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11 April 2026

Schools to stay open for ‘key workers’ and vulnerable children only

All schools in England are to be closed to most students from Friday in response to the coronavirus outbreak. They will stay open for “key workers” and vulnerable children only. This year’s summer exam series and SATs tests will also not go ahead, with ministers pledging to work with the exams regulator “to ensure children […]

First college in England announces phased closure

The first college in England to close campuses and move to online learning in response to the Coronavirus outbreak has been revealed. The Sheffield College said today that all students and the “majority” of staff will study and work remotely by this Friday, March 20, at the latest. A statement from the college said its […]

Coronavirus: AoC boss calls for emergency funding to keep colleges afloat

College leaders are demanding emergency financial support be made available to keep them afloat during the Coronavirus pandemic. Association of Colleges boss David Hughes has written to education secretary Gavin Williamson today to call for “simple, rapid and clear routes” for his members to secure cashflow support. He estimates that an average college might lose […]

Ofsted brand 1,000 civil service apprenticeship programme with KPMG as ‘inadequate’

One of the ‘big four’ accounting firms that trains nearly 1,000 civil service apprentices has been slammed as ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted. KPMG Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) has now been banned from the apprenticeships market as a result of a damning grade four report published today. A catalogues of issues, including a lack of unbiased careers […]

Coronavirus: AoC Sport National Championships 2020 cancelled

The upcoming AoC Sport National Championships has been called off due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. The annual event was due to take place from 24 to 26 April and would have included more than 2,000 college student athletes, staff and volunteers from across the country. In addition, all college sporting competitions organised by AoC […]

Former ESFA boss to chair Student Loans Company

Former Education and Skills Funding Agency chief executive Peter Lauener has been appointed as chair of the Student Loans Company (SLC). The civil service veteran will take on the role alongside his other commitment as chair of both NCG ­– one of England’s largest college groups – and the Construction Industry Training Board. Lauener was […]

Statement: Festival of Education 2020 cancelled

Due to the uncertainty around the coronavirus outbreak, this year’s Festival of Education will be cancelled. A full statement from the event’s organisers – which includes FE Week’s publisher LSECT – and important details on refunds can be read below. The Festival, at Wellington College, was first held in June 2010. This will be first […]

Entrepreneur tops MBA apprenticeship table with £3m starts in September

  The controversial level 7 senior leader apprenticeship has again hit the headlines in recent days, after the education secretary questioned whether the £18,000 levy-funded MBA was “value for money”. The programme is traditionally associated with high profile universities running courses for executives in the corporate sector. But FE Week found it is an entrepreneur […]