Shake-up of college governing bodies needed, says ESG

THE governing bodies of third-level colleges are not flexible enough and should be made smaller but with more business representation, the Enterprise Strategy Group recommends.

A central outcome of its deliberations on skills, education and training was the need to create a higher education sector which could adapt more easily to meeting the economy’s skills needs.

The group’s report found the structures and management of higher education were “no longer adequate” to meet the complex demands of society in general, and enterprise in particular. It described governing bodies as too large to permit flexibility and responsiveness. The group recommended they be reduced in size and that the enterprise sector play an increased role.