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Union fears over lecturers’ jobs
Bill Jones
MORE than 200 lecturers’ jobs are set to be axed at further education colleges across South Yorkshire as managers struggle to cope with swingeing funding cuts, union leaders have warned.
But the University and College Union fears this is ‘the thin end of the wedge’ as other colleges have yet to announce how they will cope with budget cuts.
Industrial action has hit Barnsley College, where 70 posts are under threat.
Sheffield College has announced plans to cut 121 posts while Rotherham College of Arts and Technology said 46 jobs would need to go.
But Doncaster College believes no large job losses are required to balance its books.
UCU regional official John Giddins said they had identified up to 398 potential job cuts from nine Yorkshire colleges.
He said: “As these job cuts so far come from less than a third of the colleges in Yorkshire I could see the overall number getting toward 1,000 after September when colleges know how many students they have recruited and how this has affected funding.”
College bosses at Barnsley and Sheffield said the majority of cuts had come through voluntary redundancies or redeployment. Rotherham College declined to comment.
Barnsley College principal Colin Booth said it was recruiting staff in other areas and staffing levels would remain ‘about the same’.
Further education colleges face cuts to funding for both 16 to 19-year-olds and adults while around 27,000 adult learners in Yorkshire are set to lose their right to free education from September.
Adult education funding has been hit by a 25 per cent cut over three years. The cuts have left Sheffield College facing a budget reduction of £4 million compared with its income in 2010/11.
College executive director of planning and performance Bill Jones said it would now be charging for courses such as English for speakers of other languages which it had run free for many students.
The sector is also facing a massive cut with the removal of the Education Maintenance Allowance - a payment of up to £30 a week to support students from deprived backgrounds to stay in education.
The £560m fund has been scrapped and replaced with the Learner Support Fund, worth £180m this year.
Mr Jones said: “The fund is meant to guarantee support to the most deprived students and let colleges decide how to award the rest but we fear the level of demand from the most deprived students will take up all our allocation.”
Mr Booth said Barnsley College was receiving £410,000 through the new fund compared with the £2.3 million it got through the EMA.
He said the college was topping up the scheme with more than £200,000 from its own budget.
He said: “We are offering what we consider to be the bare minimum and the money from Government doesn’t cover it.”
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Comments
There are 14 comments to this article
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serendipity
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 05:10 PMOur education system needs to get back to basics, with an emphasis on literacy and numeracy skills and grants being given to people on courses that will enable them to get a useful job at the end of it. Large numbers of school leavers are semi-literate and semi-numerate, making them no use nor ornament. As other people have said, money is being wasted on ridiculous courses when we have a shortage of skilled workers.
horseman of the apocalypse
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 05:02 PM"College executive director of planning and performance Bill Jones said it would now be charging for courses such as English for speakers of other languages which it had run free for many students." ABOUT TIME, let them go home and study.
Sir Taxedalot
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 04:51 PMAm I missing something? Universities that provide academic degrees are having their funding cut but can make it back up again by charging higher fees. FE colleges who provide technical skills are having their funding cut but can't charge to make up the shorfall. I thought the country was short of skilled people to make things and service things without having to bring in overseas nationals. I wasn't aware there was any shortage of lawyers, politicians or doctors. I've heard people complaining about not being able to get a good plumber but I've never heard anyone complain they can't find an ambulance chasing lawyer.
Jimmy Wang
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 03:33 PMHe's got the happy look on his face of a man that's just had his first figging
Reason
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 01:01 PM#3 - Oh, and what collegeuniversity did you go to you muppet?...the abbreviation of 'they are' is 'they're'. #5 - So right. #9 - Just like you do I suppose ?
ISeeEverything
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 12:36 PMCollege executives should keep their political views to themselves.
PaulSheffield
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 12:24 PM@6 Yup we are just far too short of people with skills in "Underwater Basket Weaving" or at Stafford University a degree in wait for it.................."David Beckham Studies" or "Tarot Card Reading" .... Brighton and Hove Yeah we are desperate for someone with a degree in "The Beatles" absolute joke Now that they are being charged 9 grand a year they might think twice about doing a real degree one where it will actually help them get a job at the end of it ....
citygirl
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 11:24 AMNo 6: FE cuts started prior to Tory policy.
PoorRighteousTeacher
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 11:17 AMEnd result of Tory policy is less poor people getting an education. Shocker.
citygirl
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 11:02 AMThink comments 1 to 3 need to read article again. It is talking about lecturers jobs going in the FE (Further education) sector not HE (higher education). If money is not available for the FE pot that does not necessarily mean there will be money available for other pots. Remember there are few 6th forms in South Yorkshire and now with promised cuts where do our young people and adults get their training. Yes, there are more private trainers than there were a few years ago but they do not give individuals the same opportunity to train in their own time. Without FE funding students will not gain A levels and the qualifications they need to progress into HE and good degrees. I, however, agree with the comment that there are many nonsense degrees offered at HE but that is a different story to this article.
Jimmy Wang
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 10:59 AMBack to work, lest Skipper sets his hawks on you!
waywoodwind
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 10:14 AMWill we miss them ,,, after all their only lefties living in a bygone era believing society owes them a living
doggtheveryspecialdeputy
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 08:48 AMGot to agree to a large 'degree' there Paul. There are thousands student going to Uni because their mates are, with no idea to what they actually want to do.....David Beckham studies, Surfing studies, Ufology, Football Studies, American Studies for some of these all important government funded courses not to mention.....wait for it................Bowling Alley Management....sign me up, much better spent on that than because our rucksacks that fell to pieces in afghan were fine really.....
PaulSheffield
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 08:11 AMExcellent more proof that the cuts are working maybe we will eventually get enough money together to pay for road repairs, keep care homes open, front line police and the other core services we need instead of churning out more students with "degrees in Nonsense" which we don't need...
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