One of the most significant developments that has impacted on the numbers of students in London progressing to HE has been the introduction of higher fees in 2012, and the effects of this on London students can be seen in this report. To provide a reference for the findings in this report, the following timeline has been compiled: Year Policy developments 1997 Dearing Report published recommending the development of Other Undergraduate programmes in FE Colleges 2003 Foundation Degree Forward (FdF) established to promote Foundation degrees set up in 2001/2 2004 University fees rise to £3,000 pa Aimhigher set up to increase widening participation Office for Fair Access (OFFA) set up to monitor fair access to higher education 2005 First Lifelong Learning Networks (LLNs) set up to improve progression to higher education for vocational students National Student Survey begins 2006 Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) Consultation on HE in FE Colleges published Train to Gain starts Advanced Vocational Certificate of Education (AVCE) qualifications end Leitch Report published Supporting Professionalism in Admissions (SPA) set up 2007 Department for Innovation Universities and Skills set up World Class Skills – Implementing the Leitch Review of Skills published 2008 Equivalent or Lower Qualifications (ELQ) policy introduced Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) established Connexions services transferred to Local Authorities 14-19 Diplomas start Start of economic recession Start of decline in part-time HE numbers 2009 Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) set up National Apprenticeship Service set up Many LLNs close HEFCE request for HE Strategies from FE Colleges Unleashing Aspiration report published Higher Ambitions published Skills for Growth published Unemployment rate peaks
Level 3 qualification 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Access to HE Female 69% 68% 66% 68% 69% Male 31% 32% 34% 32% 31% BTEC Female 47% 46% 47% 50% 52% Male 53% 54% 53% 50% 48% A Level Female 58% 59% 60% 61% 60% Male 42% 41% 40% 39% 40% NVQ Female 76% 71% 61% 60% 56% Male 24% 29% 39% 40% 44% Other Vocational Female 53% 49% 49% 47% 54% Male 47% 51% 51% 53% 46% 4.6 FE Institution Type Table 6 shows that students in London FE Colleges and Sixth Form Colleges grew at a similar rate with Sixth Form Colleges seeing slightly higher growth in numbers. Table 6: Share of the cohorts coming from FE Colleges and Sixth Form Colleges Provider type Level 3 cohort population % growth 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 FE College 35305 37370 39290 35245 38810 10% Sixth Form College 6755 6770 6795 7590 7575 12% Total 42060 44140 46085 42835 46385 10% Figure 1 illustrates the Level 3 course breakdown by institution type, showing that tracked cohorts in London colleges were studying a whole range of Level 3 courses whilst students in Sixth Form Colleges were studying mainly BTEC and A Level. It is also notable that BTEC numbers in both institution types grew considerably between the earliest and latest cohorts. Figure 1: Chart showing breakdown of the cohorts by institution type and Level 3 qualification studied
Figure 14: Success rate mapped by Level 3 qualification (2008 and 2009 FT First degree entrants) ACHIEVEMENT Attained 1st or 2:1 49% (57%) Achieved First Degree 52% (62%) Access Achieved Lower Award 14% Attained 1st or 2:1 36% (50%) Achieved First Degree 56% (67%) BTEC Achieved Lower Award 14% Attained 1st or 2:1 61% (70%) Achieved First Degree 80% (83%) A Level Achieved Lower Award 7% Attained 1st or 2:1 42% NVQ Achieved First Degree 59% Achieved Lower Award 14% Attained 1st or 2:1 47% Achieved First Degree 57% Other Vocational Achieved Lower Award 14% Age and HE progression summary Table 43 is provided to enable easier comparisons of the Level 3 cohort and their HE progression by age group. Table 43: Age summary: characteristics of the London cohorts and HE progression Level 3 characteristics 17-19 20-24 25+