Fraser Whieldon | FE Week

Macclesfield College handed financial health notice to improve

The Education and Skills Funding Agency has handed a financial health notice to improve to Macclesfield College. It follows an assessment of the college by the FE Commissioner in November and the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) grading the college’s financial health as ‘inadequate’. The notice, dated 14 January, instructed Macclesfield College to prepare […]

Hadlow Group chief executive on sick leave following FE Commissioner intervention

The Hadlow Group is on the hunt for an interim chief executive after its leader went on sick leave following the resignation of his deputy and the intervention of FE commissioners. On Monday, FE Week reported deputy chief executive Mark Lumsdon-Taylor had resigned and the commissioners had visited the Kent-based institution the week before – […]

Bath Studio School confirms it will close in 2020

A studio school in Bath that has struggled to meet costs as a result of severely low student numbers is to close at the end of the 2020 summer term, it has been confirmed. The Wellsway Multi Academy Trust said this morning that the Department for Education has made the final decision to close The […]

DfE publishes indicators for potential fraud in education providers

Working “unusual” hours and claims in excess of actual expenses have been listed as indicators for training providers that staff may be committing fraud in new government guidance. The document from the Department for Education, published today, also warns that signs that employees are potentially committing fraud include aggressive responses to questions and “too much […]

Hadlow Group senior leader resigns as FE Commissioner steps in

The FE Commissioner has intervened at the Hadlow Group as its deputy chief executive hands in his resignation, FE Week can reveal. Mark Lumsdon-Taylor, who was paid up to £210,000 in 2016/17, left his role on January 31. He had been Hadlow College’s finance director since 2003, before taking on the wider role at the […]

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: EDITION 270

Your weekly guide to who’s new and who’s leaving. Olivia Morton, Corporate Communications and Events Manager for The Bedford College Group Start date: 21 January 2019 Previous job: Business Development Coordinator, GSSArchitecture Interesting fact: At eight-years-old Olivia introduced 80s punk rock band New Model Army to an audience of over 8,000 fans in Birmingham. Gareth […]

Ofsted watch: Another positive week for providers

It has been another positive week for new apprenticeship providers, with many scoring encouraging results in their early monitoring visits from Ofsted, while a university technical college was rated ‘good’ in its first inspection. The only poor report came in for Bishop Auckland College which fell from a grade two to a three. UTC South […]

Why are providers charging the maximum apprenticeship price?

The apprenticeship levy brought with it a radical overhaul of provider funding, dispensing with fixed rates set by the funding agency. Instead, the ESFA listed maximum values for apprenticeship frameworks and standards, up to £27,000, but “expected to see employers and providers negotiating on price below the funding band upper limit”. But, as FE Week […]

DfE commission research to review high prices for apprentices with prior learning

The government is looking into whether apprenticeship delivery is being adjusted to account for apprentices’ prior learning, a sign that funding overclaims could soon be clamped down on. A tender was launched by the Department for Education last week for suppliers to research if and how providers and employers are adapting training and the associated […]