Skip to content
6 June 2026

New employer incentives will form part of ‘apprenticeship guarantee’, claims ESFA director

The Education and Skills Funding Agency’s director for apprenticeships has revealed that discussions are underway with Treasury about what “incentives” they can give employers as part of the prime minister’s “apprenticeship guarantee” pledge. Peter Mucklow revealed the first bit of detail of how the proposal might work during an Association of Employment and Learning Providers […]

New ESFA apprenticeships director pledges ‘collaboration, communication, and clarity’ with the sector

The Education and Skills Funding Agency’s new director for apprenticeships has pledged more “collaboration, communication, and clarity” as he bids to “strengthen relationships” with training providers. Statements on building greater partnerships have this afternoon been published by Peter Mucklow, Association of Colleges boss David Hughes, and Association of Employment and Learning Providers chief executive Mark […]

ESFA launch second round of supplier relief to run July to October

The Education and Skills Funding Agency has today launched its second Covid-19 provider relief scheme. FE providers can now bid to receive apprenticeship and adult education budget funding in advance of delivery for the period July to October 2020. The first supplier relief scheme was run from April to June and resulted in a third […]

Shadow education secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey sacked

The shadow education secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey has been sacked by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer. A spokesperson for Starmer said she had been “asked to step down” after sharing an article that “contained an antisemitic conspiracy theory”. Earlier today, Long-Bailey shared an interview with actor Maxine Peake in the Independent, in which Peake claimed that […]

College to axe 107 jobs after ‘short-sighted’ DfE rejects Covid support plea

A college in Yorkshire is to make over 100 staff redundant and its principal has branded the government “short-sighted” after their apprenticeship Covid provider relief application was rejected. Bradford College, which almost went bust last year, is aiming to save £1.5 million through a restructure that involves winding down two of its subsidiary companies to […]

Apprenticeship starts continue to plummet since lockdown, new data reveals

Apprenticeship starts have dropped by almost half since lockdown compared to the same period last year, according to new Department for Education figures. Provisional data published today shows that from March 23 to May 31 there were 26,090 starts compared to the 50,050 reported between those months in 2019 – a fall of 47.9 per […]

College sector could lose £2bn out of £7bn next year, claims AoC boss

Total income across colleges in England could fall by £2 billion next year as the “enormous impact” of Covid-19 bites, the chief executive of their membership body has said. Association of Colleges boss David Hughes revealed the prediction during an education select committee hearing this morning in which he added the government “must must must” […]

The reformed apprenticeship system need not fail the young and disadvantaged

It should come as no surprise that the reformed apprenticeship system has been found to be failing young disadvantaged people. At FE Week we, and many others, predicted young people would be hit hardest in the move to the employer-led levy-funded system introduced in 2017. Today the Social Mobility Commission joins the voices calling for […]