Private Philanthropy is not the Answer to Public Spending Cuts

Posted in: In Depth Reports, Private Sector, Social Enterprise, Third Sector on 24/01/2013

HUCKFIELD offers sincere apologies that a previous posting with the same title was withdrawn earlier this week on account of technical problems. Though some of these are still being resolved, this narrative and contents represent the updated and final version. As a Board Member of the Social Entrepreneurs’ Network Scotland, HUCKFIELD once more declares an… Read more »

A Requiem for Social Enterprise?

Posted in: In Depth Reports, Social Enterprise, Third Sector on 15/01/2013

The Importance of a Definition for Social Enterprise (As usual, from the outset, Huckfield declares an interest in all this as a Member of the Board of the Social Entrepreneurs’ Network Scotland and a firm supporter of Social Enterprise. However, views expressed in this posting are Huckfield’s own.) In seeking to clarify a definition for… Read more »

2013-A Defining Year for Social Enterprise

Posted in: Huckfield's News, In Depth Reports, Social Enterprise, Third Sector on 06/01/2013

A Local Healthwatch for each Local Authority – a Major Opportunity for Social Enterprise? Background 2013 will be a year for defining ‘Social Enterprise’, especially in the National Health Service in England. This Background section explains why. (From the outset, Huckfield declares an interest in all this as a Member of the Board of the… Read more »

European Funds – Time to Have Your Say

Posted in: In Depth Reports, Social Enterprise, Third Sector on 03/11/2012

Huckfield offers this posting as a background briefing on the European Union’s proposed Structural Funds Programmes for the period 2014 to 2020, especially for Scotland. This is written alongside increasing Parliamentary pressure – Conservative and Labour – for a reduced European Budget. What Scotland and the UK might receive in EU Structural Funds depends on… Read more »

Black Country Partnership for Learning Spring Conference at the Hawthorns Conference Centre, West Bromwich on Friday 25 May 2012

Posted in: Further Education, Higher Education, In Depth Reports, Private Sector on 30/05/2012

Huckfield would like to emphasise that this is not an ‘opinion posting’ but is offered as a comprehensive record of the Black Country Partnership for Learning Spring Conference on Friday 25 May 2012. It is based on notes taken throughout the Conference and on speakers’ presentations. KEITH BATE, PRINCIPAL OF HALESOWEN COLLEGE Introduction In his… Read more »

FE Professionalism – You couldn’t make it up if you tried!

Posted in: Further Education, In Depth Reports on 01/04/2012

TEN WASTED YEARS OFSTED 2003 Report and the 2007 Regulations. Huckfield has an active background around Further Education (FE) and has always raised concerns about limited external understanding of the FE Sector. This Huckfield briefing laments 10 wasted years of trying to improve professional standards in Further Education in England. Even OFSTED, whose Initial Training… Read more »

Social Enterprise Exchange – the Future is “Structured Investment Products”

Posted in: In Depth Reports, Social Enterprise, Third Sector on 28/03/2012

AN ENGLISH AGENDA IN SCOTLAND Scots Ask Questions about Short Term Survival This is a brief reflection on the the Social Enterprise Exchange in Glasgow on Tuesday 27 March which Huckfield attended. During the question times, especially for Alex Salmond, Scotland’s First Minister, most of the Scots asked practical questions about how their organisation might… Read more »

Social Impact Bonds – Victorian Values with a Vengeance?

Posted in: In Depth Reports, Social Enterprise, Third Sector on 26/03/2012

BACKGROUND The recent Huckfield Killing Social Enterprise Softly briefing was pessimistic about the openings available for Social Enterprise and Third Sector organisations in their bidding to deliver public services. This briefing is more pessimistic about the damage to the wider image of the Third Sector and Social Enterprises by the introduction by stealth of Social… Read more »

A Ray of Hope for Social Enterprise

Posted in: Huckfield's News, In Depth Reports, Social Enterprise, Third Sector on 16/03/2012

BACKGROUND The Huckfield Killing Social Enterprise Softly briefing last week was pessimistic about the openings available for Social Enterprise and Third Sector organisations in their bidding to deliver public services. The Work Programme is the Government’s preferred delivery model. With a few large contracts and major providers taking the risk it’s easy to administer. Social… Read more »

Killing Social Enterprise Softly

Posted in: In Depth Reports, Social Enterprise, Third Sector on 08/03/2012

BACKGROUND This is a long and detailed Huckfield briefing about what is happening in Social Enterprise and the Third Sector. It might even be called ‘the Strange Death of Social Enterprise’. In summary, it shows that national London-based Third Sector Organisations are gradually undermining the basis of Social Enterprise. This briefing – with apologies for… Read more »

Filling the Infrastructure Funding Gap

Posted in: Huckfield's News, In Depth Reports on 28/02/2012

BACKGROUND With ongoing reductions in public expenditure for infrastructure funding, this Huckfield briefing gives a summary of funding available in Scotland for further development of infrastructure projects. It does not seek to be exhaustive but to shed light on some sources with which all readers may not be familiar. The following headings take you straight… Read more »

Griggs’ Governance Report Deserves a Context

Posted in: Further Education, In Depth Reports, Skills and Apprenticeships on 26/02/2012

BACKGROUND Professor Russel Griggs’ “Report of the Review of Further Education Governance in Scotland” submitted to Scottish Ministers on Friday 20 January 2012 contains some pretty strong stuff. Professor Griggs’ team has delivered a comprehensive report on governance, in which structures for new regional further education boards are laid out in immaculate detail. But they lack… Read more »

Employer Ownership of Skills

Posted in: Further Education, Huckfield's News, In Depth Reports, Private Sector, Skills and Apprenticeships on 07/02/2012

The UK Commission for Employment and Skills launched its bidding Prospectus for Employer Ownership of Skills on Tuesday 07 February 2012. Previous Huckfield briefings on Employer Ownership Pilots have appeared here since Wednesday 07 December 2011. The Bidding Timetable and details of Briefing Sessions are shown below. Though Employer Ownership Pilots apply only in England,… Read more »

Funding for Scotland’s Colleges

Posted in: Further Education, Huckfield's News, In Depth Reports on 06/02/2012

Sincere apologies for the length of this Huckfield briefing. The following detailed sections seek to provide information for Scotland’s Further Education Colleges and others along similar lines to that previously provided in Huckfield briefings for Further Education and Higher Education in England. Many of Scotland’s Colleges will be familiar with funding initiatives listed. No claim… Read more »

What’s Happening to School Funding?

Posted in: Free Schools and Academies, In Depth Reports on 19/01/2012

Because this is a long piece, please click on the following headers to go straight to these sections: INTRODUCTION Introduction, context and background to this posting. School funding reform takes place against a background of spending cuts and policies to spread Academies and Free Schools. EDUCATION SPENDING – CUTS IN REAL TERMS An analysis, including… Read more »

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