Recommendation 8

Financial pressures are affecting provision for students. They have caused some colleges to narrow their curriculum and reduce the length of courses. Some FE colleges have significantly reduced enrichment activities for students, such as careers advice and employability activities, and some are particularly concerned about reduced mental health support for students.13 The Department told us that colleges had been good at prioritising support, and supporting vulnerable students was important to them. It acknowledged, however, that colleges had had to make difficult choices during challenging times, and that it was important for it to remain alive to these issues. The ESFA said that it was looking at students’ experience of being supported and trying to understand their perspectives.14 Pension costs