Fraser Whieldon | FE Week

‘How is this fair?’: Ofsted pause leaves grade 3 colleges excluded from £18m Fund

College principals are in uproar over being excluded from yet another government fund because they are stuck with a poor Ofsted grade, with no way to improve. Last week, the Department for Education revealed grade three colleges would not be eligible for the new £18 million Growth Fund to expand provision of higher technical qualifications […]

Principals launch ‘Good for ME, Good for FE’ volunteering campaign

A trio of leading college bosses have today launched an initiative to raise £1 million in “social value” through staff volunteering. The principals of London South East Colleges (LSEC), Loughborough College and East Coast College – Sam Parrett, Jo Maher, and Stuart Rimmer – want the “Good for ME Good for FE” campaign to fill […]

Bids invited for new £9.5m FE professional development grants

Applications for a £9.5 million government pilot to bolster teacher training in the further education sector have opened today. The Department for Education has announced a four-week bidding window for the FE Professional Development Grants pilots, which will run in 2021/22. They will focus on strengthening staff’s skills and confidence in using technology to deliver […]

Baker’s back: Could schools be sued for limiting careers advice?

The architect of the Baker clause is attempting to use the Skills Bill to strengthen the law, which could lead to schools facing court action. Former education secretary Kenneth Baker hopes to repeat a move he pulled in 2017, when he got the government to accept the clause as an amendment to the Technical and […]

Queen’s Birthday Honours 2021: Who received what in FE?

The next FE commissioner and the author of the landmark post-18 education review are among those receiving gongs in this year’s Queen’s birthday honours list. Included in the awards for almost 20 people from the FE and skills sector is a knighthood for Philip Augar and a CBE for Chichester College Group principal Shelagh Legrave. […]

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: EDITION 356

Your weekly guide to who’s new and who’s leaving. Sue Kamal, People director, Realise Learning and Employment Ltd Start date: May 2021 Previous job: Global head of organisation development, Reuters Interesting fact: At weekends, she can often be found at the Pool Cafe in the Peak District village of Hathersage, where she helps her husband […]

Two more struggling UTCs join multi-academy trusts

Another two university technical colleges are being absorbed into multi-academy trusts and expanding their age ranges after facing possible financial ruin amid recruitment struggles. A financial notice to improve issued last month to Health Futures UTC instructed it to join a “strong” MAT by September after the government became concerned about its “weak financial position […]

Board member quits in protest over sink or swim tech venture at Capital City College Group

Two governors have resigned and union tension has flared at one of England’s largest college groups after it announced plans to invest in an unconventional tech venture. Capital City College Group (CCCG) is spending half a million pounds kitting out its currently empty Regent’s Park campus for a course run with a new firm called […]

ITPs will be included in catch-up plans, DfE confirms

Independent training providers can rest assured they will be eligible for the government’s latest catch-up funding, it has been confirmed. The Department for Education last week announced £1.4 billion for extra tuition, teacher training and additional years in education to help students whose learning has suffered due to Covid-19. This included £222 million to expand […]