Three more areas of England are to gain control of their adult education budgets in devolution deals announced in the chancellor’s budget however, there was no new investment for FE. The chancellor’s Spring Budget emphasised substantial reductions in taxes, except for VAT for colleges – but minimal in public expenditure, with no further revenue funding to help colleges and providers deal with rising pressures. He also announced a “public sector productivity plan” aimed at making public services including education more efficient, but did not detail how this would affect schools and colleges. Click here for more.
