FE Week Reporter | FE Week

Louise Morritt, chief executive, One Awards

Walking the long way home after passing just two O-levels, it never occurred to Louise Morritt that she might spend decades working in the sector that was about to save her education. The chief executive of One Awards, the new name for Open College Network North East Region (OCNNER), says she thrived in the FE […]

Bright pulls out of provider market

Bright Assessing chief executive Krissy Charles-Jones (pictured) has said the firm was “no longer a training provider” after all its previous awarding organisations walked away. An email allegedly sent by a Bright employee to a learner on June 3, which was posted on a Facebook forum called the Bright Training Problem, said the Warwickshire-based firm […]

Hancock issues traineeship pledge after rule omission

Skills Minister Matthew Hancock has revealed that he would “take steps” to stop any provider delivering traineeships in less than six week after a revision to official guidance left it technically possible to run a programme in just under half that time. The revamp to the rules last month removed the minimum duration to the […]

Commissioner details fail to stop ATL questions

Questions remain over the role of the FE Commissioner despite the government having published a detailed outline of the intervention process. Association of Teachers and Lecturers general secretary Dr Mary Bousted (pictured) has accused the government of “re-inventing the wheel” when it comes to quality assurance in FE. She said: “We have serious questions about […]

College picket lines head into second week

Strike-hit Lambeth College was expected to be heading into week two of industrial action with staff having walked out in a row over contracts for new staff. The indefinite strike action by members of the University and College Union (UCU) began on Tuesday (June 3), and was set to head into its second week at […]

Teen recruitment change from EFA

Changes to direct recruitment of 14 to 16-year-olds will not make it easier for colleges to qualify, the Education Funding Agency (EFA) said. In a bulletin issued for colleges considering taking on younger learners in September, the EFA said eligibility requirements would be “unchanged other than for those colleges with an Ofsted overall effectiveness grade […]

Warning over college leader business links

College leaders have been warned to “think carefully” about their outside-of-work consultancy posts after it emerged contracts from a Norfolk federation were dished out to a firm with links to the chief executive. Dick Palmer, chief executive of the Ten (Transforming Education in Norfolk) Group, which includes City College Norwich, carried out advisory work for […]

Colleges sent back to drawing board after ‘aggressive’ renaming

Plans for a college name-change that a local MP branded “an aggressive act” towards nearby competitor colleges have been thrown out by Skills Minister Matthew Hancock’s officials. Worcester College of Technology and New (North East Worcestershire) College are merging from August and wanted to become “Worcestershire College”. But Conservative MP for Mid-Worcestershire Sir Peter Luff […]

Blinder for VQ Day learner of the year

A former Runshaw College BTec media production student now working on BBC gangster drama Peaky Blinders has been named VQ Day learner of the year. Owen Henley, aged 22, now a freelance camera assistant, was chosen from nine regional winners. Owen, who is currently working on a second series of Peaky Blinders, starring Tom Hardy […]