Learning and Skills Council Lincolnshire and Rutland Maggie Freeman Diversity Manager

The Vision ‘To create a learning society in which everyone has the opportunity to go as far as their talents and efforts will take them’

The National Remit  The Learning and Skills Act 2000 requires the LSC to have due regard to the need to promote equality of opportunity between:  People from different racial groups  Men and women  People with a disability and people without

The National Remit  The LSC must also report nationally to the secretary of state on:  What equality arrangements it has made during the preceding year  How effective the equality arrangements were  Equality plans for the following year

Disability  Disabled people are seven times more likely to be out of work and on benefits compared to non disabled people  The long term unemployment rate for disabled people is double that of people without a disability  Disabled people are twice as likely to have no qualifications than non-disabled people  18% of total UK population of working age have a long-term health problem or disability (LFS 1999)

Access to Good Quality Provision  FEFC data shows that in 1998/9 nearly 175,00 students out of a total of 3.5million indicated a learning difficulty or disability  Provision has improved significantly since the introduction of Further and Higher Education Act 1992 However  Inspection grades show provision for students with LDD is of lower quality than that for other learners  Provision varies significantly between colleges

 Local LSC designated senior member of staff with responsibility for LLDD  Regular audit of provision and support for learners with LDD  Audit proportion of learners in post 16 learning with a disability and/or learning difficulty  Work with Learning Partnerships to improve access to post 16 provision  Ensure and advise on compliance with disability legislation

 Ensure that all providers address the needs of learners with LDD in line with CIF  Promote ‘Inclusive Learning’ in line with quality standards in the Tomlinson Report  Encourage collaboration and share and promote good practice  Ensure the provider base is capable of providing quality provision for LLDD  Utilise the outcomes of assessments under section 140 of the LSA to plan provision

Provision for under- represented groups  Those with profound and complex learning difficulties  Young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties  Adults with mental health difficulties

Work Experience Arrangements  Monitoring arrangements to assess the extent to which learners with LDD are able to benefit from work experience placements  Work with partners (schools, DfES, LSDA and AoC) to develop good practice guidance to providers  Local LSCs work with providers to develop and share best practice

Transition  Work with other agencies to ensure progression routes post FE  Distinguish between learners genuinely requiring extended FE and working towards defined learning goals, and those whose placement is merely extended because there is no future placement

Boarding Accommodation  Secure and fund specialist residential provision for those young people who need it  Ensure there is adequate specialist residential provision available to meet the requirements of those young people who need it

Levers  Power to attach conditions to funding:  Provider Disability statements  DDA Act  Special Educational Needs and Disability Act  Common Inspection Framework  Provider review process

Local Priorities  Availability and quality of local provision  High proportion of learners enter residential specialist provision  Lower proportion of funding used for additional support in FE  Appropriate flexible provision for learners with mental health problems  Opportunities for employment for people with disabilities  Provision for learners with EBD

Recommendations 2000/2001 Local Lsc Area Number of students * FIGURES TAKEN FROM THE LLDD DATABASE OCT 2001

Additional Support 2000/ M7% Northamptonshire 49 M6% Leicestershire 24 M5% Lincolnshire/Rutland 85 M9% Nottinghamshire 45 M8% Derbyshire Funding *Approx percentage Local LSC area *does not include higher education institutions Approximate % of additional support units:

Implementing the strategy l Mainstream Equality throughout our policies, programmes and actions l Local strategy for Equality and Diversity (published April 2002) l Multi agency equality advisory group l LDD liaison group (not yet convened) l Internal cross function Diversity Action Team l Provider review l Partnership working

Partners l Connexions Lincolnshire and Rutland l Providers l Learning Disabilities Partnership Boards l Best Value for Children with Disabilities steering group l Social Services l Health l Welfare to Work l Local Education Authorities l Business Link l Employers and employer organisations l Voluntary and statutory organisations l Etc.

Publications l Equality in practice – a guide to mainstreaming (LSC July 2001) l Guidance on meeting the needs of learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (DfEE March 2001) l National Equality and Diversity Strategy (LSC March 2002) l Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2002 (LSC March 2002) l Finding Out About People’s Disabilities – a guide for FE&HE (DfES 2002) l Providing Work Placements for Disabled Students – a good practice guide for FE&HE (DfES 2002) l Local LSC strategies l