Briefing note to officers: SFC Review of Coherent Provision and Sustainability (Mar 2021) - sparqs

To support the ongoing engagement of student officers in the shaping and influencing of the Scottish Funding Council's Review of Coherent Provision and Sustainability, we have produced two short briefing notes for all officers. The first one, published in December 2020, provides a summary overview of the review process so far, including details of the phase one report themes that will be further explored as the review develops.  This more recent one, in March 2021, further explores how students can engage in the review in its third and final stage, in particular, how students can engage in more detailed discussions relevant to the workstreams that have been established by SFC.

Student engagement in this review is vital as we explore what the future of Scotland’s FE and HE sectors will look like. The digital revolution, student mental health & wellbeing, sustainability & the environment, and a tertiary approach to education and skills are just a few of the topics this review covers, and we know officers will have many contributions to share about the opportunities and challenges any changes may bring for students.

The briefing notes include some suggestions as to what officers can do to ensure their own and their fellow students’ understanding of the review, their involvement at an institutional and national level, and some ideas as to how student officers can include all students in the ongoing discussions, ensuring the student voice is central to the review.

We anticipate that the briefing notes will be shared with a wide range of students, including course reps, faculty/school officers, and other student groups, such as clubs and societies members, as different cohorts will have different thoughts and ideas about the themes of the review. It will be important to ensure a wide range of opinions are heard, utilising existing structures to facilitate discussions, and sparqs is keen to help support students’ associations as they explore ways to do this.

In February 2021, to complement the resources for officers, we also developed, in partership with the Scottish Funding Council, a briefing note for institutions to help staff explore the best ways to engage students as the review develops. 
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(March 2021)

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