FE Week Reporter | FE Week

Shadow minister’s care blow for FE leaders

The Shadow minister for Education has “disappointed” FE leaders after casting doubt on colleges’ ability to “care and support” 14-year-olds recruited full-time from schools. Labour MP Karen Buck’s comments came at AoC’s annual conference when she was asked if she supported government proposals that could see pupils directly funded to complete a mixture of GCSEs […]

Report warned of merger costs

A cash-strapped college that recently got a government warning about its finances went ahead with a “costly” merger despite a report critical of the move, it has emerged. Under-fire K College, in Kent, has a £6.4m deficit and in August became the first provider to get a government warning that could lead to the withdrawal […]

Martin Doel, chief executive, Association of Colleges

On the day he should have been sitting his maths A level, Martin Doel was in hospital after being hit by a cricket ball. And it wasn’t the first or last time sport got in the way of his studies. Growing up in Romsey, Hampshire, he spent most of his time playing “football, rugby, cricket, […]

Women ‘not at’ FE colleges table

More taxpayers’ cash should be spent on attracting women to college governors’ boards in a bid to combat under-representation, according to the Women’s Leadership Network (WLN). The campaign group’s chair, Sally Dicketts (pictured right) said the “magnitude of the role and the need to have the right people” meant more needed to be done to […]

January exams at centre of row with watchdog

Plans to scrap staggered A-level exams and limit resit opportunities have been branded “overzealous changes” that could “thwart” learning. The Institute for Learning (IfL) hit out after exam watchdog Ofqual announced that from September next year students in England would no longer be able to sit papers in January, and from 2014 candidates would get […]

January exams at centre of row with watchdog

Bosses to get place at heart of Richard Review

Employers are set to figure at the heart of a much-awaited review of apprenticeships, FE Week can exclusively reveal. Former Dragons’ Den star Doug Richard (pictured right), whose independent review is expected to be published by the end of the month, said he wanted to see “much more employer involvement” on apprenticeships. “I’ve been doing […]

New ofsted regime returns good news

The first general FE college inspection carried out under a new common inspection framework (CIF) has returned a good grading, while positives also emerged from the first re-inspection. Ofsted inspectors armed with the new CIF gave City College Plymouth two days’ notice for an inspection between October 1 and 5. They judged the 17,000-learner college […]

Get set, it’s time for The Skills Show

The LG Arena in Birmingham will host a glittering ceremony on Wednesday night to mark the start of the first Skills Show. Hundreds of the UK’s most talented young people will have spent the weekend cramming in a vital last bit of practice before their skills are put to the test in their bid to […]