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11 April 2026

Author: Jude Burke

New destination data for unemployed learners

The colleges that are most successful at helping unemployed learners move into work have been named, in the latest learner destination data. The new experimental data on outcome based success measures for adult FE learners from 2012 to 2014, published by the Department for Education, details the proportion of sector learners that have moved onto […]

Prisoners to work towards apprenticeships

Offenders will be able to work towards an apprenticeship while in prison for the first time under new plans put forward by the government. The new prisoner apprenticeship pathway, set to be introduced next year, is one of a number of proposals to reform prison education included in the Prison Safety and Reform white paper, […]

Area Reviews: rebuild for resilience

Right time to reflect on sweeping changes Download the supplement here It’s been just over a year since the reviews launched, aiming to move towards “fewer, often larger, more resilient and efficient providers”.  Since that time, I’ve been following the process with great interest – from the first reports of lengthy delays during wave one, […]

Minister accused of ‘hoodwinking the house’ over apprenticeship cuts

Apprenticeships minister Robert Halfon (pictured above) has been accused of “trying to hoodwink the house” over apprenticeship funding cuts during a heated clash in parliament this morning. The accusation was made by David Lammy, MP for Tottenham, at the end of a Westminster Hall debate – over planned apprenticeships funding cuts for younger and disadvantaged […]

Bill Watkin, CEO, Sixth Form Colleges’ Association

Sitting before me in smart suit and tie, Bill Watkin, the chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges’ Association chief executive looks the epitome of respectability. But that wasn’t always the case for this self-confessed former troublemaker, who rebelled at school during a largely unhappy stint as a boarder. Watkin recalls one incident when, egged […]

Jaguar Land Rover red-faced by ‘poor’ Ofsted rating

Jaguar Land Rover, the British car manufacturer regularly lauded by ministers for its apprenticeship scheme, has been hit with a shock grade three rating after an Ofsted inspection. The Indian-owned firm received a ‘requires improvement’ score across the board for its dealership apprenticeship programme, for which it is an employer provider. The report will raise […]

DfE bailing out colleges

The government has announced new rules which will allow it to repeatedly bail out failing colleges that go bust, reneging on a previous commitment. The new Technical and Further Education Bill announced on Thursday last week includes provisions to apply a ‘special administration regime’ to insolvent colleges and sixth forms in order to put the […]

Two thirds of sixth form colleges forced to drop courses

The government is being urged to increase funding for 16- to 18-year-olds ahead of this year’s autumn statement, as two thirds of sixth form colleges report dropping courses due to cost pressures. The worrying figure is a key finding of the Sixth Form Colleges’ Association annual funding impact survey, the results of which are published […]