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The Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency is to be scrapped as part of a plan to cut bureaucracy and slash spending across Whitehall to service the national debt, ministers confirmed this week.
Education Secretary Michael Gove has written to the quango's head, Christopher Trinick, saying legislation to abolish the agency will be introduced in the autumn. The QCDA, which has an annual budget of £128m and employs 500 staff, is the second education quango to be axed under the coalition government this week, following the announcement to close Becta, the technology agency for schools, in a move designed to save £65m a year.
In his letter, Mr Gove said he believed the government and its agencies should not be involved in curriculum design ‘which is properly the domain of awarding bodies (exam boards)’. Mr Gove goes on to say:
‘When we met before the General Election, I explained that our vision for education reform meant that functions performed by the QCDA should be discharged differently. I'm writing to confirm that, in the autumn, we propose to introduce legislation to abolish the QCDA.
I appreciate that the news of closure will come as a disappointment to those working in the QCDA… While the QCDA as an organisation does not have a place in the education system of the future, I know that the agency has many dedicated public servants who are committed to improving the quality of education in this country.’
The closure of the QCDA, which oversees the curriculum as well as areas such as Sats tests, was widely expected to be announced earlier this week. The announcement follows widespread criticism of the quango two years ago when serious failings led to huge delays in the marking of Sats tests. Thousands of pupils were forced to wait months for results and some test papers were lost altogether.
In a speech last summer, Prime Minister David Cameron said the QCDA ‘must go’, and the body's Chief Executive, Andrew Hall, left the organisation in March after less than a year in his post to head up the AQA exam board.
It is believed QCDA staff were told last week to stop work on ‘developmental projects’ and to cut communication with anyone outside the agency. Mr Gove said work currently carried out by the QCDA would be handed to other organisations, including private exam boards.
The QCDA will continue some ‘vital’ work for now - including overseeing this year's Sats tests for 11-year-olds, but other areas such as developing qualifications and the curriculum will begin to wind down.
This latest move has been condemned by teachers’ leaders. Chris Keates, general secretary of the NASUWT, said:
‘The seemingly arbitrary way in which the QCDA and other bodies are being culled without any critical analysis of the impact of removing these functions is not acceptable.
To put staff at the QCDA on notice of dismissal before the legislation to remove their function has been considered by Parliament is an arrogant and reckless way to conduct Government business.
The decision is not supported by any detail of how core functions undertaken by the QCDA will be carried out in future and at what cost.’
What are your thoughts on this story? Do you think this move, alongside the closure of Becta, is the correct course of action? Or perhaps you believe these bold government moves could lead to problems further down the line? Log in or register for free to share your thoughts and opinions with the rest of the bee-it community. |
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