Author: Billy Camden

There is “clear risk” that the apprenticeship programme is not financially sustainable after the average cost of training an apprentice hit double what the government predicted, the National Audit Office has warned. The concerning message came in a critical report published today, which said the Department for Education should assess making controversial decisions about reducing […]

Nearly half of all colleges and schools with sixth forms have had to reduce student mental health and careers support this year due to crippling 16 to 19 government funding cuts. The concerning finding, revealed in a new funding impact survey of 278 schools and colleges by the Sixth Form Colleges Association, is a substantial […]

The National Audit Office has today published its report into whether the government’s apprenticeships programme is providing value for money. It is the second report by the NAO into apprenticeships since 2016, but the first since the introduction of the levy. FE Week has the report’s main new findings:   ESFA has ‘limited assurance’ the […]

A college surviving on government bailouts faces an uncertain future after being dumped at the eleventh hour by its merger partner. City College Southampton principal, Sarah Stannard, had already made plans to stand down before Eastleigh College pulled the plug after failing to secure government cash to support the merger. Despite the situation, Stannard has […]

The national finalists of the AAC Apprenticeship Awards 2019 were recognised and celebrated at a special reception at the Houses of Parliament today. Around 150 people packed into the Terrace Pavilion for the event, which also coincided with the start of the 12th annual National Apprenticeship Week. The awards event was sponsored by the chair […]

The Department for Education has today ruled out demands for employers to be given more time to spend their apprenticeship levy funds. The decision comes as the 24 month deadline approaches in May and after the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education warned there could be an imminent levy overspend. In its ‘Nursing degree apprenticeships […]

Providers are fuming at the Education and Skills Funding Agency after officials started conducting short-notice mystery audits in the wake of the 3aaa scandal, FE Week can reveal. In what appears to be the second major investigation into achievement rate data at FE providers in the past ten years, the agency began carrying out a […]

The government has been told to “purge” its official register of end-point assessment organisations (RoEPAO) after FE Week found a sole trader and a new company with no trading history had successfully applied. Sixteen companies were added to the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s register last month, taking the total on there to 215. FE […]

England’s largest college group has paused recruitment for a new chief executive after its initial hunt proved fruitless. NCG was left without a permanent boss in October after Joe Docherty left. Docherty was one of eight high-profile principals to step down in a spate of resignations last term. He was replaced by Chris Payne, the […]