FE Week Reporter | FE Week

Prison teachers ‘must get the support and resources to help learners’

Prison learning practitioners attended a conference organised by the Prisoner Learning Alliance (PLA) last month. Alexandra Marks outlines the FE and skills sector concerns that emerged. Ofsted Inspector Stephen Miller, addressing a conference of 200 delegates including prison education professionals and managers, highlighted many challenges to those teaching in prisons — classes fluctuating as prisoners […]

Colleges: so much more than classrooms

One of last month’s interesting discussions was with colleagues from the Association of Colleges (AoC) and our own sports development manager around the increased promotion of fitness and wellbeing to students. Any readers who’ve met me will have registered that I’ve hardly got the physique of a great athlete, and they’d be right. Captaining my […]

Edition 101: Neil Fowkes

Former Rolls-Royce apprenticeships learning and development manager Neil Fowkes has been appointed director of apprenticeships and engineering at Derby College. Mr Fowkes studied at Mackworth Tertiary College, which is now part of Derby College during his own apprenticeship, and has worked in engineering for the past 27 years, initially at International Combustion and then Rolls-Royce. […]

Lorna Fitzjohn, director of FE and skills, Ofsted

She is charged with keeping England’s FE colleges and independent learning providers on their toes, but Lorna Fitzjohn hasn’t let go of her rural roots. The new Ofsted director for FE and skills, who replaced Matthew Coffey last month, says she still takes time off in lambing season and enjoys helping out on the working […]

Careers advice report shows ‘how little’ a quality service would cost

A new report which puts an annual cost on a “benchmarked” careers guidance provision in schools has been welcomed by the Association of Colleges (AoC) as showing “how little” the service would hit taxpayers. In the report, PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP presents the findings of a costing exercise, and reveals providing a careers service which reaches eight […]

Higher apprenticeships in line for UCas applications

The University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCas) has welcomed an invitation for talks on promoting higher apprenticeships. The organisation, which already matches learners to some higher-level FE courses under the banner of UCas Progress, responded to a call from Business Secretary Vince Cable for it to cover higher apprenticeships. Dr Cable, during a University of […]

Workplace bosses get provider rating website

Employers will be able to anonymously rate, review and compare providers using an online tool launched by Ofsted. Employer View allows staff to share their thoughts on providers they have worked with, and find out what other employers think about any provider which trains it’s employees, apprentices and work placement or work experience staff. The […]

Just seven learners at college used FE ‘TripAdvisor’

Ofsted has defended its TripAdvisor-style website where learners review providers after it emerged that just seven learners at a college inspected in March had logged on to share their views since the start of the academic year. The education watchdog launched Learner View, which allows learners to rate their provider, in September 2012 — and […]

Hopes for traineeship boost with employment pilot

Skills Minister Matthew Hancock has revealed hopes for 5,000 new traineeships through the employer ownership pilot (EOP) scheme. He said National Grid, Everton Football Club, Somerset-based electrical installation firm Rogers Restorations, and Berkshire-based construction and engineering firm Costain aimed to create the traineeships. The announcement was made during the Minister’s speech at a UK Commission […]