Apprenticeships, Training Providers

Defence giant Babcock offloads part of its training business

New training provider Inspiro has launched following the sale of Babcock’s ‘non-core’ training business and closure of its assessment…

Shane Chowen
Shane Chowen
Colleges

Another bailout for troubled college with merger in sight

But the college has been stung by a £500k AEB clawback

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Apprenticeships

DfE’s website rejects apprenticeship adverts for using ‘head’ and ‘man’

Officials are ‘urgently’ investigating the vacancies site

Jason Noble
Jason Noble
Apprenticeships, Colleges, Subcontracting

College fails to file accounts for fourth year

Union raises transparency concerns and calls on leaders to open up the books

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Ofsted

Ofsted suspends ‘independent’ scrutiny panels

Inspectorate accused of ‘marking its own work’

Billy Camden
Amy Walker and Jessica Hill
Apprenticeships

Care leaver apprentice bursary to triple to £3,000

DfE also pledges to support local authorities to recruit up to 500 new child and family social worker apprentices

Tallulah Taylor
Tallulah Taylor


Colleges

Green light for religious sixth form colleges to academise

New regulations finally pave way for Catholic sixth form colleges to convert

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Higher education, Lifelong Learning

Lifelong loan laws laid in Parliament

Ministers will create a new system of credits and fee caps to regulate how much providers can charge for…

Shane Chowen
Shane Chowen
Ofsted

‘Insufficient’ prison officer apprenticeships found at Sodexo

Firm is under threat of suspension on new apprentice starts after Ofsted new provider monitoring inspection

Jason Noble
Jason Noble
Colleges, Ofsted

College hits back at Ofsted after grade 3

The inspectorate published the report despite an ongoing challenge

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Politics

‘Morale is at an all-time low’: Keegan’s DfE staff go on strike

Civil servants joined teachers on the day of strike action, saying: ‘You can’t run public services unless you fund…

Tom Belger
Tom Belger
Colleges

Bite-size finance guides issued for colleges following reclassification

Colleges given guidance on senior pay controls, write-offs and severance payments following reclassification

Jason Noble
Jason Noble

Must read

Colleges, Long read

Colleges on the frontline of a divided nation

As social media algorithms fuel intolerance and binary thinking, college staff increasingly find themselves dealing with the fallout. Jessica…

Jessica Hill
Jessica Hill
Colleges, Long read

Alun Francis, chair of the Social Mobility Commission

Deprived areas need vision – not victimhood – to level up, and Social Mobility Commission chair Alun Francis is…

Jessica Hill
Jessica Hill
Long read, Prison education

The prison that’s offering hope for a new life upon release

‘We’re saving people’s lives as well as turning them around’

Jessica Hill
Jessica Hill
Apprenticeships, Politics

Phillipson to exempt young people from level 7 apprenticeships funding axe

Education secretary makes ‘important concession’ amid backlash from other government departments

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Colleges, FE Commissioner

Weston chair felt powerless over £2.5m payments to former principal

Ex-Weston college chair gives tell-all interview following FE Commissioner probe

Anviksha Patel
Anviksha Patel
Colleges

Weston College governance failure allowed ‘concealment’ of £2.5m payments to former principal

Paul Phillips was paid £1.8m in 2023, including a ‘significant’ six-figure retention payment which his COO son ‘resisted’ paying…

Anviksha Patel
Anviksha Patel