Practitioner Advisory Group: Channelling members’ views

On June 16, SET’s Practitioner Advisory Group (PAG) met at the NCVO in London for its annual summer conference. PAG is a representative group of SET membership, with teachers, trainers, managers and leaders from across the breadth of the FE and training sector. PAG provides an invaluable engagement channel for SET and ETF team members, so that we can shape our membership and wider ETF offer to ensure it meets the needs of a diverse sector.  

Over the last 18 months, PAG has given us unique practitioner insight into a number of key areas. Some recent examples include: the refreshed Code of Ethics and Conduct (launched April 2022), the revised Professional Standards (launched May 2022), the development of a new community strategy and a career framework (ongoing), plus the development of our new Together we transform initiative, which showcases the difference the sector makes to the outcomes of post-14 learners (launched April 2023).   

At this year’s PAG summer conference we welcomed a number of new members, 24 in total, with 12 in attendance. We said a final farewell too to valued PAG colleagues who had completed their terms of office. A special call out and thank you to  our departing PAG members: 

Ysolina Arvelo, Alison Attfield, Giles Bennett, Oran Blackwood, Wendy Coley, Jim Crompton, Barbara Van der Eecken, Simon Martin, Anita McGowan, Jeremy (Jerry) Nightingale, Judith Southern, Lynne Taylerson and, Peter Whitehead.  

Jane Galbraith, Head of Membership at the Society for Education and Training said “We are so grateful to our members who are on the PAG. It is a great way for us to seek views, input and feedback from a representative section of the membership, which reflects the scope of the FE and Training sector, to ensure we are always member focused. We have been able to take many ideas and suggestions to PAG to test the proverbial water! PAG’s very relevant view has helped to shape so many things from the value proposition to strategy development and the identification of new areas to consider.” 

PAG consists of approximately 40 members, at any one time, who are invited to undertake a three-year term of office, with the option to complete a second and final three years on the group. Chaired by ETF’s Director of Professionalism and Customer Experience, Martin Reid, PAG is very much a consultative group, which reports into the SET Management Board, a sub-committee of the full ETF Board of Trustees. The link with the SET Management Board will be retained through Barbara Van der Eecken and Jim Crompton, the SMB chair and vice-chair respectively, who will continue to attend PAG meetings as required.  

All SET members, with the exception of our students, can apply to join PAG, through an open and transparent recruitment process, as vacancies arise. You can find out more about the work of PAG on the SET website, including details of any current vacancies and how to apply.