West Midlands Centre for Excellence in Teacher Training
Management Meeting
Wednesday, 11 January 2012, University House, University of Warwick
Attendees:
Fergus McKay (Chair)
Julie Chamberlain
Elaine Goodall
Margaret Hunter
Vron Leslie
Barbara Parkinson
Anne Schofield
Mike Smith
FM introduced Barbara Parkinson from the Third sector consultancy group Clever Elephant. We had
worked with Clever Elephant on the Regional Response Fund project, and were planning to continue
to do some work with them.
1.
Apologies
Jill Hardman sent apologies. FM said he wanted to send best wishes to her and hoped we would see
her again soon at a Management Meeting.
2.
Minutes of Management Meeting, 26 September, 2011
These were accepted as correct.
3
Matters arising
There were no matters arising.
4
Chair’s update
FM talked about the Regional Response Fund project and how WMCETT had set up Change Exchange
networks to bring providers together to look at how the scene has changed. This included looking at
the role of the new LEPs, how they were all very different and how FE often did not feel it was
represented. BIS Local, the SFA and Jobcentre Plus had also been involved, and he said Susie Knight
and Jill Hardman had done a wonderful job to bring it together. The findings of all the RRF projects
had been presented at a meeting at the Technocentre in Coventry. FM said he hoped something else
may come out of the project. It had enabled WMCETT to deviate from teacher training to teaching
and training.
BP said people had welcomed the opportunity to get together and talk. FM said the SFA
representatives who attended had been able to report back on people’s comments on the changes in
the service. MS said some LEPs were run by entrepreneurs and others by councils which made it a
difficult situation.
There had been a national CETT meeting in December co-hosted by the IfL and LSIS. There was a
review of the IfL role. The IfL and LSIS appeared to be working closer together. LSIS had been given
the responsibility of looking at how to revamp teacher training and it was highly unlikely it would be
protected. It was likely there would be some bursaries through IfL in 2012 but then the HE fees
would apply. FM said it would have a devastating effect on the sector. LSIS was reviewing how
teacher training was carried out and it was likely to cost more for the providers and students.
MS said the changes would cost too much for the Third Sector to afford, and MH added that it would
cut down movement between the sectors. EG said people were still contacting her to find out how
they could pay for their fees.
FM said WMCETT was working with Joe Harkin from Oxford Brookes University on a teaching HE in FE
CPD qualification. WMCETT was also being asked to do some more work by LSIS and the IfL in the
next couple of months.
5
Business plan and current activities
AS – there was funding from the IfL for another conference in March. There was also funding to put
together two-three meetings with groups of people responsible for staff development. She was
hoping to work with Kim Cook of HWSTPA to hold one of those events to focus on CPD. MS
suggested it might be better to do it in the West Midlands region rather than just Herefordshire and
Worcestershire. The IfL also wanted to get groups of IfL members together to discuss CPD.
FM asked about if the number of people gaining A/QTLS was growing each tear, and AS said it had
gone up from 300 to 1,100 and then 1,700. But some institutions were still ignoring the need for
people to get it. EG said some people were dropping out of training courses because they had lost
their jobs.
AS said the UCU was still advising people not to join or pay the IfL.
EG –the ESRC was being asked to be a lead provider for skills for LSIS, and had another six training
days lined up. It would also hold a skills conference but this would now be after March. Staff
providing IAG were finding it hard because of the uncertainties around the funding arrangements
and bursaries.
MH –Warwickshire County Council ACL had had a restructure and she was having a meeting with
John Hunt to look at how we could work together. WCAVA wanted to do more CPD with WMCETT
but it was a question of money. BP said Community First’s training agenda was about
personalisation, and they were also worrying about money.
BP – told the meeting about case studies undertaken by Clever Elephant looking at the range of
training done by third sector organisations, from helping individuals to Voluntary Action Stoke on
Trent doing high-end management skills for managers of voluntary sector organisations. She said in
Birmingham entrepreneurial young people had been linked up with voluntary sector organisations to
gain experience on their boards. She also talked about the work of Green Hat social enterprise and
the BEST network consortium of 70 members. The new minimum contract requirements meant
people would have to get together to bid.
VL – said the latest WMCOP bulletin had come out at the end of November, and since 1 December
there had been 1,130 page views. The next one was about to come out.
VL said the HEIs in the Midlands wanted to continue the HEI Forum and the Professional Dialogue
seminars, along with JISC and the ESRC, and Anne Schofield representing the IfL. The programme for
a Professional Dialogue seminar on 3 February on the revised CTLLS/DTLLS standards was due out the
following week.
A bid had been put in to LSIS to run a Teaching and Learning pilot.
MS – said it had been a period of extensive realignment because of changes in institutions and
changes of staff. It meant trying to re-establish relationships and a tier of management at
organisations such as the SFA had gone. There was a bit gap between the operational people and
people at the top.
There was a new DTLLS course starting in February, but some people were not committing to it
because they were worried about their future. FM asked if some work-based learning organisations
were going out of business. MS said colleges had bought some out.
MS said higher apprenticeships had really taken off and were being delivered by private providers
across a wide spectrum of areas, with some FE and some work-based learning providers, with the HE
element accredited by HE institutions. He wondered if there were enough people qualified to teach
at that level. Rather than having specialist teacher trainers there were generalists.
JC – reported that the first WMCETT e-newsletter had gone out before Christmas and she had
written the copy and taken the pictures for it, and it was designed by Michelle Collett in CLL. It was a
lot cheaper than a printed newsletter, but meant we did not have anything to give out at events. We
were still waiting to hear about our bid to go on the LSIS Lead Provider Register, which had been put
in on 3 January. Our next board meeting was taking place on February 7.
6
Any other business
There was none.
7
Next meeting
The date for the next meeting was set for Monday, 14 May at 10.30am, at committee room 1.3 at
University House, University of Warwick.