Author: Alix Robertson

The Learning and Work Institute will make its formal debut tomorrow with a launch event in London’s Canary Wharf. The new organisation brings together the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (Niace) and the Centre for Economic & Social Inclusion (Inclusion), though no staff members from either body have been or will be laid off as […]

Skills minister Nick Boles has agreed to visit a Kent skills centre following an invitation from the local MP who proposed the site as a potential new FE college. Mr Boles accepted an invitation to visit the Swale Skills Centre in response to a parliamentary question from Gordon Henderson, Conservative MP for Sittingbourne and Sheppey, […]

With Dr David Collins receiving a knighthood and Association of Colleges (AoC) chief executive Martin Doel gaining a CBE , there’s no doubt that FE was well represented when the awards were announced. More than 20 sector-related figures were awarded, and one of the less widely known but equally deserving figures was Sally Cooke whose career in making technology accessible has […]

A studio school run by Bradford College will close next summer due to low pupil numbers, it has been announced. The Bradford Studio School, run by the Bradford College Educational Trust (BCET), will close next summer, according to a report in the Telegraph and Argus. The school was Britain’s first specialist travel and hospitality industry training […]

The FE Commissioner’s 2014/15 annual report found a number of examples of good practice in colleges across the country, particularity in response to the outcomes of the government’s area reviews so far. These included board members recognising gaps in their own skill sets and seeking “qualified financial expertise” and “significant local employer input”, and positive efforts from interim senior leaders […]

A minority of colleges are still failing to address areas of concern identified last year, FE Commissioner David Collins has warned. In his 2014/15 annual report, Dr Collins said challenges already dealt-with by most providers were still proving problematic for others. He said the interventions undertaken in 2014/15 suggested that there were “still a number of problems […]

The government’s apprenticeship levy may lead to “significant” job losses, the new head of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has said. Carolyn Fairbairn, director-general of the CBI, said that the 0.5 per cent levy could potentially lead firms to let workers go in an interview with the Sunday Times yesterday (December 20). Ms Fairbairn, who […]

Leeds City College is looking to take on a new apprenticeship subcontractor for up to £400,000-worth of provision, despite a Skills Funding Agency plea to the sector to run more of the training directly. The college has posted the invitation to tender on the gov.uk ‘Contracts Finder’ site. It said that the college “is seeking […]