| “…as the sector is liberalised, colleges and other providers are being asked to become more effective advocates for their own value beyond the narrow boundaries of ‘plan and provide’.” “The change is most dramatic at local level…Directly elected mayors, where they become established parts of the new landscape, may disrupt arrangements further, or may bring fresh opportunities to press the case for learning and skills.” “The departure of RDAs and the Skills Funding Agency’s reduced role in regional development relative to its predecessor leave intelligence and leadership gaps.” “…partnerships are now transitioning to, or aligning themselves with Local Enterprise Partnerships.” “The part of the economy changing most quickly and profoundly is the public sector.” “Social productivity is a fresh approach to policy and practice that can give practitioners and policymakers the means to make sense of the change around them, and begin shaping new realities on the ground.” “It is an approach that puts engagement, co-production and civic responsibility at the heart of public services – creating sustainable systems that build social capacity, foster community resilience, and work with the grain of people’s lives.” “Spending cuts create incentives for citizen entrepreneurialism, participation and engagement – with further education as the local hubs.” “Consolidation leads to bottom-up collaboration and integration around the needs of citizens and communities.” “LEPs allow more locally-responsive growth strategies, with the potential for local further education providers to co-create and incubate. “Competition, transparency and market forces provide new incentives for further education providers to understand the needs of citizens.” “Outcome commissioning and fewer central strings enable further education to take a more active role in providing space for local entrepreneurialism and integration. Elected mayors begin to create bottom-up policy coherence.” Change in education policy incentivise flexible learning, integrated provision and new forms of collaboration between local institutions.” | 