By Charlene Kelly

LAUDER COLLEGE in Dunfermline is likely to lose more than a third of its annual income from skills training with a Stirling company set to snatch two of its New Deal government training contracts, The Courier can reveal.

The move, which is expected to be confirmed on Friday, will not only mean Fife will be stripped of vital education and training provision but could result in job losses throughout the region.

Until now, Lauder College was in charge of the Gateway to Work and Self Employment schemes which are run at various Employment And Enterprise centres in Fife such as Thomson House in Methil, New Row in Dunfermline and also through the Benarty Regeneration Action Group (BRAG) in Crosshill.

Some time ago, however, the Government ordered that the New Deal contracts go out to tender and, as a result, Triage Central Ltd, of Stirling, has been informed it is the “preferred bidder.”

A Triage spokeswoman confirmed this but added that the company would not know if it had won the contract until the end of the week.

A Lauder College spokesman said the college was “at real risk” of losing the contracts.

“We regret that we find ourselves in this situation. As a result of changes in the external operating environment, and policy changes at a national level we are no longer the preferred provider of employability services for these contracts,” he said.

“We can confirm that accounts for over one third of our annual income in our Levenmouth and New Row Employment and Enterprise centres.

“It is our intention to continue to develop our centres in Dunfermline and Methil to meet the needs of the local economy, and to work with our Fife partners to continue to build upon the excellent foundations established over recent years.

“We trust that this will not impact adversely on customers and partners other than those falling into the New Deal category.

“In addition we will work with new partners to ensure that our customers, past, present and future, have the best possible opportunities to benefit from the services we provide to the people of Fife.”

BRAG manager John Oates said he was disappointed that the New Deal contracts could be taken over by a company outside of Fife.

“We have been successfully running the Gateway to Work with Lauder College for over four years now.

“If Triage do win the contract, it could lead to six immediate redundancies here at first and more could follow.”

Fife councillor David Alexander said he was “gravely concerned” about the implications of external companies taking contracts away from Fife.

“The colleges here know what is required, they know the area and the people and therefore they should be left in charge of the contracts.”

John O’Brien, from the Lee O’Brien Solvent Trust (LOST), also spoke out against the possibility of the contracts being run outside Fife.

“Levenmouth has been an unemployment blackspot for too long and the Employment And Enterprise centre in Methil has been doing a brilliant job in the area’s regeneration.

“Fife simply cannot afford to lose these contracts. They must be safeguarded and we have to stand up and say to external companies and the Government, hands off local issues.”

Mr O’Brien said he had been informed that Chancellor Gordon Brown had lodged an appeal against the contracts being taken away from Lauder but Mr Brown’s spokesman was unavailable to confirm this.

Just two weeks ago, the Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath MP announced the New Deal jobs scheme would be expanded to improve workers’ skills.

Losing the two New Deal contracts would have a detrimental knock-on effect on other Lauder College services and could lead to the closure of their Employment And Enterprise centres in Forth Valley.

A college spokesman admitted the jobs of 17 staff are at risk as the result of “fundamental external changes in our operating environment.”

He said, “After committing considerable effort and energy looking at how we can make our centres in Forth Valley financially viable, it is with deep regret that we have to announce that we have formally entered into a five-week period of consultation that will likely result in the closure of our centres in this area.”

He added, “Over the course of the next five weeks we will be doing our utmost to offer assistance to the 17 staff concerned to investigate all possible routes open for them.”