Tutors in hot water over tea breaks

A SHEFFIELD training company has asked council bosses to intervene after auditors heavily criticised its tutors – for allowing students to have tea breaks. Sheffield Positive Action Training Consortium is based in the Wicker and provides training in IT, basic engineering and computer maintenance for black and ethnic minority communities.

It also teaches English and numeracy to asylum seekers, refugees, and people with dyslexia and has run many successful courses over 10 years.

Bosses at SPATC say they are baffled by what they call "extraordinary and absurd criticism" from auditors.

The auditors are sent in by The Voluntary and Community Sector Training Consortium, known as VC Train. It is based in Rotherham and its assessors check courses are being run properly.

SPATC says it has always had a good relationship with the assessors but recently things have changed dramatically.

Chris Searle, from SPATC, told a council meeting: "We have helped to teach English and other vital subjects over the past decade and we have always had a very cordial relationship with our auditors at VC Training.

"We have had many good and useful conversations with the assessors who have been very supportive.

"But a few months ago there was a change in the regime and management and suddenly we have started to get a completely different response.

"We can't understand why, as little has changed with our work.

"We have had some extraordinary criticisms, such as students shouldn't have tea breaks and we are wrong to use computers to teach literacy and numeracy.

"They have also criticised our tutors which is absurd as many are in the education and university system.

"We would like the council's support in trying to find out exactly what has changed."

Council leader Paul Scriven said he was "perplexed" by VC Train's attitude.

He said: "SPATC has given individuals real skills over many years and through them they have gone on to be active citizens in Sheffield.

"SPATC employs professors from York and Manchester universities, so to say they are not qualified just doesn't stack up. VC Train's auditors didn't even go into the classrooms to watch them.

"SPATC provides a superb service and I will personally write to VC Training. We will also look at ways to make sure SPATC's excellent work continues."

VC Train were unavailable for comment.