The information requested is provided in the following tables:
Financial year Number of staff as full-time equivalent Salary costs1 (£000) 1997-98 194 4,828 1998-99 180 4,878 1999-2000 201 6,049 2000-01 240 6,898 2001-02 245 7,301 2002-03 240 7,749 2003-04 254 8,863 2004-05 264 9,388 2005-06 242 10,367 2006-07 240 10,861 1 Includes salary costs, national insurance payments and pensions payments. Source: HEFCE Annual Accounts
Year ended 31 March Total staff Admin pay (£000) 2002 4,694 144,245 2003 4,797 135,291 2004 4,786 141,291 2005 4,306 140,344 2006 4,451 137,857 20071 3,741 133,067 1 Provisional figures. Note: Admin pay covers salaries, social security payments, pension costs and consultancy costs. Source: LSC Annual report and Accounts
The Learning and Skills Council became operational in April 2001. The figures provided are for the average number of staff employed by the LSC each year and include temporary staff and agency staff. The reduction in the average number of staff in post between 2006 and 2007 is a consequence of the announcement in September 2005 by Mark Haysom, the Learning and Skills Council’s chief executive, of proposals for a new structure for the organisation. This process is expected to result in a reduction in the LSC’s overall establishment figure (that is the number of posts required to run the organisation) from around 4,700 to around 3,630—a reduction of almost 1.100 posts. This will achieve estimated savings of up to £40 million, which could be released to the front line for the further benefit of learners. As a result, the LSC will have a strong regional and local capacity, spending less time on transactional processes and more time developing relationships with key partners and stakeholders.
Sector Skills Councils are not funded by the Department and, in the main, are independent private sector organisations. Accordingly, the information requested is not held by the Department.