New Colleges Agreement Heralds National Strategy to Deliver Research Education and Training for Rural Scotland

A new agreement between Barony College, Elmwood College, Oatridge College and SAC (Scottish Agricultural College) marks the next stage in coordinating the delivery of education, skills and business support to Scotlands land-based industries. Launched today at St Andrews House by Michael Russell MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, the new Concordat is the outcome of many years of successful cooperation between the partners.

Under the new arrangements the latest SAC Research and expertise in knowledge exchange will be more readily available to students and staff in the partner colleges. The closer working arrangement also offers potential students, across a range of ages and abilities, a variety of opportunities to progress more smoothly from certificate-level courses to degree or even PhD.

The Concordat marks a significant milestone in a project funded by the Scottish Funding Council. It encapsulates an exciting, shared, vision of land-based research, education and skills. Members of the Boards of each institution formed a Joint Board Working Group which worked with the Principals of each college, assisted by a Project Manager and officers of the Funding Council. The project commissioned research to assess the future demand for land-based education, training and skills in Scotland, against the present provision. There was analysis of how each of the partners operated, new work on curriculum development and exploration of potential economic and business models.

Andy Robb is independent Chairman of the Project Steering Group.

“I am delighted to be associated with this project which builds on existing partnerships and will deliver a fully integrated approach to tertiary education for the land-based sector. This important sector impacts on us all in many ways and this initiative will provide simplified access for all learners to a wide range of career opportunities.”

The new Concordat was welcomed by Cabinet Secretary Michael Russell.

This is a landmark day for all four colleges. In delivering the Concordat, they highlight in the clearest possible way their commitment to a successful future based on collaboration and joint working. This approach will enable each College to bring its own individual strengths to the table, to the benefit of the whole land-based sector. I very much welcome the commitment of the Concordat to driving out duplication and to developing a breadth of provision which each individual College, on its own, would be unable to undertake to the benefit of students, staff and industry.

The aim is to create an even stronger voice for land-based research, skills and education. It will strengthen the delivery of rural education and training in a more efficient and resilient way. By addressing duplication it will release capacity to explore and develop new market opportunities for the colleges involved. The demands of rural communities in Scotland are ever changing and what is offered through education and training must reflect that.

The Principals of all four colleges and members of the Joint Working Group attended the Concordat launch.

Russell Marchant, Principal & Chief Executive of the Barony College in Dumfries, said:

This exciting new initiative will ensure both students and land-based industries get the best value from the Colleges involved. It will help improve both the quality and impact of our activities on the industries we serve.

The Principal and CEO of Elmwood College in Cupar is Jim Crooks , who said:

I am sure that the concordat being launched today will be a milestone in the partnership which we have created. By building on the strengths of each partner, we can deliver a comprehensive solution for the land-based industries. Despite the difficulties of the financial environment, we will be able to develop and grow as organisations and deliver public value for Scotland.

From Oatridge College, West Lothian, Principal and CEO David James said:

We are delighted to be partners in this exciting initiative. We believe that the shared vision of the partners, as outlined in the Concordat, will bring enhanced opportunities to our learners and stakeholders and the land-based industries we work with across Scotland on a daily basis.

In adding his welcome to the initiative Professor Bill McKelvey, Chief Executive and Principal of SAC, said:

We see it as a very positive response to the challenges laid down in the Governments recent Green Paper to build more effective partnerships across the tertiary education providers in Scotland. It builds on our existing strategy of forming effective partnerships with a range of Universities and Colleges to provide a national resource for land-based businesses and communities.

In the following months the partners will carry on the work of developing an agreed model of collaboration and meet with other land-based education providers in Scotland. The final decision on the new working model will be made by the end of June 2011.