a specific sector focussed training initiative for the construction sector which would be based at Ashton Green. Working with specialist training providers this would help provide people with the basic skills required for entry level to gain a specific qualification. Furthermore, work was taking place collaboratively with a range of construction companies and this would bring together businesses to target skills and would be bought forward later in the year. This could also be targeted to particular groups such as women and Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) communities.

·         Scale of Operations?

Response from the Head of Economic Regeneration:

The textiles training academy is being established in a 6,000sq ft space and when established aims to support at least 400 individuals per year. The Construction Training Hub at Ashton Green would offer classroom-based learning onsite and aims to support 400 people until March 2023. Both initiatives would naturally take time to build up a pipeline and demand.

The Adult Skills Service were thanked for adapting their role and developing new skills in this time. It was hoped that the problems encountered would provide new learning opportunities and that adult education in the future should play a part in rebuilding and re-engaging. A re-analysis of what was currently being done was encouraged.

The Head of Economic Regeneration was also thanked, and the two centres were looked forward to.

·         A Member welcomed the idea of an academy training construction site, however had concerns in relation to a textile’s college and its potential competition in addition to the environmental damage. It was felt that existing manufacturers should pay more to upskill staff.

Response from the Deputy City Mayor for Environment and Transportation:

The purpose of LCC bringing this space where there was a high concentration of textile factories, allowed us to have intelligence to look at what was taking place in the industry. Works within the industry would also support a more vibrant sector.

Response from the Head of Economic Regeneration:

A lot of textile businesses in the city had done well but had been negatively impacted by the negative press attention. Those businesses had an ongoing need to attract skilled workers in order to continue the manufacture of good quality products. This project sought to address that need and create a beacon for the sector around good practice. Leicester was noted to be the second largest cluster nationally in the textiles sector and also the largest garment sector in the UK, this was mainly a result of the skills available in the city. The aim was to retain those skills and encourage companies to grow the manufacturing base. ‘Fashion Enter’ who were the UK’s leading specialist training provider in the fashion and textiles sector, had been procured to manage and operate the textiles training academy and were working closely with LCC to do something positive for the city and the sector.

The report from the House of Commons Education Committee in relation to Adult Skills and Lifelong Learning was presented, highlighting key elements from the report including: Labour Market changes, return on investment, benefits for health and wellbeing, policy and recommendations.

·         It was requested that the City Council offer its full support to the recommendations included in the House of Commons Education Committee report to communicate this with government. It was believed if implemented that the recommendations would make a significant difference to opportunities in Leicester.

Response from the City Mayor:

That this would be a very helpful contribution to the response being provided. The Chair would be notified of the draft response.

AGREED:

1.    That Leicester City Council write a response to offer its full support to the recommendations included in the House of Commons Education Committee report.

2.    That the successful transition to online and distance learning is noted and the service staff commended for their commitment and hard work in challenging circumstances.

3.    That the Commission be provided with further updates in the future.