| Description | Minutes of the committee established to replace the Board of Adult Education and the Board of Post-Experience Studies (see UB/COM/101 for records of this committee). The first meeting was held on 21 February 1983 and minutes of this meeting include minutes of the final meetings of the Board of Adult Education and the Board of Post-Experience Studies, as well as a printed copy of the Board of Adult Education annual report 1981-1982
The Board of Continuing Education was established following a review by a Working Party on Extramural and Post-Experience Work, appointed by Committee of Principals and Deans, which looked at the scope and scale of continuing education and directly at Department of Extramural Studies; the Lucas Institute; the Institute of Local Government Studies; and the Health Services Management Centre
This Working Party recommended that new structures should be devised to meet continuing education needs of the 1980s and 1990s, and that these should provide a broad university-wide forum for the discussion and formulation of university policy for all kinds of continuing education. It was intended that this forum would encourage and develop initiatives in continuing education; prevent unnecessary overlap and competition in continuing education within the university; determine points of financial principle affecting matters such as charges to be made for courses and for their associated residential accommodation, and the division of income between individuals, departments, and general university funds; provide advice on the recurrent and capital needs of the university's continuing education activities; and would examine the special problems for the development of post-experience work caused by existing staffing and administrative procedures and formulate proposals to overcome such problems
It was initially intended that the Board of Continuing Education would be a large body representative of all parts of the University actively engaged in continuing education other than the strictly professional activities undertaken in the Faculties of Medicine and Dentistry, Law, and Education, and that the major units devoted to continuing education should be represented on the Board by Directors and staff representatives, with other continuing education activities represented by members elected from the relevant Faculty Boards
The Board of Continuing Education reported to Senate, and membership in 1983 consisted of the Vice-Chancellor and Principal; a Pro-Vice-Chancellor (chair); Director of Lucas Institute (ex-officio); Director of the Institute of Local Government Studies (ex-officio); Director of Extra-Mural Studies (ex-officio); Director of Health Services Management Centre (ex-officio); two representatives from Lucas Institute/Department of Engineering Production; five representatives from Institute of Local Government Studies; nine representatives from department of Extra-Mural Studies; two representatives from Health Services Management Centre; five representatives from Faculty of Science and Engineering; two representatives from Faculty of Arts; two representatives from Faculty of Commerce and Social Science; one representative from Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry; one representative from Faculty of Law; one representative from Faculty of Education; and not more than two members appointed by the Academic Executive
It met once a term, and its responsibilities were to be responsible to Senate for the formulation of University policy for Continuing Education; to advise on points of financial principle affecting such matters as the charges to be made for courses and for their associated residential accommodation, and the division of income between individuals, departments, and general university funds; to advise on the recurrent and capital needs of the University's continuing education activities; to advise on staffing and administrative procedures for continuing education activities; to report to the Academic Executive or Senate as appropriate
For the Department of Extramural Studies and the Health Services Management Centre the Board was also responsible for the academic work of the Department and the Centre, and the nature and quality of its programme and courses; seeking and allocation of resources; policy for development; policy governing the filling of staff vacancies and new appointments in the Department and the Centre (acting as a quasi-Faculty Board). For the Department of Extramural Studies, the Board was also responsible for relations with other bodies concerned with adult education in the University's Extramural area.
A Staffing Sub-Committee and Selection Panels were set up to deal with staffing issues in the Department of Extramural Studies and the Health Services Management Centre, and minutes contain applications for posts (including personal information about applicants such as cvs and references), and proposals for new posts submitted to the Board.
It was also suggested that an Executive/Standing Committee should be set up to report to the Board on new initiatives, but a Ginger Group was set up instead, which reported to the meeting held on 1 February 1984 that there was little interest within the University for new initiatives along traditional lines of post-experience courses and suggested that consideration be given to the development of more flexible undergraduate and postgraduate programmes to meed the needs of continuing education students and that Board should set up ad hoc groups to examine particular topics which it identified
Minutes typically contain discussion of staffing matters for Extramural Studies and Health Services Management Centre; the approval of accounts and estimates; the approval of standard fee levels; discussion of courses and enrolment figures, including lists of Extramural courses offered each academic session; CER figures; the approval of and reports on Post-Experience courses and recommendations for underwriting; the Annual Report of the Director of Extramural Studies; the Annual Report of the Board of Continuing Education to Senate; and Review of Progress (each Autumn Term). Minutes also contain copies of the report of Health Services Management Centre and of Universities Council for Adult and Continuing Education 1981-1982 onwards. Some reports of the Joint Commitee with the Workers' Educational Association are also included
A special meeting was held on 29 March 1984 to discuss the University Grants Committee Continuing Education Working Party Report, and minutes include a copy of the report, and comments by members of the Board of Continuing Education. There is further discussion of this report with minutes of the meeting held on 15 May 1984
Minutes of meetings held in 1984 discuss the need to generate income and to promote continuing education activities. There are also references to the loss of courses in areas of Warwickshire and Coventry transferred to the University of Warwick following the designation of Responsible Body Status in respect of adult education.
Minutes of the meeting held on 11 November 1985 include a copy of the report of the Review Body of the Board of Continuing Education, which considered that the Board was not doing enough as a formulator of policy and a source of initiatives, perhaps due to its excessive size. The Review Body recommended a smaller membership, and also emphasised the need to generate income from both the University Grants Committee and from outside organisations, particularly following the reduction in the territory of the Department of Extramural Studies following the loss of courses to the University of Warwick, and the need to increase awareness of Continuing Education throughout the University, to encourage programmes in areas not presently involved, and to remove obstacles preventing courses happening. Minutes of this meeting also include a copy of a publicity booklet entitled 'On Course for the Future' programmes of education and training for industry, commerce, professions, and the public service
Minutes of meetings held in 1986 contain some references to the potential impact of the recommendations of the Vice-Chancellor's Planning Committee (see UB/COM/6) on Continuing Education activities, and include comments of Board members on the Planning Committee's Consultative Document on Continuing Education. There are also papers relating to the development of PICKUP (Professional, Industrial and Commercial Updating) and INSET (In-Service Teacher Education and Training) activities within the University, using funding available from the University Grants Committee. Minutes of the meeting held on 11 May 1987 contain details of the University's proposals under the PICKUP and INSET schemes, and minutes of subsequent meetings include copies of the Continuing Education (PICKUP) Co-ordinator's Report, which focus on regional and local collaboration. Minutes of the meeting held on 9 May 1988 include a report of the Second National PICKUP in Universities Conference, and matters relating to PICKUP continue to be discussed into 1989, including funding for Continuing Eduation and the PICKUP initiative by the Universities Funding Council (which replaced the University Grants Committee)
Minutes of the meeting held on 9 November 1987 include a copy of the report of the Strategy, Planning and Resources Committee on Continuing Education, and comments by the Board in response, with references to the analysis of funding for Extramural Studies in the Consultative Document on Continuing Education produced by the Vice-Chancellor's Planning Committee. There is discussion of proposals for the establishment of a School of Continuing Education comprising a Department of Extramural Studies, a Unit responsible for co-ordinating and providing administrative, help, and a School under a Professor of Continuing Education. It was suggested that the Health Services Management Centre should be part of a budget Centre within the Faculty of Commerce and Social Science. As a result, no further reports of the Health Services Management Centre would be sent to the Board of Continuing Education
Following the decision to remove responsibility for the work of the Health Services Management Centre from the Board of Continuing Education, and to establish a School of Continuing Studies, its terms of reference were changed by the time of the meeting held on 24 October 1988. The Board now had a smaller membership, which included representatives from the School of Continuing Studies
Minutes of the meeting held on 25 October 1989 discuss the review of the University Committee structure by the Committee of Principals and Deans, including the recommendation for the dissetablishment of the Board of Continuing Education. It was envisaged that if the Board were dissetablished one of the Pro-Vice-Chancellors would continue to have portfolio responsibility for continuing education and the School of Continuing Studies would continue to develop its role in promoting continuing education and post-experience vocational education activities across the University.
Members of the Board agreed that it had become increasingly ineffectual, reflected in declining attendance at meetings, and that it was not desirable to retain it in its present form. Over half the University's Continuing Education activities were undertaken outside the School of Continuing Studies, and so it was not possible to discuss continuing education issues solely within the confines of the Faculty of Education and Continuing Studies, but a wider forum was needed. Board members also pointed out that the Faculty of Education and Continuing Studies was small and without much representation on the University's higher bodies, so it was difficult to communicate the views of members of the School of Continuing Studies to those higher bodies without the Board or a similar body.
A revised paper on the Review of the University Committee structure was discussed at the meeting held on 26 January 1990, and the minutes record that it was decided to retain the Board of Continuing Education, but to make changes to its constitution and terms of reference
Its main functions would be to promote continuing education as an integral part of the University's work; and to act as a catalyst for the initiation and development of continuing education activities. To promote effective discussion, the committee should be as small as possible, and the body's title should change to the Committee on Continuing Education, as it was felt that the Board of Continuing Education suggested inappropriate parallels with the Faculty Boards. The body was called the Committee on Continuing Education from autumn 1990
Minutes of the meeting held on 26 November 1990 discuss the co-ordination of new initiatives in Continuing Education, and the need to increase student intake from the local community, with reference to a collaborative partnership between the University and the City of Birmingham to increase local participation in higher education. Discussion of this point notes that at the time University of Birmingham was the third largest provider of continuing education in the UK, but that provision was concentrated mainly in the Schools of Continuing Studies and Public Policy , and that a number of Faculties had low levels of continuing education output
Minutes of the meeting held on 21 October 1991 comment on the reduced up-take of courses run in the Faculty of Education and Continuing Studies due to the recession. The minutes also include a copy of the report on the School's plans for the development of Continuing Education activities 1991-1996
Minutes of the meeting held on 28 October 1992 include a copy of the report 'Good Practice for Attaining Quality Assurance in Continuing Education, in connection with the Academic Audit, and a printed copy of the Board of Postgraduate Medical and Dental Education Annual Report 1991/1992, issued by the University of Birmingham and West Midlands Regional Health Authority
There are supporting papers for the meeting scheduled for 7 June 1993, but no minutes, and no minutes of later meetings have been transferred to the University Archives. The Committee is listed in the University Calendars as a Senate Committee for the 1993-1994 academic session, but not after this date, and so it is assumed that it was then dissolved |