Author: Billy Camden

The government has revealed plans for its first ever FE workforce survey exclusively for non-colleges to better understand the challenges they face, including new policy areas such as T-levels. A tender was launched by the Department for Education on Monday, which seeks a contractor to design, test and deliver a “nationally representative” survey of teaching […]

A college that saw its Ofsted grade slip two years ago while it battled with deteriorating finances has got its ‘good’ rating back following a mega-merger. Bournville College was warned by former FE Commissioner David Collins of its “hand-to-mouth” financial situation in 2014 and was downgraded by the inspectorate to ‘requires improvement’ overall and ‘inadequate’ […]

The government has begun inviting providers to reapply to its refreshed apprenticeship provider register – with the first group told it must do so by the end of next month or face being kicked off. All 2,571 organisations currently on the register will be segmented into groups and told to reapply throughout this year – […]

A month-long FE Week investigation has uncovered a trail of insolvency and debt left by two businessmen, David Harper and Mark Hargreaves, who’ve created a complex web of companies involving Talent Training and AMS Nationwide which received millions in apprenticeship funding from the government. Questions are now being raised over why a multinational employer, Santander, […]

The Institute for Apprenticeships is seeking input from providers, awarding organisations and employers on the draft content for five more T-level pathways. The new consultation is for courses in building services engineering, digital business services, health, healthcare science, and science, which are expected to be taught from September 2021 in wave two of the T-levels […]

The police will only decide whether to launch a criminal investigation into disgraced apprenticeship firm Aspire Achieve Advance after the Department for Education “has completed its work”. Derbyshire Constabulary started making enquiries into the defunct company, better known as 3aaa, on October 11, following a referral from Action Fraud. The case was passed on by […]

The AELP is urging the government to give “flexibility” to providers who make “reasonable efforts” to claim apprenticeship employer contributions, after plans to withhold completion payments for non-compliance were revealed. The Education and Skills Funding Agency announced a clampdown on employers who fail to pay the 10 per cent co-investment fee last month. A change […]

The survival of another outsourcing giant that trains “around 14,000 apprentices each year” appears to hang in the balance, after its shares plummeted amid its attempts to secure a second rescue deal. Interserve, an international support services and construction group which runs a large UK training provider called Interserve Learning and Employment Ltd, is desperately […]

The government’s flagship National Citizen Service trust has been slammed after its rent ballooned by more than ten-fold to over £1 million last year, following a move to new offices in west Kensington. The trust, set up by former prime minister David Cameron (pictured) as part of his “Big Society” agenda in 2011, also missed […]