Standards Fund 2002-03

1. The Learning and Skills Council Standards Fund 2002-03

2. Learning and Skills Standards Fund August 2002-July 2003 FUNDING STREAMS • Local Standards Fund • Investment Fund • National Priorities Fund

3. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 Stream 1 LOCAL STANDARDS FUND • the majority of the National Standards Fund, which will be distributed to local Councils • Local Councils will allocate funding for quality improvement from the Local Standards Fund

4. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 LOCAL STANDARDS FUND • funds will contribute to funding development plans to address: • organisational development needs • national and local priorities

5. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 • and enable local Councils to: • support pre and post inspection activity • support improvement action identified from performance review • provide funding to support new initiatives e.g. CoVE development prior to approval • identification and dissemination of good practice locally

6. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 NATIONAL PRIORITIES • raising learners’ achievement • improving teaching and learning • improving skills in teaching and learning in basic adult literacy, numeracy and ESOL • improving skills in leadership and management • encouraging local collaboration between sectors • improving quality assurance systems and continuous improvement

7. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 TARGET SETTING • use of the standards fund must be linked to measurable targets and outcomes over and above those which would be achieved with core funding • local Councils will agree with providers improvement targets linked to the provision of standards funding

8. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 Targets may include: • participation • retention • achievement at levels 1, 2 and 3 • HE progression • basic skills • completion of learning goals • process targets e.g. learner satisfaction, lesson observation

9. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 Targets without benchmarks: • local Councils and providers to agree an outcome target • baseline data will be collected during 2002-03 so that benchmarks can be developed for these areas

10. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 • Development Planning • use the suite of documents and the systems that exist within the organisation; • e.g. strategic plan, operating plans, business plan, development plan, action plan, MI systems to provide an updated development plan or a top line targeted plan for 2002/2003

11. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 Stream 2 THE INVESTMENT FUND • A proportion of the standards fund will be held nationally for local Councils to address particular initiatives • area inspection • CoVE • significant weaknesses • recognising and sharing excellence nationally

12. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 Stream 3 NATIONAL PRIORITIES FUND • a small proportion of the standards fund held at national office for government and national priorities: • training and development for black managers and staff in FE colleges • senior management training • dissemination of good practice to address specific regional, sectoral and national issues • further development of BSQI • RQA programme (LSDA)

13. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS • 30% in the period August - December 2002 • 30% in the period January - March 2003 • 40% in the period April – July 2003.

14. Learning and Skills Standards Fund 2002-03 NEXT STEPS • indicative allocations for Work Based Learning following agreement of contracts • allocation of Funding end of July • feedback from the consultation exercise for annual standards fund cycle • indicative allocations for 2003-04 and 2004-05