Pippa Allen-Kinross | FE Week

Final Institutes of Technology shortlist announced

The 16 providers in the final stage of the government’s competition to open Institutes of Technology have been revealed. Their names have been published today alongside the Department for Education’s response to its T-level consultation. Successful providers should have been notified in early May whether their bids for a share of £170 million had made […]

Studio schools to cut ties with FE colleges

The controversial studio schools programme has announced a dramatic shift in focus after the tally of those closed or due to do so rose to 24. Studio schools, small 14-to-19 technical institutions which are seen by many as unwelcome competition to more established general FE and sixth-form colleges, will now be incorporated into multi-academy trusts, […]

Financial warning notice for UTC found to owe government £500k

A university technical college which was found to have owed the government over half a million pounds after it overestimated its pupil numbers has been served with a financial notice to improve because it failed to produce a balanced budget or submit its audited accounts on time. UTC@Harbourside, a specialist marine engineering college in East […]

College bankrolls failing schools in new academy trust

An ‘outstanding’ FE college is having to bankroll improvements to struggling schools in its new academy trust. Two of its schools are rated ‘inadequate’, one just five months after the chain launched. The Dudley Academies Trust, sponsored by Dudley College of Technology, was handed four schools by the Department for Education last September. One of […]

National Apprenticeship Week 2018 celebrates best of earning and learning

The very best of what earning and learning means for learners and employers will be celebrated during the eleventh National Apprenticeship Week. The theme for 2018’s event, running from March 5 until March 9, is ‘Apprenticeships work’. Events will showcase the ways apprenticeships produce huge benefits for individuals, businesses, communities and the wider economy. Sue […]

University technical colleges will start recruiting from year 9

Two university technical colleges will start recruiting students a year before the standard starting age of 14 from September, and another is planning to follow suit in 2019. The JCB Academy in Staffordshire and UTC Sheffield have both confirmed plans to recruit year 9 students from the start of next academic year. The London Design and Engineering UTC intends to do the […]

UTC told to join ‘strong’ multi-academy trust amid ESFA investigation

A struggling UTC must join a “strong” multi-academy trust and improve its finances, after reports from a whistleblower prompted an investigation by government funding bosses. The Education and Skills Funding Agency said ministers would pick out a list of potential new trusts for the ‘inadequate’-rated Bolton UTC to join this September, after issuing the 14-to-19 institution with a financial […]

FE Commissioner: “Structural change” could follow £1.4m emergency cash injection

The FE Commissioner has warned a college may need “structural change” after it was given £1.4 million in emergency cash. A report published today revealed Kirklees College in Yorkshire was issued with a notice of concern on September 28 following a request for exceptional financial support from the Education and Skills Funding Agency. Kirklees College […]

Ofsted Watch: First inspection since merger produces ‘good’ result

A college inspected for the first time since a merger was rated ‘good’ in a week that saw local authority provision struggle. Bath College, which was formed in April 2015 from a merger of City of Bath College and Norton Radstock College, was found to be grade two across the board. The report commended teaching, […]