College cash bids ‘a trick’ claim

The Government has been accused of playing a cruel trick by encouraging colleges to bid for grandiose rebuilding projects rather than modest refurbishment.

The Conservatives laid into ministers about the national funding fiasco which put Hopwood College’s £72 million redevelopment in doubt earlier this year.

Rochdale's new sixth form college was not affected by the funding problem and building work has now begun on the site near Hopwood Hall's Rochdale campus, but last month Hopwood Hall stood-down the Project Team for the Middleton campus redevelopment after money from the Government’s Building Colleges for the Future programme ran out.

The new Heywood Skills Centre will not progress beyond a feasibility study until the Learning Skills Council, which is providing funding for the scheme, clarifies the application process.

Nationally, scores of college projects that were approved in principle have been stopped, and Chancellor Alistair Darling has now made available £300 million to allow a limited number of the most needy to go ahead.

But shadow skills secretary David Willetts accused the Government’s Learning and Skills Council (LSC) of encouraging colleges to inflate their plans.

He said: “They’ve not just been promised funding. Often colleges have been encouraged to bid and been told, ‘Oh you’re only bidding for £20 million; £20 million is pathetic. Have you thought of going back and bidding for £50 million?’

“They have been actively encouraged, even when, perhaps, originally the idea was refurbishment and modest improvements. They were told, ‘No, knock the whole thing down and go for a grandiose capital project’.

“Having had their hopes raised as a result of the LSC and DIUS (Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills) ministers encouraging them to do so, they now find themselves with their hopes dashed.

“That is a cruel trick to play.”

He insisted that skills secretary John Denham had to take some responsibility for the actions of the LSC.

But speaking in the Commons, Mr Denham said: “Could you give me one example, just one, of a case where a minister went to a college and asked them to withdraw their bid and put a new one in?

“And if you can’t, then I’d be grateful if you’d stop making that allegation.”