Exclusive:Colleges boss: Out-of-touch politicians 'must stop treating colleges like a Cinderella sector'
Chief executive calls for up to £150m extra investment and says political leaders have ‘no experience’ of sector so overlook it in favour of universities and schools
Scotland's colleges boss has warned the Scottish Government it must stop treating colleges like a "Cinderella sector" and provide sustainable investment in the forthcoming budget.
Gavin Donoghue, CEO of Colleges Scotland, said Shona Robison should heed warnings about the parlous financial state of colleges and provide a long term funding solution of between £120 million and £150m additional investment.
He claimed out of touch politicians have "no experience" of colleges and so overlook the sector in favour of universities and schools.
However, with recent reports outlining a real-terms 20 per cent funding cut for colleges and the threat of 11 colleges running out of cash this year, Mr Donoghue said the situation has never been more urgent.
“We've had the Audit Scotland report and the Scottish Funding Council reports, which make it abundantly clear that a 20 per cent real terms reduction has a significant impact on headcount of staff, but also has left 30,000 students unable to get the course choice that they want at a college,” Mr Donoghue told The Scotsman.
“We've been liaising with the officials and ministers and the cabinet secretary behind the scenes to make sure that that case has been made and I think we're getting a sympathetic hearing.”
The budget submission from Colleges Scotland sets out four scenarios, ranging from a flat cash scenario through to a long-term sustainable investment.
Eleven institutions at risk of running out of cash
Should the finance secretary opt for a flat cash settlement - the same sum as last year - in her January 13 statement, Colleges Scotland predicts 11 institutions could run out of cash in the coming academic year.
Instead, it is lobbying for between £120 and £150 million of revenue, that would give colleges sustainable investment in the near term and “allow them to deliver on the government's priorities”.
This, Mr Donoghue said, is the crucial point.
Colleges work alongside the government’s key commitments of helping address child poverty, growing the economy and moving to net zero.
Behind the scenes, he said, the mood music would suggest the college sector is receiving a sympathetic hearing but the “proof will be in the pudding only in the budget announcement.”
The political consequences of underfunding colleges are becoming more apparent, according to those in the sector.
Key Scottish sectors - not least renewables - are facing significant skills gaps and the main roles requiring fresh talent are college educated roles.
Mr Donoghue also pointed to the Scottish Government's latest offshore wind skills action plan, which shows seven priority roles are needed in order to deliver the amount of projects that are in the pipeline.
All seven roles are college educated roles.
“Without these people in the technician roles and in the engineering roles being educated at colleges, we're actually not going to be able to economically take advantage of the boom in offshore wind in particular,” he said.
“The political consequences will be of leaving people on benefits rather than in good, well paid jobs.
“We will still need to build these projects, so we'll be importing labour from abroad.”
As well as filling the skills gap, Mr Donoghue says colleges are a vital part of the Scotland’s “anti-poverty infrastructure” and expresses his frustration that they are not recognised as such.
Colleges’ role in tackling poverty
He cites a laundry list of ways in which local colleges tackle poverty - delivering free meals; providing classes around school hours to support working parents; offering English classes to refugees; supporting people with learning difficulties into employment.
“Colleges are absolutely fundamental to the Scottish Government's target of eradicating child poverty, but I don't think we are recognised in that space just yet,” he added.
This issue, he admits, is partly due to a lack of clear advocacy from Colleges Scotland but also a lack of understanding of the sector by politicians.
“Colleges have often been the Cinderella sector in education, between schools and universities,” Mr Donoghue said.
“We have a lot of people that work in and around government who are very familiar with schools, because everyone's been at school, and they're very familiar with universities as a majority of them have been university.
“But some people haven't had a college experience to know firsthand the transformational effect that college education can have on people.”
Chronic underfunding has resulted in a 20 per cent real terms reduction in funding over the past five years for the sector.
This has lead to a drop in staffing numbers, a significant fall in the numbers of students colleges can educate and had resulted in tough decisions around reducing the curriculum while increasing class sizes.
Now, Colleges Scotland says, college heads are having to consider whether they can afford to retain campuses in the communities they serve.
Mr Donoghue said: “These are absolutely not decisions that any principal of any college wants to take because they're not being done strategically.
“They are literally having to cut costs.
“And this is the point they've been trying to make to government - they are not able to plan ahead while they are firefighting.”
There is also hope that the decade’s-long ructions between the college unions and employers will calm following a move to making multi-year pay deals.
Colleges have seen industrial action nine years out of the past 10 with insiders reporting that behind-the-scenes discussions are often unproductive and fractious.
Mr Donoghue said: “I’ve certainly been in meetings where personal comments have been made, assertions have been made without any evidence to back them up.
“We've been dragged into discussions about matters that are completely and utterly outside of the pay terms and conditions of college staff, and that ends up creating a very difficult atmosphere.
“But behaviours have improved over the last two years, and that has been fundamental to that resetting of the relationship with our trade union colleagues.”
Colleges Scotland has focused on cross-party lobbying but current polling suggests the Scottish parliament could look very different following May’s elections.
This includes predictions hard right Reform UK could have as many as 20 MSPs in Holyrood.
While Mr Donoghue points to ESOL lessons in colleges as an important anti-poverty measure provided by the sector, Nigel Farage has said immigrants are causing the “cultural smashing” of Glasgow.
Scotland has seen protests outside ESOL lessons, fuelled by this hard right rhetoric.
Colleges Scotland, he said, would still be comfortable engaging with Reform if it has a “positive offering” for colleges in its manifesto.
“Colleges Scotland will engage with all the political parties in the Scottish Parliament,” he said.
“We would welcome all political parties having a positive message about colleges going into the 2026 elections.”
On Mr Farage’s comments specifically, he said: “Colleges are fundamentally community anchors in their own regions, and one of the anchor roles that they play is providing ESOL classes to people who don't have strong English.
“That benefits a wider economy and society more broadly, because if you want people to be contributing to society, you need them to be integrated into society.
“And that is a fundamental role of colleges - lifting people out of poverty and ensuring they have access to high quality education and skills training.
“They are a fundamental part of the communities they serve and should be funded accordingly.”
Further Education Minister Ben Macpherson said the Scottish Government “deeply values the contribution that all of our colleges make to communities across the country and the Scottish economy”.
“Ministerial colleagues and I are determined to work closely and collaboratively with colleges to ensure the sector’s success and sustainability, as it navigates numerous challenges,” the minister added.
He went on to add that, compared to last year, Scottish Funding Council allocations provide a 2.6 per cent college sector increase in teaching funding for 2025/26 and an increase of almost five per cent in capital maintenance.
Mr Macpherson said: “In November we also confirmed support for the college support staff pay deal that was reached between trade unions and the sector by providing an extra £1.69 million this financial year, followed by an additional £3.3m next financial year.
“We will continue to work with Colleges Scotland on the budget and changes needed for a sustainable future.”
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