Welsh colleges

Colleges in Wales offer 80% of all post-16 qualifications and provide learning experiences for almost 300,000 people. As such they play a key role in the regional economy as well as tackling social exclusion and stimulating economic regeneration.

Colleges in Wales vary considerably in size, numbers and type of students and the range of programmes and services offered. They maintain close links with local industry, running a wide range of programmes tailored to meet the needs of local and national business.

Key facts:

• 295,000 learners study at Further Education Institutions (FEIs) per year
• 83.5% of learners at FEIs study part time
• 97% of learners at FEIs are domiciled in Wales
• 64% of leaners aged 16-18 study at college
• HMI Inspection results show FEIs in Wales delivering a higher percentage of provision at Grade 1 and 2 than English counterparts.

The funding methodology in Wales differs to England. Some of the key differences are:

• The approachability of DCELLs [The funding body]
• There are 4 components to the return - Learner Return, Learning Programme Return, and the Award Return.
• The return is accumulative, unlike the ILR, throughout the year and can be submitted at any time.
• The unit of funding is the CEU: Credit Equivalence Unit
• They still have ILAs
• They have the WLAD:  the Welsh LAD
• The Welsh Colleges have English and Welsh Contracts for WBL

Capita has tailored its products and services specifically to the Welsh market, introducing a Welsh version of VQMT. We also have a Welsh return data set which conforms exactly to the requirements of the Welsh return.


Welsh specific Modules in Unit-e include:

• The Welsh funding return modules
• The Welsh SIR modules
• The Welsh version of VQMT
• Import facilities for the WLAD