Unions slam loans scheme

Government plans to press ahead with a loans scheme for further education (FE) students over the age of 24 have been strongly criticised by the TUC.

General secretary Brendan Barber said the proposals “will lead to a major drop-off of adult learning in the further education sector. An estimated 100,000 fewer learners per year will benefit at a time when skills development is more important than ever to rebuilding the economy and people’s lives”.

Unionlearn, the learning and skills arm of the TUC, has concerns about the impact on adult apprenticeships “where unscrupulous employers and agencies may seek to reduce costs at the expense of their apprentices”. It is calling on the government to “smooth the path” for employers to bear the brunt of the reduced subsidies for adult apprenticeships.

Unionlearn also wants the government to revisit proposals for all employers to bear the full liability for the cost of college provision, with the development of a loans service for smaller employers.

Tom Wilson, director of Unionlearn, said it was essential that the move to FE loans “does not impact on apprentices, whose training should continue to be paid for by their employers”.