Cash boost could be more costly

The Association of Scottish Colleges has challenged the Scottish Office announcement of anPounds 8 million boost for further education, warning that colleges face the loss of almost Pounds 1.5 million.

Scottish education minister Brian Wilson, announcing the 1998-99 grants for Scotland's 46 colleges, said the Pounds 237 million gave them Pounds 8 million more to spend than in the previous government's plans.

But the ASC's calculations, which remove three colleges that are not incorporated, show a drop in recurrent grant from Pounds 231 million to under Pounds 230 million, with 15 colleges suffering a cash terms cut in their recurrent grant of 5 per cent or more.

Robert Kay, convener of the ASC's board of directors, said: "This is a very tough settlement for the sector. Most colleges will get less recurrent grant this year than last year, with no reward for growth and no allowance for inflation or pay increases."

There have been intricate changes to the funding formula, making comparisons difficult between this year and next.

The Scottish Office figures also include Pounds 5 million in additional tuition fees for higher education courses, calculated on the basis of four terms.

But the ASC's chief officer, Tom Kelly, said: "We are very wary about assuming that the additional cash will either be collectible in full or chargeable to 1998-99 expenditure. Some of it has to pay for expenditure in the next financial year."

The ASC has welcomed last week's Scottish Office decision to set up a further education funding council.

"The highest priority is to address the problem of acute underfunding of the sector. What we would hope is that thefunding council will be given an opportunity to tackle funding in a much more transparent and open way, and have a much moreconstructive and continuing dialogue with the sector," Mr Kelly said.

Options for change should be fully debated and colleges given a budget timetable which enabled them to plan with confidence.

Scottish FE allocations 1998/99

Grant in aid plus extra Bursary

tuition fee receipts allocation

Aberdeen College 13,335,000 3,367,000

Angus College 3,657,400 1,249,000

Anniesland College 4,773,700 518,000

Ayr College 4,946,500 955,000

Banff & Buchan College of FE 3,484,200 1,022,000

The Barony College 1,086,500 134,000

Bell College of Technology 4,705,400 (i) 0

Borders College 3,916,200 893,000

Cambuslaug College 4,018,400 488,000

Cardonald College 6,842,500 1,676,000

Central College of Commerce 4,971,300 510,000

Clackmannam College of FE 2,341,300 609,000

Clydebank College 6,362,500 1,294,000

Coatbridge College 3,821,300 867,000

Cumbernauld College 3,048,800 548,000

Dumfries and Galloway College 4,644,000 1,256,000

Dundee College 9,325,900 2,354,000

Elmwood College 2,892,600 468,000

Falkirk College of Technology 7,668,000 1,591,000

Fife College of F & HE 6,614,800 908,000

Glasgow College of Building and Printing 6,338,100 675,000

Glasgow College of Food Technology 3,219,900 613,000

Glasgow College of Nautical Studies 3,940,000 559,000

Glenrothes College 5,145,300 855,000

Inverness College 5,434,300 1,525,000

James Watt College of F & HE 10,342,800 1,615,000

Jewel and Esk Valley College 6,987,400 957,000

John Wheatley College 3,504,700 341,000

Kilmarnock College 5,561,000 1,538,000

Langside College 6,156,400 935,000

Lauder College 5,352,200 1,043,000

Lews Castle College 1,864,500 370,000

Moray College 4,429,100 1,405,000

Motherwell College 8,026,400 1,851,000

North Glasgow College 5,129,900 802,000

Oatridge Agricultural College 1,698,000 241,000

Perth College 5,223,100 1,3,000

Reid Kerr College 7,899,800 1,423,000

Stevenson College 11,159,000 1,351,000

Stow College 4,638,900 774,000

Edinburgh's Telford College 13,549,800 1,960,000

Thurso College 2,430,800 434,000

West Lothian College 4,187,900 753,000

Orkney College 600,000 (ii) 0

Shetland College 1,322,400 (ii) 0

Sahhal Mor Ostaig 400,000 (iii)0

TOTAL 236,998,000 44,000,000

(i) No FE activity - all HE(ii) Islands Councils have bursary responsibilitiesJ(iii) Not an incorporated FE college