Abstract
This analysis of government policy and discourse on further education (FE) is similar to many other recent policy studies, in that it tries to make sense of the background to the incorporation of colleges in 1993 and the aftermath in terms of developments in funding, management, learning, teaching and general mission. It is, however, different and unique in at least two main ways: first, it investigates the sector by drawing parallels between the 1944 settlement on education and recent trends in FE and, secondly, it foregrounds policy discourse and 'the power which governmental discourse can have in determining action' (p.x).