News

£11k canapés help guests swallow Zahawi’s climate strategy

Taste Studios, trading as ‘The Recipe’, was given a £11,480 contract to provide the food – about £46 a…

Samantha Booth
Samantha Booth
Inclusion

The college gender gap narrows, but slowly

While the gender pay gap has improved on average at most colleges, sector leaders have said the rate of…

Will Nott
Will Nott
Teaching

College and ITP teachers will be in scope for lifetime bans, DfE confirms

Powers to issue lifetime bans for teachers guilty of serious misconduct will be extended to FE, the DfE has…

Shane Chowen
Shane Chowen
News

South-west triumphs as AoC Sport National Championships returns after 2-year absence

‘There were tears from the coaches. It’s great to see the joy in the faces of the students’

Will Nott
Will Nott
News

Missed opportunity: flagship edtech scheme ends after 2 years

The programme was a key plank of the government’s 2019 edtech strategy

Freddie Whittaker
Freddie Whittaker
Ofsted

St John Ambulance faces apprentice recruitment suspension

Ofsted found ‘insufficient’ progress at the country’s best-known first aid training charity

Will Nott
Will Nott


T Levels

Employers losing interesting in T Levels, survey reveals

5,000 employers were quizzed about their interest in offering T Level placements, apprenticeships and traineeships.

Shane Chowen
Shane Chowen
Ofsted

Auditing apprentice pay will not be part of routine inspections, Ofsted promises

Compliance will only be looked at in ‘limited circumstances’

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

DfE begs Education and Training Foundation to return up to £7.5m

The charity earned a huge, unexpected surplus on a T Levels contract

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Skills reform

Delivery challenges ahead as skills bill finally gains royal assent

New laws will bring in an official list of post-16 skills providers and rules for increased apprenticeships guidance in…

Shane Chowen
Shane Chowen
Apprenticeships

Small employer apprenticeship starts rise for first time in 5 years

But the numbers are still way off pre-pandemic and levy reform levels

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
SEND

SEND review consultation may be extended as accessible versions delayed

BSL and easy-read versions of the green paper were promised almost a month ago

Samantha Booth
Samantha Booth

Must read

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
T Levels

NAO reveals enormity of T Level take-up failure

Forecasts missed by 75% and secret DfE estimates show staff and employer shortages could limit places to 48,000 students

Anviksha Patel
Anviksha Patel
Adult education, ITPs

Mayors dump adult education cuts on independent training providers

Up to two-thirds axed from devolved procured budgets

Josh Mellor
Josh Mellor
Bootcamps, Skills bootcamps

Coding firm caught charging students for free bootcamps

Ed tech provider ‘regretful’ after complaints and promises full refunds as bosses try to sue DfE over non-payments

Billy Camden
Billy Camden and Frances Read
Apprenticeships

Entrepreneur chased for millions after apprenticeship collapse

ESFA uncovers ‘fake’ taxi apprentices as liquidator reveals intercompany payments days after firm decided to shut

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Adult education

Fury as DfE cuts adult education budgets

Combined authorities told to expect reductions in ‘already deeply diminished’ adult skills funding

Shane Chowen
Shane Chowen