Fraser Whieldon | FE Week

Ofsted watch: Poor week for multiple new apprenticeship providers

New apprenticeship providers came in for some stinging criticism this week, with three found to be making ‘insufficient progress’ in early monitoring visits. The only wholly positive report was for adult and community learning provider Sunderland City Metropolitan Borough Council, which climbed its way up to ‘good’ after being rated ‘inadequate’ in January 2018. Since […]

Revealed: 54 colleges and providers chosen for second wave of Taking Teaching Further funding

The colleges and training providers chosen to recruit new FE teachers and improve links with industry for the second round of the £5 million Taking Teaching Further programme have been announced. Forty five providers are being tasked with recruiting 160 experienced industry professionals to work as post-16 teachers in four key sectors: childcare and education, […]

Post-18 education review: The 9 main recommendations for FE

The long-awaited review into post-18 education and funding has been released today, with the publication of a 216-page report. The review, conducted by Philip Augar, says there is a “powerful” case for change in the FE sector that is subject to “inflexible” and administratively costly rules, and which in recent years has had its ability […]

Serial entrepreneur’s new provider fails to impress Ofsted

A new provider run by a well-known entrepreneur has been criticised by Ofsted after inspectors found it making ‘insufficient progress’ in most areas of an early monitoring visit. The Teaching and Learning Group, which has 24 apprentices, is owned by Angela Middleton, who is also a director of grade two provider MiddletonMurray Limited, and received […]

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: EDITION 282

Your weekly guide to who’s new and who’s leaving. Joanne Sherrington, Interim principal, Craven College Start date: May 2019 Previous job: Vice principal (finance and resources), Craven College Interesting fact: Joanne is a keen musician and fly fisher. Phil Briscoe, Principal, Nottingham College Start date: June 2019 Previous job: Vice principal, Barnsley College Interesting fact: […]

Insolvency could have been avoided had the ESFA spotted Hadlow College’s crippling loans in 2017

This week the government published the FE Commissioner’s Hadlow College findings and recommendations, based on four visits in February. The description of what they found in terms of both leadership and financial failure is shocking, but will come as little surprise to FE Week readers. We have been following the saga since being first to […]

‘We were genuinely shocked by what we found’

The FE Commissioner, Richard Atkins, was due to visit West Kent and Ashford College following their Ofsted grade three late last year. In the week before the scheduled visit, he was tipped off by another principal that Hadlow College had run out of cash and the finance director was about to quit. They had approached […]

Former college leadership and ESFA financial oversight in the dock

A damning FE Commissioner report has revealed how Hadlow Group’s leaders concealed the truth of its financial position until the college needed bailing out, in a “corporate failure of leadership”. Richard Atkins’ reports on Hadlow and West Kent and Ashford College were published on Thursday, the day after the High Court put Hadlow into education […]

College testing insolvency regime seeks speedy buyer for park and unfinished mining museum

Scandal-hit Hadlow College has confirmed it is looking to sell its £40 million visitor and business park, following the college’s application for insolvency. FE Week revealed on Friday the education secretary Damian Hinds had applied to the High Court to put the college into education administration. While this does not affect any of the college’s […]