News

Leaders slam ‘unacceptable’ above-inflation 2025 exam fee rises

Heads say increases are unaffordable for schools and colleges and ‘hard to stomach’

Billy Camden
Lucas Cumiskey
Skills reform

DfE advertises for Skills England permanent chair and board

Up to £25k on offer to successful candidate for 20 days’ work a year

Josh Mellor
Josh Mellor
News

Suspended students twice as likely to be NEET by age 24, research finds

Think tank’s report puts ‘a number on the suspension employment grades gap for the first time’

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Apprenticeships, Ofsted

NHS to abandon ‘outstanding’ apprenticeship scheme in North East and Yorkshire

Regional office to ditch successful direct delivery in favour of alternative providers

Anviksha Patel
Anviksha Patel
Results 2024

Results 2024: 7 key trends from VTQ and T Level results

North West tops the table on T Level awards while engineering students most likely to struggle with industry placements

Anviksha Patel
Anviksha Patel
Results 2024

A-level results 2024: 8 key trends in England’s data

Here’s what you need to know from the second year of ‘normal’ results since the pandemic

Samantha Booth
Samantha Booth


Results 2024

A-level results 2024: A* grades rise by 8%

Top grades up slightly on last year – but huge rise in students getting three A*s

FE Week Reporter
FE Week Reporter
Results 2024

T Level results 2024: Fewer dropouts but pass rate dips below 90%

Proportion receiving top grades has also fallen significantly

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
T Levels

First T Level relicensing winners and huge contract boosts revealed 

One awarding giant decided not to re-tender at all as 4 contracts get reassigned

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Sixth form students studying narrower range of A-level subjects, report finds

Decoupling AS and A-levels looks to have hit take-up for humanities while students ‘increasingly’ choosing from single subject group

Lucas Cumiskey
Lucas Cumiskey
Colleges, Politics

Government defends college teacher pay snub

DfE says decisions on FE funding and other workforces without a pay review body will be made at the…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Colleges

Leeds FE ‘capacity crisis’ risks leaving poorest behind

A local college leader says the DfE should redirect “unused” capital funds to where they are most needed

Josh Mellor
Josh Mellor

Must read

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
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