Stourbridge College development under threat

Further Education Minister, Sion Simon, admitted this week that Further Education colleges could go bust due to the freezing of the Government’s bungled college building scheme.

144 colleges, including Stourbridge College, have had vital building projects frozen. Plans which has the virtual go ahead last Autumn have been on hold all year and the uncertainty and delays are likely to run in to the Summer with some colleges facing significant financial losses.

Margot James, Conservative Party Candidate for Stourbridge said: “The sheer incompetence of the Government with regard to education is extraordinary. No wonder Dudley Council have been so concerned about whether the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) money will ever materialise.”

The Government has known about the crisis since November, but ministers consistently denied there was a problem. John Denham claimed as recently as January that ‘there is no freeze in that spending programme’.

In response, the Shadow Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, David Willetts said:

“Sion Simon’s comments show that the Government clearly hasn’t got a grip on the situation. We have minutes to prove that departmental officials attended meetings where the funding crisis was discussed, and that there were serious concerns about the programme as far back as October.

“Now 144 colleges have had their building projects frozen, millions of pounds have been lost, and some institutions are facing bankruptcy. Yet the Minister offered no reassurance that the Government would ensure the colleges’ survival, and just passed the buck to the Learning and Skills Council. This is not acceptable.”