News

Revealed: The winners and losers in the £170m Institutes of Technology competition

The Department for Education has today unveiled the colleges and universities in line for a share of £170m in…

Jessica Fino
Jessica Fino
News

Bidders remain in the dark as DfE delays Institutes of Technology tender results

The Institutes of Technology tender has fallen behind schedule, with the final 16 providers left waiting to be told…

Jessica Fino
Jessica Fino
Feature, News

The principal who took over two failed colleges and came out smiling

Mike Hopkins has more experience than most principals of overseeing college mergers. In January of this year South and…

Catherine Murray
Catherine Murray
News

Revealed: The 34 colleges with £270m of government loans and bailouts last year

The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) has revealed the colleges with millions in government loans and bailouts. According…

Simon Kay
Simon Kay
News

Chartered Institute of FE admits to having no employees

The Chartered Institution for Further Education has been left with no employees after its CEO quietly stood down in…

Jessica Fino
Jessica Fino
News

Two years since the levy launched, skills minister reflects on success of a ‘carrot and stick’ policy

Employers with a payroll of £3 million or more made their first monthly apprenticeship levy payment in April 2017…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden


News

Ofsted watch: UTC jumps from ‘inadequate’ to ‘good’

A university technical college was celebrating this week after it climbed its way up from ‘inadequate’ to ‘good’, while…

Jessica Fino
Jessica Fino
News

Universities and training providers clash on apprenticeship priorities

It is “entirely unacceptable” to expect public sector employers to subsidise low-level apprenticeships for chefs and hairdressers, a university…

Jessica Fino
Jessica Fino
News

Overspend: GLA warns of risk to AEB devo project

The Greater London Authority has denied that devolution of the adult education budget is at risk due to spiralling…

Jessica Fino
Jessica Fino
News

It’s FE Week wot won it: 5 month mystery of missing £300k levy ‘resolved’ by ESFA

The Education and Skills Funding Agency has finally returned £300,000 to a large high-profile employer within hours of FE…

Jessica Fino
Jessica Fino
News

Third of apprentices on standards not ready for planned end-point assessment in 2017/18

One-third of apprentices on standards were not ready for their planned end-point assessment last year, the government has revealed….

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Investigation by statistics watchdog after ESFA lists ‘unreliable’ providers

The country’s national statistics regulator is investigating whether the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s apprenticeship achievement rate data can…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden

Must read

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
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