Billy Camden | FE Week

Ofsted reveals key findings from FE visits during pandemic

Ofsted has today published a summary of what they found during their first “interim visits” of colleges and training providers that are taking place this autumn. A total of 36 providers were visited between September and October – the majority of which (22, or 61 per cent), were previously judged as ‘requires improvement’. While the […]

DfE seeks views on ‘undervalued’ level 2 and below quals market

The Department for Education has launched a call for evidence to find out what is “working well” with qualifications at level 2 and below. It is part of the government’s review that seeks to simplify England’s “confusing” vocational and technical qualifications landscape by removing funding for those qualifications that compete with T Levels and A-levels. […]

Birmingham provider drops adult education budget high court fight

The first ever court battle to challenge a failed adult education budget application has been dropped. East Birmingham Community Forum (EBCF) has withdrawn its case against the West Midlands Combined Authority following “discussions with our legal counsel”. The training provider previously claimed it was wrongly denied a fair run at securing a slice of £28 […]

College paid £3.5m dividend following Saudi venture exit

A college exploring merger options has used a multi-million-pound exit dividend from an international venture to make a staff pay award and to repay a government bailout. Portsmouth-based Highbury College signed up to the Saudi Arabian Colleges of Excellence programme in 2013 and launched the International Technical Female College in Jeddah, a female vocational training […]

Lockdown letdown: Union slams decision not to close colleges

A teaching union has accused the government of putting staff and student safety “at risk” by keeping colleges open during November’s national lockdown and called for campuses to close “wherever possible”. But one principal has defended Whitehall’s decision, claiming that colleges have now been made Covid-secure and the emotional impact of isolation is more profound […]

Revealed: The number of bids in ESFA’s traineeships tender

The government’s much-anticipated traineeships tender received 370 bids – a fraction of the number that had been anticipated by some in the sector. The Education and Skills Funding Agency finally launched the bidding process for 19-to-24 traineeship funding on October 7, which was run on an “accelerated” timetable with a deadline for bids set for […]

Pulling together to maintain apprenticeship quality

We are in a stronger position going into this second lockdown, and alongside the challenges there are positive ways in which we can help reduce the impact on students and apprentices, writes Jennifer Coupland I would like to start by acknowledging the huge challenges that everyone involved with apprenticeships faces as we approach a second […]

Colleges and universities should collaborate not fight a ‘turf war’

David Hughes responds to vice-chancellor of Nottingham Trent University Edward Peck’s call for ‘applied universities’, not FE Colleges, to drive the country’s technical skills revolution There’s a lot to like in Edward Peck’s essay for Policy Exchange – “Technical Breakthrough Delivering Britain’s higher-level skills” – but there are also a few arguments and conclusions I […]

Apprenticeship assessment flexibilities extended

Special measures that have enabled 25,000 apprentices to complete their end-point assessment during the Covid-19 pandemic will be retained until at least March 2021. The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education’s chief executive Jennifer Coupland will tell delegates watching the Skills World Live Apprenticeships conference tomorrow that the extension has been granted in light of the […]