A new improvement body dedicated to the development of the further education and skills sector was officially named on Tuesday 10 June 2008. The new organisation will be known as the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS) – dedicated to development.

The name was announced at the first summer conference hosted jointly by the Centre for Excellence in Leadership (CEL) and the Quality Improvement Agency for Lifelong Learning (QIA). LSIS will bring together the work of CEL and QIA to support leadership development and excellence in the sector.

Bill Rammell MP, Minister of State for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education, said, "The further education and skills sector has a huge job to do in helping individuals, employers and communities gain the skills they need. The Learning and Skills Improvement Service has a vital role to play in the continuing improvement of the whole system by supporting strategic reform and taking leadership and improvement in the sector forward in a radically different way. It must build on the legacies of QIA and CEL and work with the Single Voice to give the further education sector a real say in the type of support that it receives."

Dame Ruth Silver DBE, chair of LSIS, announced that Roger McClure had been appointed as chief executive of the new body, and that its board members would be Paul Head, Keith Brooker, David McNulty, Asha Khemka, Neil Bates, Simon Withey, Wally Brown, Christine Braddock, Ann Robinson, Bill Moorcroft, Stella Mbubaegbu and Meredydd David.

"I am pleased to say that the new board is truly representative of the excellent learning and skills sector," said Dame Ruth, "and I believe that LSIS and the sector will benefit enormously from their diverse experience, varied perspectives, complementary skills and vast expertise.

"We have an exciting time ahead of us, and I would like to thank the CEL and QIA leadership teams and staff, as well as various supporters and stakeholders, for helping us reach this stage in creating a sector-led body whose focus is on developing excellent FE provision for the benefit of learners, employers and communities. As we launch a period of consultation on the revised National Improvement Strategy and our role in that, I am confident that we are listening to and will be able to deliver what the sector wants."