VEC body joins attack on Education Bill

THE management body for vocational education has become the latest organisation to attack the Education Bill as a stalking horse…

THE management body for vocational education has become the latest organisation to attack the Education Bill as a stalking horse for more centralised control by the Department of Education and the proposed education boards.

The Irish Vocational Education Association president, Mr Brendan Griffin, said the enactment of the Bill would "establish a conflict of roles between the devolved VEC and the centralist regional education board which requires total accountability to itself".

"This centralist philosophy permeates the entire Bill, and the result of this conflict of philosophies will be serious injury to the vocational sector."

Mr Griffin said VEC schools would in future be much less accountable to the VEC and more accountable to the education board in terms of provision of accounts, planning mechanisms and educational programming. Appeals would go to an education board subcommittee rather than the VEC.

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He said that for too long there had been "a complete lack of appreciation" of the VEC sector, which was noted for its "dynamic, progressive and innovative" programmes of adult education, VTOS, Youthreach and PLC courses.