ABSTRACT
In Britain, post-school education and training not undertaken at university has always been a haphazard affair. The tradition of further education in Britain until the 1960s was characterized by the 'night school' ethos. The majority of programme sponsors were private employers; many used the services of further education institutions to provide the 'off the job' elements of the training. Disaffection as a serious concern has appeared on the agenda of further education. Lecturing staff identify the twin demands of the new curriculum and the introduction of various forms of conscription and market-led education as the real reasons why for the first time they have to 'teach' significant numbers of unwilling students. The setting up of the Manpower Services Commission represented a radical change of direction for central government, which for the first time was attempting to link in a systematic way training provision with employment and employee needs.
