LEADING LEARNING FOR LIFE IN CHANGING TIMES Conference Programme 3 May 2018 #LeadingAdultEd Conference WELCOME to Morley College London PROGRAMME All events are located in Emma Cons Hall except where noted 9:30 Registration, networking and refreshments 10:00 Welcome Dr Andrew Gower, Morley College London SESSION 1 – PART 1 I am delighted you have 10.10 Policy context and leadership joined us for this conference. Dr Sue Pember OBE, HOLEX We are very pleased to 10:25 Leading in post-market conditions have you with us. Prof Martin Doel CBE, UCL Institute of Education 10:45 Q&A and panel discussion Morley has been part of the learning landscape of London for almost 130 years. Our core purpose remains true to the founding mission 11:25 Networking and refreshments of the College: celebrating the transformative power of learning for learners, their families, and their communities. As an Institute of Adult SESSION 1 – PART 2 Learning we recognise the need to adapt and evolve to continue to meet the changing learning needs of the communities we serve, and I am 11:40 Impact and devolution: implications for policy especially grateful to my colleague, Dragana Ramsden, Head of Morley’s and practice in the UK Centre for Community Learning and Engagement, for being the driving Mark Ravenhall, Learning and Work Institute force behind the event today. 12:05 Q&A and discussion This conference provides a privileged opportunity to bring together 12:35 Lunch the experience and expertise of presenters and delegates to discuss Location: Holst Room the challenges and opportunities leaders in adult education face in responding to drivers for change – whether in life, at work, or through SESSION 2 – A CHOICE BETWEEN policy. To challenge ourselves to consider how, as leaders, we could or should adapt to change in order to achieve the greatest impact for 13:30 Role of governance in influencing change our learners is a worthy pursuit. Framed by our formidable conference Neil Fletcher, UCL Institute of Education contributors around questions of purpose, policy, governance, diversity and collaboration, we will crystallise the ideas and thoughts OR Collaboration and leadership for improving of the day into a ‘think piece’ to inform further reflection. mental health and wellbeing Dragana Ramsden, Morley College London Looking forward, we’re excited to present the Morley College London Location: Room B13 Festival of Arts and Culture, running from 27 June until 14 July. Our festival draws its inspiration from The Planets, the famous orchestral 14:20 Networking and refreshments suite composed by our former Director of Music, Gustav Holst, which received its first performance 100 years ago. Holst is famously quoted SESSION 3 WORKSHOP as saying “Always ask for advice but never take it.” Lest it is ever in 14:35 Building inclusive leadership doubt, independence of mind and spirit remain on our agenda today! Kathryn James, KJ Consulting Solutions Ltd Our conference will undoubtedly be full of lively debate and exchange. and WLN, and Thank you again for joining us here at Morley. Mel Lenehan, Principal and Chief Executive, Fircroft College SESSION 4 Dr Andrew Gower (@AndrewGower) 15:30 Plenary Principal and Chief Executive, Morley College London Chaired by Mark Ravenhall, Learning and Work Institute 15:45 Conference close Tweet Rt Hon David Lammy MP, Join the discussion – Member of Parliament for Tottenham Tweet about our conference using #LeadingAdultEd 01 @MorleyCollege 2018 Morley College London LEADING LEARNING FOR LIFE IN CHANGING TIMES 02 COLLABORATION AND LEADERSHIP FOR IMPROVING MENTAL HEALTH Presentations AND WELLBEING POLICY CONTEXT AND LEADERSHIP DRAGANA RAMSDEN, DR SUE PEMBER OBE, HOLEX MORLEY COLLEGE LONDON Dr Sue Pember OBE will give an overview of the current policy The workshop outlines the FETL-funded research about a possible context, outlining the key challenges and opportunities for adult vision of collaborative working between primary care mental health education leaders. and adult community learning, and the leadership required for achieving the vision. The research was motivated by insufficient evidence of sustained and scalable collaborative working between the LEADING IN POST-MARKET CONDITIONS two sectors, even though they are both focused on meeting the needs PROF MARTIN DOEL CBE, of local communities. We will discuss how the research findings could UCL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION apply to the delegates’ practice and local contexts. The Industrial Strategy was notable for its promotion of a more ROLE OF GOVERNANCE IN interventionist state and an acceptance that the market alone cannot provide for a more even distribution, or the conditions for growth. The INFLUENCING CHANGE Industrial Strategy has put the emphasis upon place and upon sector. This NEIL FLETCHER, presentation will argue that providers will need to revisit their purpose and mission in order to determine how a place, or a sector, is best served UCL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION by collaboration as well as competition. It will draw upon emerging Using his latest research on ecosystems and extensive leadership thinking and work around social ecosystems at the Institute of Education, experience, Neil Fletcher will address the important need for and wider thinking around what might be called post market conditions. governors and curriculum leaders to plan for radical change in adult provision. What can governing bodies do to lead, support, and IMPACT AND DEVOLUTION: manage effective and radical change? Are curriculum leaders the right people to plan for the future – or are they too committed to IMPLICATIONS FOR POLICY AND maintaining the status quo, or too destabilised by constant changes to PRACTICE IN THE UK build a different vision of working? Are borough boundaries relevant MARK RAVENHALL, in providing adult education any longer? LEARNING AND WORK INSTITUTE BUILDING INCLUSIVE LEADERSHIP The UK has a devolved approach to adult learning policy making. For many years, responsibility for education and skills funding has been in KATHRYN JAMES, KJ CONSULTING the hands of devolved administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland, SOLUTIONS LTD AND WLN, and Wales. From next year this could also be the case in parts of AND MEL LENEHAN, England, with the planned devolution of as much as half of the Adult Education Budget by 2019/20. With devolution comes the threat of PRINCIPAL AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE, local commissioners focusing on a narrow economic remit for adult FIRCROFT COLLEGE education funding. But international evidence shows that adult learning has “overlapping benefits” (UNESCO, 2016) in a number of domains, “All organisations routinely say people are our greatest asset. Yet few such as health, employability, and involvement in local communities. practice what they preach, let alone truly believe it” (Peter Drucker Investing in adult learning not only benefits adults’ ability to find and 1995). This presentation explores how a model of inclusive leadership, progress at work, but also their likelihood to be healthier, better able to and the subsequent development of an inclusive organisational support their families, and make an active contribution to civic life. culture, can best support the impact of strategic diversity within the adult education sector. We will discuss why placing values at the centre of an organisation is vital to the success of this approach. Tweet Join the discussion – Tweet about our conference using #LeadingAdultEd 03 @MorleyCollege 2018 Morley College London LEADING LEARNING FOR LIFE IN CHANGING TIMES 04 MEL LENEHAN (@MelLenehan) PRINCIPAL AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE, Speaker Biographies FIRCROFT COLLEGE PROF MARTIN DOEL CBE (@Ucl14E) Mel is Principal and CEO of Fircroft College, a residential adult education UCL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION college in Birmingham. Mel has worked in adult education in the Institutes for Adult Learning (previously SDI’s) for 20 years, and is Professor of Leadership in FE and Skills and Co-Director of the Centre passionate about social justice education and placing EDI at the heart of for Post-14 Education and Work at the UCL Institute of Education (IOE). organisations. Mel has recently joined the Women’s Leadership Network as its Vice-Chair. Martin Doel was appointed as the first Further Education Trust for Leadership (FETL) Professor of Leadership in Further Education and Skills at University College London (Institute of Education), having previously DR SUE PEMBER OBE (@SuePemberHOLEX) been the Chief Executive of the Association of Colleges (AoC) from 2008. HOLEX Prior to this, Martin served for 28 years in the Royal Air Force, where his final appointment was as Director of Training and Education for the three Sue started her career in teaching. She was the Principal of Canterbury Armed Services, working in the Ministry of Defence. He was awarded an College for 10 years, and from 2010-2013 she was the lead senior OBE in 1998 for his contributions to military service, and was appointed a civil servant working with Ministers on post-19 education and skills CBE in 2015 for his contribution to Further and Higher Education. policies, including funding, apprenticeships, Skills for Life, and ACL. Sue is now the Policy Director for HOLEX, which is the sector body for adult education providers, and runs her own consultancy NEIL FLETCHER (@PNeilFletcher) business, concentrating on supporting and helping providers improve UCL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION governance. Sue is a regular contributor to FE Week on governance issues, and is the Vice Chair of Bedfordshire