FE Week Reporter | FE Week

EMA replacement is inadequate and under-funded, says Barnardo’s

Young learners from disadvantaged backgrounds are being let down by the 16-19 Bursary Fund because it is inadequate, inconsistent and under-funded, according to a report by Barnardo’s. The children’s charity says the replacement for the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) is discouraging poor students from staying in further education because they are unable to pay for […]

Apprentice team of the year contest launched

Eight teams from some of the country’s most successful businesses are battling it out to become “apprentice team of the year”. The Brathay Apprentice Challenge, which kicked off today with a 10-mile whaler boat race across Dorney Lake, includes teams of apprentices from Bentley, the Co-Operative, Virgin Media and Rolls Royce. Jez Anderson from the […]

WorldSkills UK – The Skills Show announced by John Hayes MP

The skills minister announced a UK successor to the WorldSkills London 2011 competition at the House of Commons last night. The new annual showcase, named ‘WorldSkills UK – The Skills Show’, will be held at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham from November 15-17, 2012. John Hayes MP, speaking at the Parliamentary Reception for […]

LSIS hires new apprentices for National Apprenticeship Week

More than a tenth of the staff at the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS) will soon be made up by apprentices. The organisation has hired nine new apprentices to join three existing learners at the company. LSIS will soon be offering an additional two apprenticeships to make a grand total of 14 out of […]

David Cameron launches bidding for £250 million employer ownership pilot

The Prime Minister has opened the bidding for the “Employer Ownership of Skills” pilot and announced a second round of funding for higher apprenticeships. Employers can now bid for up to £250 million of direct public funding, bypassing colleges and training providers in order to deliver innovative apprenticeships and vocational training. David Cameron, speaking on […]

Commission on Youth Unemployment says more should be done to help NEETs

The ACEVO Commission on Youth Unemployment has criticised the government’s apprenticeship programme and current schemes designed to tackle youth unemployment. A new report, chaired by David Miliband MP and titled ‘Youth unemployment: The crisis we cannot afford’, says the government could be doing more to help young people who are not in education, employment or […]

Can you tell me how to get to Havering College?

Students at Havering College of Further and Higher Education were more than tickled pink when Elmo from Sesame Street’s live touring show dropped in. The irrepressible Muppet character visited the Ardleigh Green Campus in Hornchurch, Essex, to meet some of the students who will be performing alongside stars from Sesame Street at The London Palladium […]

Jayde Kirkup is the FE Week & Me competition winner

Congratulations Jayde Kirkup! We asked students to send in a 500-word article explaining what brought them to college, along with their hopes, fears and aspirations and asked you to vote for your favourite entry. Almost 350 FE Week readers voted in our online survey so a big thank you to all those who voted. It […]

Apprenticeship inquiry extends deadline for written evidence

The Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) Select Committee has extended the deadline for submitting written evidence for its apprenticeships inquiry. The new deadline, February 10, hopes to attract more responses during National Apprenticeship Week 2012. Adrian Bariley MP, Chairman of the BIS Select Committee, said: “We want to receive as much evidence as possible. “National Apprenticeship […]