The politics behind the King of the North’s MBacc mission Andy Burnham is grabbing headlines with his ambition for the MBacc technical education programme. But take-up has been slower than hoped and the mayor has been accused of overreach while sidelining the needs of adult education
A youth guarantee that forgets SEND isn’t a guarantee at all If the youth guarantee fails to extend EHCP protections and invest in FE pathways to age 25, ministers will sabotage their own growth ambitions and write off a generation
Our commission will use engagement as lead indicator for FE outcomes Colleges chase attendance data and retention rates long after learners have switched off, or staff have burned out. Our new national commission is asking whether early engagement insight could be the missing piece in improving both outcomes and wellbeing
A budget that backs FE, delivered by a government that can’t stop undermining itself Today’s budget offers long-overdue wins for skills and apprenticeships, but the constant leaks, U-turns and mixed messages are throttling employer confidence
Are assessment reforms a safety risk we can’t afford? The government’s drive to streamline apprenticeship assessment may look efficient on paper, but employers warn it risks dismantling the very standards that keep safety-critical industries safe
Ofsted’s one-word grades were a ‘good’ way of explaining quality Now we’ve lost our simple shorthand, the task of communicating inspection results to the outside world just got much harder
The quiet power of FE, where second chances spark social change In South Devon our new social and community practice degree is training graduates to prevent harm, not just respond to it
It’s mayday for the skills sector under DWP The DWP’s inability to correct the disaster that has been the dynamic purchasing system for Jobcentres suggests the department will sink the skills boat
Our jobs market is changing faster than anyone expected – our skills system isn’t Our analysis shows millions of roles could vanish far earlier than predicted. Unless the UK builds a cradle-to-grave skills system, workers and young people alike will be locked out of the jobs of the future