Quality Improvement Strategy Launched

The Department for Employment and Learning have launched "Success Through Excellence - A Quality Improvement Strategy for the Further Education and Training System in Northern Ireland".

The Strategy outlines the importance of developing a coherent approach to quality improvement and the raising of standards across the further education and training system in Northern Ireland.

Speaking at the official launch Aideen McGinley, Permanent Secretary at the Department for Employment and Learning said: "The Department seeks to guarantee that the education, training and skills provision it funds is of excellent quality and that those who provide these services on its behalf commit to high performance standards.

"The pursuit of high quality provision across the further education and training sector in Northern Ireland is a top priority for the Department. This Strategy provides clarity about the respective roles in the quality improvement agenda and indicates the key actions for improvement in order to support change."

'Success Through Excellence' presents a vision of quality and performance for the further education and training system in Northern Ireland, outlining the roles that all key partners will have to play to ensure its success. While the roles are all inter-related the success of the Strategy will be judged on how well each partner, including the Department for Employment and Learning, strives to meet the challenges contained in it.

The key action points outlined in 'Success Through Excellence' ensures that all further education and training providers can access the support they need, basing their improvement activities on clear and objective evidence. In addition, the Strategy aims to provide a framework to target more effectively, performance that is of poor quality or which, while satisfactory, is not improving.

Marion Matchett, the Chief Inspector of the Education and Training Inspectorate and Andrew Thomson, the Chief Executive of the Quality Improvement Agency for Lifelong Learning, endorsed the key objectives and actions contained in "Success Through Excellence".

They commented on the need for such a Strategy to identify clearly the roles and responsibilities of all of the key partners in the quality improvement arena, particularly the role of the further education and training providers in taking much greater responsibility for their own improvement and performance, indicating that quality cannot be imposed but must come from within.

(CD)