News

Ofsted can’t keep up with the growth in apprentices, MPs hear

Fears that Ofsted can’t keep up with the UK’s massive apprenticeships expansion have been raised before MPs, a day…

Paul Offord
Paul Offord
News

Learndirect boss reveals ‘surprise’ at £45m allocation following AEB tender withdrawal

Learndirect’s boss has admitted he was “surprised” his provider was handed such a large allocation in the adult education…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Struggling college ‘expects’ £25 million bailout as university merger hits buffers

Lambeth College, which was served with a notice of concern for financial control by the Education and Skills Funding…

Jude Burke
Jude Burke
News

Super injunction meant Learndirect gagged Ofsted from speaking to ESFA

Learndirect was “bizarrely” granted a super injunction during its judicial review against Ofsted which suppressed the inspectorate from speaking…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Fears for nearly 3,000 learners as large provider folding

A Northamptonshire-based training provider with a near £2 million government skills contract is closing down, leaving nearly 3,000 learners…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Carillion, largest employer of construction apprentices, goes into liquidation

The UK’s largest employer of construction apprentices has gone into liquidation, leaving the future of hundreds of 16 to…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden


News

SPONSORED: How to prepare for the new data protection laws

Demand from our further education members for information and advice on the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has…

Features Team
Features Team
News

Milton to launch national Year of Engineering

Update, 11am, January 15: The Department for Education called FE Week to say that the minister’s visit to the National…

Jude Burke
Jude Burke
News

Chartered status: when will the government subsidies end?

The Chartered Institution for Further Education, the brainchild of the former skills minister John Hayes, was first conceived back…

Nick Linford
Nick Linford
News

Anger as ESFA dodges MPs’ scrutiny on subcontracting fees

The government has been accused of shocking double standards on transparency, admitting it probably won’t publish its long-delayed findings…

Paul Offord
Paul Offord
News

Nescot accepts former £360k a year principal was unfairly dismissed

A college has accepted that its former principal Sunaina Mann was unfairly constructively dismissed, after she brought her case…

Paul Offord
Paul Offord
News

Could Hinds’ experience make T-levels work?

Damian Hinds has been appointed as the new education secretary and, with a background including responsibility for youth employment…

Pippa Allen-Kinross
Pippa Allen-Kinross

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