Four years ago in the World Cup final, Mario Mandzukic scored an own goal that sent France to victory. The decision by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to designate colleges as public, rather than private, sector bodies, is a similar catastrophic own goal by the Department for Education (DfE), which makes colleges, our staff and our students the losers. At least world cups come round every few years, allowing redemption for past mistakes. Sadly, the ONS decision is not just for Christmas, it fundamentally damages our sector.
Colleges have always trodden a fine line in terms of designation. The ONS decision is based on the actual changed environment in which we operate. In theory, it is a neutral act, but it has extremely damaging consequences.
