Expert Contributor | FE Week

How can we get more adults to learn?

We are already looking at the supply of skills training, writes Fiona Aldridge. Now we need to encourage people to want grow these skills. In yet another busy news week for the sector, it can be easy to miss some of the most interesting developments, especially when they’re launched without the major fanfare of an […]

Hitting the targets, missing the point

While apprenticeship starts have risen for ethnic minorities and those with learning difficulties, much of their progress has been through reduced opportunities for others, laments Fiona Aldridge Last week’s figures showing a decline in the number of apprenticeship starts continue to make headlines, both in and beyond the sector. Average monthly starts are currently 17 […]

Prevent is preventing education

The crude imposition of Prevent in colleges has created a with-us-or-against-us mentality, running roughshod over the British value of tolerance, argues Rania Hafez At the beginning of the academic year as my second-year students were streaming in, I noticed one of the lads sporting a slightly bushier beard, and found myself wondering whether it was […]

Apprenticeships must not accredit existing knowledge

The apprenticeship levy was a brave move for a Conservative government. But unless it gets to grips with apprenticeships now, a generation of young people will be the big losers, warns Conor Ryan The government says it wants to see three million more apprenticeships by 2020. Promises of improved quality, and the push on large […]

Industrial strategy: what’s missing is what matters

Given the challenges the UK’s society and economy now faces, the industrial strategy is a rather small, faltering step, according to Professor Ewart Keep The industrial strategy, launched on a day when the UK media was obsessing about the engagement of the man fifth in line to the throne, did not appear trailing clouds of […]

How to increase apprenticeship starts

The levy has had more than its share of teething problems, but it’s not time to bin it yet, says Kathleen Henehan The apprenticeship levy got off to a troubling start: figures show a 59-per-cent fall in starts during its first three months. This seems to confirm fears that it would place incentives into the hands of large employers who don’t typically […]

What is Core Maths and why is funding it so important?

The chancellor has announced £600 for each additional student studying maths at level three. Paul Glaister, explains why core maths is such an important qualification After nearly four years of much hard work to introduce a qualification that will enable far more learners to develop the mathematical, quantitative and statistical skills to be better prepared […]

Hammond, take care where you sprinkle the skills cash

With the UK’s poor economic forecast doing few favours to the skills budget, government must ensure it’s putting money into policies that will actually raise overall productivity, argues Sandra McNally While the chancellor acknowledged the importance of education and skills in his budget speech, the bleak outlook for the economy makes it difficult for him […]

Stop trying to control colleges, Corbyn!

Politicians need to stop vying for control of FE and instead focus on accountability, writes Ali Hadawi Last week Jeremy Corbyn uttered words that made some college principals’ hearts sink. While he was generally very supportive of the sector in his speech to the Association of Colleges’ national conference, he also harked back to pre-incorporation […]