Author: FE Week Reporter

The government go-ahead for FE colleges to recruit 14-year-olds from school is to be applauded, says Mike Hopkins The government’s decision to let FE colleges recruit 14-year-olds from schools is great news for students and FE. A good number of students will benefit from high-quality vocational learning while continuing a broad education within the national […]

Colleges and partnerships need each other to make sure that local accountability improves rather than undermines the emphasis on employment skills, says Lynne Sedgmore The Autumn Statement promises that the government will “seek to increase the proportion of spending that is awarded through the single funding pot for transport, housing, skills and getting people back […]

An award-winning programme to support race equality and career development should become part of the mainstream, not just an add-on, says Rajinder Mann Whether you are a high-achieving lecturer with your sights set on being a college principal or a young offender with a determination to quit crime, you share a number of basic needs […]

The success of a college needs to be measured in broader terms than success rates alone, says Daniel Khan When I was a principal of a large college of FE and HE, my managers, governors and I looked at the chief inspector’s annual report  to give us a qualitative position of the sector and one […]

Partnerships are the right groups to bind together local employers and FE, says David Frost The Chancellor’s Autumn Statement makes it clear that local enterprise partnerships are being positioned as the body to drive forward local economic growth. There is a growing understanding at the heart of government that while it has a responsibility to […]

The Autumn Statement proposals for skills policies and strategies may turn out to be less benign than they appear, says Steve Sawbridge Colleges must adapt to a new landscape following the Chancellor’s implicit support for local employer partnerships (LEPs). The Independent Commission on Colleges in their Communities noted with concern that the pace of development […]