Author: Billy Camden

A principal at the centre of a college expenses scandal has been suspended, FE Week can reveal. Stella Mbubaegbu is no longer running Highbury College following intervention from the FE Commissioner this week, who has now moved the college into “supervised college status”. The college’s chair, Tim Mason, is also set to step down and […]

The well-known leader of a high-profile college has announced his intention to retire after more than 11 years at the helm. Lowell Williams (pictured), one of the government’s national leaders of further education, will step down from his role as chief executive of Dudley College of Technology in January to “follow new opportunities”. He will […]

Labour’s commitment to fully funding beginner and “second-chance” short adult education courses has been questioned, after the political party left it out of their lifelong learning announcements. In a speech in Blackpool tomorrow, shadow education secretary Angela Rayner will commit to enabling any adult without an A-level or equivalent level 3 qualification to attend college […]

Another eight apprenticeship providers have been stopped from doing new business after being rapped by Ofsted. The penalties were revealed in the latest update to the register of apprenticeship training providers, released today by the Education and Skills Funding Agency. In accordance with ESFA rules, any new provider found to be making ‘insufficient progress’ in […]

The Lib Dems have pledged to give every adult in England £10,000 to put towards education and training. In what the party called a “new era of learning throughout life”, the cash would be placed into a “skills wallet” over a 30-year period. They would put £4,000 in there by the age of 25, £3,000 […]

A college locked in a legal battle with a Nigerian state has substantially lowered its expectations about recovering the £1.4 million it claims to be owed. Confidential board minutes for Highbury College in Portsmouth, Hampshire, have been obtained by FE Week and show that leaders believe they have a “medium opportunity” of recouping just £872,000. […]

Sir Gerry Berragan’s reign at the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) will end this month as he makes way for civil service veteran Jennifer Coupland. The incoming chief executive is a familiar face to the FE sector having worked in the Department for Education (DfE) for more than 20 years. Her application, on […]

Ofqual is beefing up its compliance teams as part of a crackdown on awarding bodies following high-profile mishaps and hefty fines. The exams regulator is looking to fill three “exciting new roles” with candidates who are experienced auditors. The “managers of compliance”, who will be paid up to £45,000 a year, will “plan, lead and […]

The Conservatives have promised to rectify a misleading claim it has made about further education in the build-up to the general election. In a post on the political party’s website (pictured above), a page called ‘share the facts’ states: “We have already opened 12 Institutes of Technology, but too many areas of the country don’t […]