Recommendation 23

In January 2021, we reported on the financial sustainability of the college sector.34 Our report emphasised that colleges play a crucial role in developing the knowledge and skills the country needs, and in reaching disadvantaged groups and deprived areas.35 In giving evidence on workforce skills, DfE told us that people in FE colleges were often motivated by a mission to give opportunity to those who had not necessarily had access to it before and noted that the support that colleges provided could be life-changing for students.36