Commentary Part 1: the Learning and Skills Council for England Provision of services
52.Section 11 extends the powers of the LSC to design, develop and operate support services for persons and bodies exercising education and training functions, in relation to those functions. The LSC’s current powers are in the 2000 Act. This provides that the LSC has powers and duties mainly in respect of post-16 education and training and in relation to England only. The powers are largely exclusive of higher education. This section enables the LSC to provide support in respect of higher education and learners under 16, throughout the United Kingdom.
53.The provisions enable the LSC to offer support services such as software management systems, management information systems, payroll administration, human resources functions, finance services and procurement services.
54.The LSC may provide these services to: publicly-funded education and training providers (including schools and universities); publicly-funded institutions that have functions relating to the provision of education and training; and persons or bodies specified by order (who may or may not be publicly funded).
55.The orders specifying additional persons or bodies may be made by the Secretary of State or, where a person or body has education and training functions only in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, by the relevant devolved administration (see subsection (8)).
56.In Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, these services will be supplied only with the consent of the respective devolved administrations. Separate consent will be required from each administration for each type of service.
57.The LSC will need to obtain the consent of the Secretary of State before making arrangements to provide support services to a person or body operating in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.
58.The LSC will not need the consent of the Secretary of State before making arrangements to provide support services as regards education and training provided in England, because this process will be regulated via accountability mechanisms that were already in place and by which the LSC was already reporting to the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills at the time of Royal Assent.
59.An example of such a support service is the Managing Information Across Partners (MIAP) programme, under which the LSC will manage the sharing of learner and learning data between learning and skills organisations, including higher education institutions and schools. This data, which includes information on participation and achievement, is held by a diverse range of owners. The LSC will manage the MIAP system on behalf of participating partners.