Dr Esmond Birnie MLA
Chairman
Committee for Employment and Learning
Northern Ireland Assembly
Room 283
Parliament Buildings
Stormont
BELFAST
BT4 3XX

23 January 2002

Dear Esmond

Thank you for your letter of 10 October and the enclosed Report of your Committee on its Inquiry into "Education and Training for Industry". I regard it as a most helpful and considered contribution to this important debate about the future.

I am very grateful to the Committee for a number of reasons. First of all, the recommendations are broadly in line with the Department's overall aim and its contribution to the Programme for Government. Secondly, the recommendations are extremely wide-ranging and will provide a sound basis for a continuing dialogue. Thirdly, the Committee recognises the current constraints in public sector finances. The Committee will understand, therefore, that where the recommendations require or call for additional spending I can only respond by pointing out that my Department has to compete for resources against a raft of other spending priorities. I have my doubts that improving management practices or introducing more innovative financial solutions will produce the amount of funding required. However I will certainly be looking for savings wherever possible.

I have attempted, in the attached response, both to group the recommendations and to reply to each of the Report's individual recommendations by illustrating existing actions and my Department's intended response. I will be delighted to meet with the Committee to discuss the recommendations and my response to them and to develop an appropriate dialogue when you have had the opportunity to consider.

Thank you again for your Report. I look forward to working with you in the best interests of education, training and the wider community.

Yours sincerely

MRS CARMEL HANNA MLA
Minister for Employment and Learning

The Committee for Employment and Learning has made a series of recommendations to the Minister and to the Assembly, following completion of their Inquiry into this issue.

The Department has considered carefully the overall Report and each individual recommendation in the light of the Department's contribution to the Programme for Government, its aims and objectives, its Corporate and Business Plans and its existing policies.

The Department is broadly in accord with the directions set out in the Committee's report though clearly many of the recommendations have resource implications which are a matter for the wider consideration of the Executive and the Assembly in the drawing up of Departmental budgets and others are dependent on the support or agreement of other Departments which can only be the subject of further discussion.

The Department has set out its positive response to the recommendations in the papers below.

The recommendations in the report can be classified into a number of groups:

(i) Those requiring, explicitly, additional resources - since the Budget for 2002-03 is agreed, further discussion of these areas must, in the main, await Spending Review 2002. These include recommendations 1, 2, 6, 15, 18, 20, 22, 33, 35, 36, 37, 40.

(ii) Those requiring policy or structural developments or changes which are either underway or will be considered. These include recommendations 3, 7, 11, 13, 14, 17, 23, 25, 26, 28, 29, 34, 38,42.

(iii) Those requiring discussion or actions which involve other Departments and which will, therefore, require an inter-Departmental response. These include 4, 21, 31, 39, 41, 43.

(iv) Those requiring changes in curricular or other provision which are either being considered with the relevant bodies or which will be considered. These include 5, 8, 19, 27, 30, 32.

(v) Those requiring the publication of FE strategy and actions flowing from it. This work is underway. These include 9, 10, 16.

(vi) Those requiring work on a statistical response, where action is underway. These include 12, 24.

Further additional funding and resources should be made immediately available to support literacy and numeracy development schemes to correct the poor levels of adult basic skills in Northern Ireland. These schemes should include provision for both personal development and social skills training.

Initiate and fund research into developing effective models of workplace basic skills development and the effective sharing of best practice.

Improving adult literacy and numeracy skills is one of the Department's key goals - it impacts directly on both economic development and social inclusion. Additional funding is a matter for consideration within the Spending Review.

The Department has already embarked on a number of key policy actions in this field:

• the creation of a Basic Skills Unit (BSU) to provide advice to the Department and to act as an advocacy body and to promote adult literacy and numeracy initiatives;
• support for a significant number of adult literacy and numeracy students across DEL programmes;
• enhanced FE funding for Adult Basic Education students and the creation, within the BSU, of innovation funds to support community and workplace initiatives;
• preparation of a comprehensive Adult Literacy Strategy for publication and consultation; and
• securing of additional funding under EPF and EU funding for the next 2 and 3 years respectively.

Basic skills has a high priority within the Department. The Draft Strategy currently being prepared will set out the Department's proposals for adult literacy and identify how it intends to support and develop new provision. It will include recommendations in relation to standards, curriculum, assessment and the dissemination of best practice across all programmes, including in the workplace. Additional resources can only be discussed within the context of the Spending Review.

Develop flexible and dynamic policies to deal with retraining and reskilling in a range of situations, especially large-scale redundancies. These should include fast-track training programmes to address particular sectoral, or geographical areas, of skill shortages.

The NI Skills Task Force has published a report with wide ranging recommendations. Identified skills shortages are being researched and responses addressed. Where current provision is inadequate to deal with redundancies (eg early entry to New Deal) the Department will seek to respond positively.

The Department is continually reviewing initiatives to ensure the needs of employees are met. Recent redundancies, especially following September 11, are being addressed with the companies most affected and, if necessary, the Department will adjust programmes to seek to minimise unemployment.

Serious consideration must be given in the current review of 16-19 curriculum, as to how the relative and/or absolute decline in students studying quantitative and scientific subjects can be reversed, in order to ensure that more people, at secondary and tertiary level study mathematics and sciences.

The Department is currently undertaking a review of 16-19 provision within DEL supported programmes. DEL would wish to see increased levels of provision in science and maths subjects, as these facilitate progression to the vocational areas such as engineering where the NI Skills Taskforce has identified a skills need. This year, DEL is supporting an innovative pilot in the North West Institute aimed at providing young people who have not followed a maths or science route, at level 3, with a fast-track programme to develop those competencies. This will facilitate progression into higher level vocational courses where maths and science is an entry requirement and a key component of the programme.

The 16-19 curriculum spans the responsibilities of DEL and the Department of Education (DE). DEL will engage actively with DE on this area, particularly, as DE begins to explore the recommendations of the Burns' Review of Post Primary Education.

The Department acknowledges that the education and training provision for 16-19 year olds is an issue which should receive consideration. The specific recommendation made by the Committee is, however, an area that rests mainly with the Department of Education since decisions on curriculum choices are often made at an earlier age. The Department will raise the issue with DE within the context of the Key Stage 3 and 4 curriculum review and of the post- primary review.

Develop appropriate conversion courses in mathematics, the sciences and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) that reflect the needs of industry.

The Department is supporting the development by the North-West Institute of Further and Higher Education of a pilot programme for students over age 18 who lack competences in maths and science with a fast-track programme in these competences. In addition to this, FE colleges are key players in the delivery of Foundation Degrees, introduced on a pilot basis in this current academic year. Foundation degrees have been developed, conjointly, with higher education institutions and employers. They are intended to provide an appropriate route for learners to develop the skills and experience demanded by employers. The focus of the first pilots is ICT and ICT-related areas.

The Department agrees that courses in maths and science and ICT need to reflect the needs of industry. The Department will evaluate the pilot in the North-West Institute and will consider the appropriateness of the conversion course offered in maths and science. The Department will continue to offer and develop appropriate provision in ICT.

Greater government support for workplace development, community education and outreach programmes aiming to improve ICT skills, to enable everyone to operate within the ICT driven economy.

ICT is a priority at all levels. Mainstream programmes all address the issue. Extra places have been agreed at HE, FE and vocational training levels. Computing, electronics and software engineering are three key areas of skills need and provision within the FE sector which attract additional financial weighting and incentives. The work of the FE sector is complemented by learndirect provision. The Department recently issued circular FE 19/01 Training for Employers/Work-based learning. This sets out how the Department intends to fund such training through the further education funding formula. All eligible training must support the economy; be above legal requirements; be additional; and, where possible, provide a recognised transferable qualification.

Increasingly the focus of college activities, in outreach, is on ICT based learning with mobile ICT units taking this expertise further into the community. The colleges have received a £10m investment, over the last three years, in their ICT infrastructure and in ICT staff development.

The Department will continue to focus and provide additional funding to ICT to widen access and to support economic development. ICT and ICT related areas will remain a priority skill area for the Department.

Rationalise and develop existing initiatives such as the Skills Task Force, Executive Recruitment Watch and the Priority Skills Unit.

The NI Skills Task Force oversees the research programme of the Priority Skills Unit in NIERC, and Skills Unit in DEL. The Recruitment Watch Survey is part-funded by the Skills Unit.

Agreed. The NI Skills Task Force sets the research agenda for the Priority Skills Unit within NIERC and agrees the funding available for surveys supplied by DEL such as Executive Recruitment Watch.

Develop appropriate mechanisms to support the training requirements of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises.

SMEs are one of the priorities for workforce development policies in the Department.

Agreed. Work is underway to better target SMEs, especially in FE and through learndirect.

The overall further education strategy should include a 3-5 year strategic plan, be urgently completed and implemented for the further education sector. The Strategy should address the key issues of the optimum number of further education colleges in Northern Ireland, and their individual remits, and how to deliver on the objective of acquiring parity of esteem between vocational and academic qualifications (see Recommendation 31).

Colleges were incorporated in April 1998. At that time, management and responsibility for staff, premises and meeting local further education needs passed from the Education and Library boards to the 17 colleges.

The initial strategy for the Further Education sector was set out in the document, "Lifelong Learning: A New Learning Culture for All", published in 1999. It set the direction for the Further Education sector to:

• meet the skills needs of the NI economy;
• widen access and increase participation in education and training;
• develop flexible education and training provision, and provide opportunities for student progression; and,
• improve quality and raise standards.

The Department will set out, in detail, the strategy for the future development of the sector.

Decisions regarding the development of centres of excellence at individual colleges should stem from the overall strategy for the sector. This should be underpinned by a commitment to innovative schemes, which increase access and support a geographical spread of provision across Northern Ireland.

The centres of excellence initiative is one of a range of initiatives whose purpose is to advance the Department's key strategic objective of supporting the NI economy. It was one part of the Strategic Investment Initiative, which included the promotion of greater collaboration between colleges and the better matching of college staffing to areas of highest skills need.

The assessment criteria to establish centres of excellence in the key priority skill areas required colleges to demonstrate for the vocational area in question, a high quality of teaching and learning through inspection reports, good public examinations results, significant investment by the college itself, a spread of course provision, and close working relationships with local businesses. The initiative aimed to recognise high achievement levels and relevance to business and industry.

The development of centres of excellence remains a key element in promoting the sector's support for the regional economy. This will be reflected in the published FE strategy.

Where appropriate, support services should be co-ordinated and harmonised to produce cost savings and standardisation of procedures.

The Department has set in place a range of reviews and initiatives to support co-ordination and harmonisation. DEL is working with the colleges, for example, to take forward the development of a common Management Information System and has supported a common Internet solution for all colleges, via SuperJanet;

On the academic and curriculum side DEL has undertaken a review of the support structure for curriculum and staff development across the sector. Consultation on proposals will be undertaken in the near future.

The Department will continue to work with the sector to develop, where appropriate, common solutions and support services to provide best value for money and to avoid duplication of effort.

Urgent need for the provision of a vastly improved common statistical database on students and staff, to reflect trends in personnel issues and record the outcomes for students attending FE course. The information produced must be consistent across all colleges.

There are existing systems to collect the most important data. The information needs of colleges are significant, however, and will continue to grow. The colleges have developed an Outline Business Case for a new management information system and a Project Board has been established to take this work forward. There are, however, considerable financial, technical and administrative difficulties in these areas. The tracking of students and staffing in the FE sector must take account of the very flexible nature of the provision. The Department, in conjunction with the sector and the Education and Training Inspectorate is identifying the performance indicators and the management information requirements.

The Department is actively pursuing the development of an improved management information system in colleges.

Members of Boards of Governors must receive effective training on their roles and responsibilities. The composition of Governing Bodies should reflect the communities which the colleges serve.

The term of the present Governing Bodies expires on 31 March 2001 and the re-constitution process has commenced to allow the new Governing Bodies to be appointed on 1 April 2002. The composition of the Governing Bodies is set out in the Further Education (NI) Order 1997; any change to the specified composition would require an amendment to the Order. The Department has consulted colleges on the arrangements and advertisements have been placed in the Press inviting applications for the 'business, industry and professions' category of membership. The other members e.g. staff and student representative(s) and Education and Library Board nominees, will be taken forward in time for appointment on 1 April 2002.

When the members have been identified, training will be arranged as soon as possible thereafter. This will include training on the roles and responsibilities of the Governing Body and its relationship with the staff of the college. Governors will also receive a range of information including copies of the Guide for Governors and their Institute's Articles and Instruments of Government.

The Department agrees on the need for effective training on the roles and responsibilities of Governors. Significant focus will be given to training Governors, especially in relation to accountability, as soon as the new Governors are appointed.

Further Education Colleges should come under the remit of the Assembly Ombudsman.

All colleges are required to have in place a procedure for handling complaints; the final responsibility for the complaints is the Board of Governors of the College.

The Department will consider the need for changes to the existing complaints procedure.

Increase the overall student per capita funding to the further education sector, bearing in mind equality considerations between the different educational sectors. We welcome the recent financial support improvements for FE students. The current funding mechanism needs to be changed if it is to achieve its objective of delivering high-class vocational training, that is regarded as on a par with academic qualifications.

The Department has and will continue to bid for an increase in the overall level of funding for the further education sector.

The Department will consider a review of the funding mechanism to ensure that it supports the Department's objective of delivering high-class vocational education to support economic development. Any increase in funding for FE can only be discussed within the context of the Spending Review.

The allocation of funding should be guided by an overall strategic plan for the sector. This will address the issue of funding for centres of excellence, the support of Research and Development, (more likely to be product and process development) and the funding of part-time courses.

The Department allocates funding to the FE sector on the basis of supporting its strategic objectives of:

• supporting the economy;
• widening access and increasing participation; and
• improving quality and raising standards.

In the last two years funding has supported centres of excellence and a pilot project to test out technological and other support for SMEs.

The current funding arrangement provides enhanced funding to colleges for the delivery of part-time provision.

The allocation of funding is guided by the overall strategic objectives for the sector. Any review of the funding mechanism will be closely related to the strategy for the sector.

Closer links with local industry, industrial development organisations, including increased staff participation in the Lecturers into Industry initiative (see Recommendation 37).

• The Lecturers into Industry initiative covers four key areas in the current academic year (engineering, hospitality and catering, software engineering and construction), with 40 lecturers taking up placements in local business/industry.
• A pilot initiative aimed at increasing links between the FE and SME sectors will be introduced in 2001/02 with funding for three pilots over a twelve month period.
• The Partnership Fund for the FE sector continues to support activities aimed at establishing/strengthening links with local key players, including business and industry, in order to drive up the demand for learning and to put in place the necessary infrastructure to address increased demand.
• The reconstitution of FE college Governing Bodies scheduled for 2002 will again adhere to the 50% representation of Governors from business/industry.

The Department supports closer links between FE and Industry. It is examining, currently, how the Lecturers into Industry can be extended to other vocational areas and also include employers working in colleges.

Increase the availability of places on Higher National Diploma/Higher National Certificate and other courses which lead to professional qualifications in Information and Communication Technology (ICT).

ICT and ICT-related areas are given priority. The 600 additional, full-time places provided through funds to support Lifelong Learning were targeted in six priority skill areas. An additional 100 places were allocated to software engineering. The new Foundation Degree courses are all in ICT and ICT-related areas. There is no restriction on part-time HE provision (indeed part-time provision is more appropriate to those already in employment). FE colleges are ideally placed to meet the identified training needs of company employees where an increase in ICT-related skills are required.

The Department has given priority and incentive funds to providing courses leading to qualifications in ICT.

Include an ICT Module on all further education courses. All full-time students should ideally have achieved the ICT competence of the ECDL by the time they complete their course.

While there is no statutory curriculum in the FE sector and course choice is selective rather than compulsory, the Department agrees that FE students, whether full-time or part-time should develop ICT skills. For this reason the Department has invested heavily in ICT equipment to ensure that all colleges have a minimum student PC ratio of 5:1. In terms of the curriculum the Department supported fully the introduction of Curriculum 2000 for all full-time FE students aged 16-19, a key element of which is the key skill of ICT. In addition, the Department is also supporting a cross college curriculum development project this year to determine the content of a common curriculum for all full-time FE students, including developing ICT Skills.

The Department will consider the place of ICT within the curriculum for full-time students.

Increase funding to the university sector to ensure that high quality staff are attracted and retained, and to develop the research base of the universities. This should include increasing and developing matched private sector funding initiatives such as the Support Programme for University Research (SPUR).

In 2001-02, £1.8m additional funding has been provided to NI universities and university colleges aimed at addressing staff recruitment and retention in higher education institutions. Further funding will be included to sustain the initiative into 2002/03. This additional funding will underpin strategies developed by the institutions to recruit and retain staff. The £40m SPUR initiative, for the period 2001-05, was announced in June 2000 and will aim to develop the universities' research strategies and capacities and their contribution to local economic development. Successful projects were announced in December 2000 following evaluation by an international panel.

This recommendation requires additional resources which can only be sought in the Spending Review.

Further develop links between higher education and business. This includes developing initiatives such as the Teaching Company Scheme; industry and charity sponsored professional chairs; technology incubation units; science parks; spin-off companies; encouraging entrepreneurship through innovative approaches to programme design and specialist postgraduate programmes.

The universities draw on a wide range of public funds for the initiatives covered by the recommendation, including UK funding through DTI and the Research Councils, and through DETI and IRTU. In January 2000, the Department introduced the Higher Reach Out to Business and the Community Fund to encourage the universities to be more responsive to the needs of business and industry. It complements the existing grant for teaching and research, to help recognise the importance of working with business and develop the capability in universities to respond to business needs. Originally, funding of £2.2m was made available to the universities for the academic years 1999/2000 ?/03. This has been supplemented this year by an additional £200k to develop activities already initiated. Both universities are undertaking a range of initiatives under the programme. However, of central importance has been the establishment of an office within each institution which acts as a focus for all collaborative work with industry and the community. As part of its activity, the University of Ulster, during 2000/01, introduced a module in entrepreneurship which was piloted in 3 of its six faculties. It is the University's stated ambition to embed relevant aspects of entrepreneurship in all courses by 2005, and to achieve this, a set of generic learning outcomes, which can be tailored by subject specialists within the respective disciplines, has been identified.

The introduction of Foundation Degrees which are a new, vocationally oriented higher education qualification, is another way in which degree programmes are being integrated with the world of work.

Finally, following the publication last year of a Northern Ireland Economic Council report which was critical of the present system and level of funding, an Interdepartmental Working Group was established to develop a co-ordinated approach to Government's support of research to ensure that the capacity of our universities to contribute to economic development through improved R&D and knowledge transfer is maximised.

It is intended that this strategy will lead to an increase in number of the type of activities listed.

The Department will continue to promote links between HE and industry. This work will also fall to DETI and to DTI, in Whitehall.

A continued increase in the number of university places especially in areas of skill shortages, in line with the Committee's recommendation in its Report on Student Finance, 12 October 2000.

The period 1999 to 2005 will see a marked expansion in HE provision. Some 5,500 additional places (FTE's) will be created through a number of measures. The priorities for the allocation of these places are to increase participation and to meet the skills needs of Northern Ireland.

Included in the 5,500 places are an additional 1,000 higher education places introduced as a result of the Student Support Review. These will be created in the three years, commencing 2002/03, and are intended to widen participation and, in part, to address skill shortages.

Foundation Degree pilots have now commenced. Foundation Degrees are intended to address the skills requirements of the economy at technician and associate professional level. There are 100 Full-Time Equivalent places in 2001/02 and a further 100 FTE places in 2002/03.

An increase of 5,500 in HE places is planned in the period up to 2005. Further expansion would depend on competing public expenditure priorities.

Co-ordination of all initiatives, not only those funded by Government, which aim to increase access to higher education. This should have a particular focus on the outreach projects which link the universities to the community.

The Department is addressing the issue of widening access to higher education through a number of broad policy directions including:

• increasing the number of domestic HE places;
• introducing changes to student support;
• providing funding premia to assist the higher education institutions in widening participation of those from groups which are currently under-represented in the HE sector;
• funding special projects in the universities aimed at promoting their strategies and approaches to making access to HE available to under-represented groups;
• funding the development of a Northern Ireland Credit Accumulation and Transfer System; and
• the investment of £40m of public sector funds in the Springvale Campus project which will considerably enhance the access to third level education of the people of North and West Belfast.

The Department also has an obligation to monitor the impact of the Widening Participation Strategies developed by the HEIs and the success of the institutions in achieving the targets set in the resultant Action Plans.

Widening access is a high Departmental priority. The range of current initiatives will be evaluated in due course.

Monitor the effectiveness and equality impact of the new measures for student financial support.

The Department is working to identify the information requirements and data sources for evaluation.

The Department is committed to completing an evaluation of the new student support arrangements by January 2008 and conducting preliminary assessments in 2004 and 2006.

Further develop partnerships between the education sector and private training providers.

The delivery of Jobskills, through private training providers including employers, relies on a partnership with FE. The Partnership Fund is intended to assist FE colleges establish/strengthen relationships with all key interested parties which might include other education and training providers in both the statutory and private sector.

The Department accepts that a partnership between private training providers and statutory providers is advantageous. Jobskills relies in large part on such partnerships eg in the delivery of the employer led Modern Apprenticeships. The current review of 16-19 review will include consideration of this issue.

An improved, more comprehensive, streamlined and effective National Training Organisation and Sectoral Training Council structure in Northern Ireland to enhance its role in developing a highly skilled workforce.

The national response to a consultation exercise on the future of NTO's is being published. Consultation with the sectors in NI underway.

Agreed. Building on the work of a national policy on sector development, agreed in UK and devolved administrations, the Department is consulting, locally, on the interface between UK-wide sector organisations and NI infrastructures.

Continuously monitor and develop Modern Apprenticeships to meet changing labour demands.

Modern Apprenticeships will be reviewed in the light of our working experience and the recent review of Modern Apprenticeships in England by Sir John Cassells.

Agreed. In the light of the recent review of Modern Apprenticeships by Sir John Cassells the Department will review experience in Northern Ireland.

Continuously monitor, evaluate and improve New Deal so that it achieves its employment outcomes in the most cost-effective manner. We welcome the Needs and Effectiveness Evaluation of Training and Vocational Education initiated by the Northern Ireland Executive. We also welcome the inter-departmental TaskForce on Employability and Long-term Unemployment. The Committee further recommends that the Department considers other training schemes, which would better address the equal opportunities issues surrounding the availability of training.

• Publication of two New Deal evaluation reports detailing the results of a survey of 1560 New Deal participants.
• Ongoing implementation of the enhanced New Deal 25+ programme (introduced 9 April 2001).
• Taking forward the recommendation of the Basic Skills Working Group and the Multiple Barriers Working Group.
• Commencement of New Deal 18 to 24 review.
• Introduction of a self-employment route within the New Deal for Lone Parents.
• Introduction of the Focus for Work programme on 1 October 2001.

The Department has an extensive programme of evaluation into the effectiveness, efficiency and equity of the New Deal initiatives which informs the development and delivery of the New Deal programmes. Two reports detailing the results of the first stage of a major independent survey of over 1,500 New Deal participants were published on 15 November 2001.

Following a wide-ranging consultation exercise an enhanced New Deal 25+ programme was introduced on 9 April 2001 with improvements at every stage of New Deal participation. The Department is taking forward the recommendations of the Basic Skills Working Group and the Multiple Barriers Working Group. These include the use of a Basic Skills Tool Kit which was recently introduced to assist Personal Advisers identify basic skills indicators and the implementation of standard assessment arrangements to be used by Basic Skills providers.

The Department is also committed to a Continuous Improvement policy in relation to the New Deal initiatives. This policy has previously resulted in the decrease in the number of administration forms and the introduction of short accredited vocational training courses. A review of the New Deal for 18-24 year olds programme, which will include consultation with interested parties, has recently commenced.

Following an internal review of the Department's provision for unemployed adults the Focus for Work programme was introduced in October 2001. Focus for Work is a voluntary programme open to both benefit and non-benefit recipients which includes provision for training (Training for Work) lasting up to 26 weeks leading to accredited qualifications.

It is expected that Training for Work will particularly appeal to returners to the labour market, most of whom will be women as entry is not based on receipt of Jobseeker's Allowance or any Social Security benefit.

Support the continuing development of the Northern Ireland Credit Accumulation and Transfer System (NICATS) initiative.

The Department continues to support the development of the Northern Ireland Credit Accumulation and Transfer System. The Department is funding three separate NICATS projects as follows:

(i) the development of the specifications for the NI credit framework and how to embed credit within the NI further and higher education curriculum;

(ii) the assignment of credit equivalence amounts to qualifications, and their constituent units, included within the QCA National Qualifications Framework; and

(iii) research into the architecture of a credit-based funding system and the capacity of the institutions to manage data and to track students within such a system.

The Department is supportive of the NICATS project.

Include International industry-standard qualifications as components of vocational qualifications

Occupational standards which give rise to NVQs and which reflect industry's needs are set at UK level. Many of the current Higher National Diplomas/Certificates include qualifications such as ECDL or MOUS.

The Department agrees that vocational qualifications should reflect the needs of industry.

Facilitate an inter-departmental focus to ensure parity of esteem for vocational and academic qualifications.

The Department supports improving not only parity of esteem between the vocational and the academic, but also widening choice and encouraging young people to be able to mix the academic and the vocational. For this reason the Department supports Curriculum 2000, which puts in place a qualification infrastructure which not only clearly demonstrates the parity of qualifications, but also provides opportunities for young people to experience and undertake programmes of study that allow greater depth and variety.

This is an area where there are number of important reviews underway including a review of post 16 provision in FE and training and the Post-Primary Review. The Department will engage actively with DE and CCEA to explore this issue further. (See also recommendations 4 and 9.)

The Department will engage actively with DE and CCEA in the forthcoming year and will take forward its own review of the provision for 16-19 year olds.

Initiate and fund, as a matter of urgency, a research project to evaluate the three types of qualifications.

The NI Council for Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment is currently undertaking a review of Curriculum 2000. The Inspectorate is also currently evaluating the outcomes of Curriculum 2000. The review of 16-19 provision will also provide the Department with information about the range of qualifications available across the three pathways.

As part of the review of 16-19 provision, the inspection and CCEA's evaluation, the Department will evaluate the need to initiate further research to evaluate the three types of qualifications.

In principle, the Committee supports the UK Skills Task Force recommendation that learning to level 3 (craft/technician level) should be free of charge to all up until their twenty-fifth birthday, and asks the Department to provide costings in order to determine its feasibility.

The Department requires all colleges to remit fees for all students undertaking a full-time FE course who are aged under 19 on 1 July for the academic year.

In addition, following on from the review of student support arrangements, the Department recently issued guidance on students aged 19 and over on full-time FE vocational courses eligible for tuition fee, course registration and examination fee remission.

The Department is also co-operating with PIU Cabinet Office on a study of workforce development which is addressing this issue.

The Department already has in place policies in relation to fee remission for full-time students aged under 19 and full-time students aged 19 and over on vocational FE courses.

The UK recommendation is the subject of a review of workforce development in the UK to which the Department is contributing. Following publication of the initial report, the Department can consider how best to address further the issue in Northern Ireland.

Continue to develop the Individual Learning Accounts scheme with greater targeting and financial support for those in most need without creating excessive administrative costs.

ILAs have been suspended.

Agreed. ILAs are currently under review and the Assembly Committee recommendations will be fully taken into account.

The Committee supports the further development of initiatives to assist with childcare and those with educational special needs and disabilities in order to facilitate increased access to all education and training.

Significant action has already been taken by the Department to improve the rights of and access by those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (SLDD) to education and training. These include:

• Article 13(2) of the Further Education (NI) Order 1997 sets out the statutory obligation placed upon the FE sector to have regard to the requirements of SLDD students and as a condition of grant each college must also publish a disability statement.
• In April 2001, at the recommendation of the Minister, the tertiary education sector institutions were designated as public authorities under Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 placing upon them a statutory duty to promote equality of opportunity between identified priority groups including persons with a disability.
• In addition, the Department, in conjunction with the Department of Education, is taking forward the Special Education Needs and Disability Bill in NI. The new legislation will introduce enforceable rights for SLDD students in education on a par with the rest of the UK in order to protect them from unfair discrimination.
• A broad range of policy initiatives are already in place designed to promote access including increased financial weightings for SLDD students; additional funding for necessary support functions; and advice on good practice in addressing SLDD students' needs.
• DEL also provides core funding for SKILL (NI): the National Bureau for Students with Disabilities in support of its activities in relation to the development, co-ordination and provision of information on opportunities and provision for SLDD students.
• Colleges have utilised funding available under the Access Fund to test out innovative approaches to widening access from a range of groups with proposals that address the identified needs of under represented groups including SLDD students.
• The Department has secured additional funding of £3.0m in the current financial year and a further £2.0m in 2002/03 that will enable Higher and Further Education Institutions to improve physical access for disabled persons.

In March this year the Minister announced a package of proposals following the Review of Student Finance in Northern Ireland. One of the main recommendations was the introduction of a childcare grant worth up to £114.75 per week for one child or £170 per week for two or more children for students on low incomes with dependant children.

Widening access to and increasing participation in further and higher education is a key departmental aim with a particular focus on students with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (SLDD). A wide range of interventions are already in place and will be supplemented by the introduction of the forthcoming Special Education Needs and Disability Bill being taken forward in conjunction with the Department of Education.

The Department must give priority to the implementation of an enhanced independent, comprehensive and up-to-date careers education and guidance service based on best practice and extensive use of Information and Communication Technology.

In response to the recommendation in Strategy 2010 that: "the current system of careers guidance should be enhanced", this Department and the Department of Education commissioned a review of careers education and guidance chaired by Professor Sean Fulton of Queens University Belfast. The review group concluded its initial report in February 2001 and both Departments have asked Professor Fulton to conduct additional research in four key areas namely: (a) guidance in the FE Sector; (b) comparative study of UK guidance services; (c) use of ICT in guidance; and (d) the role of the Careers Service. The Report has been submitted to DEL and DE and is, currently, under consideration. It is anticipated that the Report's recommendations will fully complement the essence of this recommendation (36).

The Department's Careers Service is currently negotiating with the University of Ulster (Magee) to introduce the new Qualification in Careers Guidance (QCG) from September 2002. This will play a significant role in addressing the difficulties experienced by Careers Service in recruiting suitably qualified guidance professionals.

The Department's Careers Service is currently implementing the Guidance Council. DfES Quality Standards to enhance careers guidance service delivery.

The Department's Careers Occupational Information Unit has introduced its careers information onto the Training and Employment Agency's website. This is a first step towards a more extensive use of ICT in Careers Guidance.

The Department welcomes the recommendation and will await the outcomes of the Review of Careers Education and Guidance before building on existing policy actions to meet the challenge of implementing an enhanced guidance service. Funding implications may have to be considered in the Spending Review.

Greater work related experiences for all teachers, students and lecturers for substantive periods based on the Northern Ireland Business and Education Partnership (NIBEP) model.

Increase funding to NIBEP in order that it can further its work in developing links between business and education.

NIBEP is now sponsored by three Departments, namely Department for Employment and Learning (DEL), Department of Education (DE) and Department for Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI).

This year's budget allocation for NIBEP has been increased significantly (to £461k) by this Department to assist NIBEP in developing its business plan activities.

All three sponsoring Departments are currently working closely with NIBEP to secure European funding to extend NIBEP's remit and activity range.

The Department welcomes the recommendations but notes the appreciation of the current constraints on public sector finances. The Department is committed, with the other sponsoring Departments, to securing adequate funding to develop this important area of work.

Urgent completion and effective implementation, at the inter-departmental level, of the Research, Development and Innovation Strategy for Northern Ireland.

DEL is participating in an Inter-departmental Working Group established to develop a Research, Development and Innovation Strategy for Northern Ireland. A commitment to produce, by March 2002, the NI strategy with supporting individual Departmental strategies, is contained in the Programme for Government.

The Department supports this recommendation and will seek to work, cross-departmentally, towards the completion and effective implementation of the Strategy's recommendations.

Substantial funding increases for Research and Development (R&D) to counteract the current and previous low levels of financial support in comparison to our international competitors. Whilst the majority of university R&D funding should be linked to the university Research Assessment Exercise, 10% as recommended by the Northern Ireland Economic Council, should be earmarked for research that is of particular relevance to Northern Ireland.

A review of the Department's policy in respect of R&D in the universities is nearing completion. It is likely that the outcome of this review will point towards the bulk of the Department's funding continuing to be used on the maintenance and improvement of the universities' research base, and determined largely by quality.

The Department recently bid for £4.5m additional funding for University research from Executive Programme Funds and sought a similar amount from budget 2002/03. Both bids failed.

There is a sense, however, from this recommendation that the onus for increasing Northern Ireland's R&D spend for economic growth lies with the public sector. Public sector R&D may benefit from further funding, but an enterprise economy is ultimately built on private sector R&D. While the recommendation raises the important issue of under-funding in public sector R&D comparative to other regions, the private sector's poor record in contributing to the R&D spend in Northern Ireland is also a pressing problem.

Additional funding for university R&D is subject to competing priorities and can only be raised in the Spending Review.

Establish a single unit to co-ordinate and promote government funded R&D in Northern Ireland, including individual bids for Research and Development for all government departments, and develop well-designed research collaboration and technology transfer schemes with other countries.

This will be considered in the current inter-Departmental consideration of the Research and Development and Innovation Strategy for Northern Ireland.

This will be a matter for the Executive as a whole.

Implementation of a clear structure to give academic staff sufficient incentives and flexibility to take research ideas, and even company start-ups, to commercial fruition.

This will be a matter for the HE sector across the United Kingdom. The Department is not involved in determining pay, conditions or academic structures within HE. The Department will, however, monitor the issue.

This will be a matter for the United Kingdom HE sector as a whole.

The Department for Enterprise, Trade and Investment to match, at least in part, any research funding raised by higher education from the private sector through business-university links, as an incentive to promoting closer links between higher education and industry.

DETI, through IRTU, already provides significant project-based funding for University research. DEL is exploring with DETI, as the NI counterpart of DTI, the scope to match/complement DEL funding for initiatives such as HEROBC which happens in England but not in NI.

The Recommendation is similar in principle to the Support Programme for University Research (SPUR), a £40m public/private partnership programme, over the period 2001-05, announced last June which will aim to develop the universities' research strategies and capacities and their contribution to local economic development.

Additional funding of this kind is a matter for DETI.