Post 19 learning provision

The voluntary and community sector provides a diverse range of adult learning and skills activities:

• Information, advice and giudance
• Foundation learning curriculum
• Skills for life
• Employment support
• Priority qualifications
• Workforce and community development

• Informal adult learning

The new Skills Funding Agency follows on from the LSC

The Skills Funding Agency is an agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The Chief Executive of Skills Funding is a civil servant and a statutory post holder personally reporting to the BIS Permanent Secretary. This model replaces the Skills Funding Agency at a 'shorter arm's length' from BIS, allowing a fast and effetcive response to policy, while reinforcing the autonomy of the FE sector. The Skills Funding Agency will include:

• National Apprenticeship Service (NAS) - which will have responsibility for the apprenticeship programme;
• Employer Skills Services - a national skills service to all sizes of business in all sectors via Train to Gain and the National Employer Service;
• Learner Skills Services - including an Adult Advancement and Careers Service, Skills Accounts, FE college and provider based funding, integrated empoyment and skills services for the unemployed, offender learning, informal adult learning etc.

With the transfer of funding for informal adult learning (IAL) from the LSC to the local level all local authorities are invited to become Lead Accountable Bodies - co-ordinating, planning and funding IAL in their locality - making it vital that local support and development organisations take up this opportunity to support their local authority.

To access further information about funding opportunities with the Skills Funding Agency the TSNLA briefing is very useful.

There is also the presentation from the Skills Funing Agency at the TSNLA 'Meet the New Agencies' event.