Lifelong Learning

We’re joining the dots to create lifelong learning in the North East

Bringing higher education into the centre of regional planning is vital for the LLE to succeed, and we’re already…

Jessica Hill
Professor René Koglbauer
construction

The construction industry can’t build the future without diversity

Major housebuilding, infrastructure and retrofitting projects mean the construction industry must look wider to find new streams of workers

Jessica Hill
Annelee Roscoe
Skills reform

Lasting progress depends on a connected, durable skills system

The success of Labour’s skills vision depends on whether it can create a system that’s stable, connected and built…

Shane Chowen
Rob Nitsch
SEND

SEND reforms for schools won’t solve FE’s high-needs problems

If FE is made to take medicine for symptoms it is not suffering from, being bunched in with schools…

Jessica Hill
Ruth Perry
Legal changes

An anti-fraud law for business has big implications for FE providers

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 raises the stakes for FE institutions. Senior managers and governors could…

Jessica Hill
Kamal Chauhan and Charlotte Cassells
Colleges

Three thousand voices spoke and what they said shocked us

Our major learners’ survey revealed insights and concerns that aren’t available from national data

Jessica Hill
Vivienne Avery


Apprenticeships

Achievement rate is a broken metric. It’s time to judge apprenticeships by pass rates

For too long, achievement rates have distorted what quality in apprenticeships really means, punishing providers who take risks and…

Jessica Hill
Daniel Waterhouse
Colleges

Rethinking PD: How colleges can build learning cultures

A new guide offers evidence-based steps for leaders to design PD which inspires staff, drives improvement and transforms outcomes…

Jessica Hill
Kath Davies
The Staffroom – opinion

AI isn’t just for coders, it’s the new digital literacy every learner needs

Barnsley College’s ‘Introduction to AI’ course shows how colleges can turn a perceived threat into a practical tool for…

Jessica Hill
Daniel Wright
Skills reform

Pat’s skills nightmare: The kitchen is on fire

If Gordon Ramsay walked into today’s skills sector, he would be screaming. Funding is broken, bureaucracy is bloated and…

Jessica Hill
Mark Dawe
Careers guidance

We need to rethink careers guidance for a changing generation

Careers guidance in the UK is stuck in the past, leaving too many young people without pathways into meaningful…

Jessica Hill
Natasha Eason
Skills reform

Engineering’s skills crunch can be solved with our plan

From nuclear to renewables, hydrogen to carbon capture, major projects demand a workforce ready to deliver. Our five-year plan…

Jessica Hill
Andrew Hockey