Six experienced college governors and clerks have been
appointed to help improve colleges across the country, as
the Skills Minister announced the new National Leaders of
Governance for further education today (Tuesday 20
November).
These top governors will provider peer-to-peer support at
further education and sixth form colleges where governance
needs to improve. This exciting programme will build on the
work of the National Leaders of Further Education, as part
of a collective package of support for colleges led by the
Office of the FE Commissioner.
It goes hand in hand with the Strategic College
Improvement Fund, an innovative £15m fund which will
help struggling colleges to improve, and new strengthened
governance guidance – also published today and
announced by the Skills Minister at the Association of
Colleges conference.
Apprenticeships and Skills Minister said:
Further education can change lives, giving people the
skills they need, boosting their confidence and opening
the door to a range of job opportunities and careers. We
want the further education sector to be well-run,
resilient, and able to meet people’s needs.
With the introduction of new gold-standard T Levels and
high-quality apprenticeships, further education has never
been more critical. The National Leaders of Governance
appointed today are exceptional leaders who will help
their peers to develop at this pivotal time,
strengthening the sector in the process.
FE Commissioner Richard Atkins said:
High quality governance is critical to the success of
colleges. I’m delighted to have this new small team of
talented and experienced governors and clerks who will be
sharing their expertise and supporting colleges to raise
the standard of governance.
The National Leaders of Governance will help diagnose any
areas in need of improvement, building expertise and
identifying ongoing sources of support.
Governance is an important part of the FE Commissioner’s
increased focus on early intervention, diagnosis and
prevention. The FE Commissioner’s annual
report is also being published today, and finds
that the expanded role of the FE Commissioner has allowed
issues in colleges to be proactively tackled, reducing the
need for formal intervention across the sector.
