Latest news from FE Week

Ofsted has completed its first monitoring visit at Learndirect, as the provider attempts to improve on its ‘inadequate’ rating before its funding ends next July.

The nation’s largest FE provider has been under the microscope ever since it shocked the sector with a grade four that seemingly came out of the blue.

FE Week can reveal that inspectors returned last week for the first time since the debacle unfolded, and will continue to monitor its progress until a full inspection is conducted next year.

“These visits are common practice for providers we have previously found to be ‘inadequate’,” a spokesperson told FE Week. “Ofsted will monitor and reinspect it within 15 months of publication of its last full inspection report. A monitoring visit report will be published on our website in due course.”

Learndirect also published its full accounts for the 18-month period up to January 31 this week, in which it noted “in the absence of an improved Ofsted grade” the ESFA would not continue funding its adult skills provision after July 2018 – money which this year amounts to around £45 million.

However, Andy Palmer, the provider’s chief executive, hinted last week that the ESFA may decide not to terminate the funding if Learndirect improves its grades.

“At this moment in time, the ESFA has confirmed that funding for adult skills provision will not be available after July 2018, due to the Ofsted grade four,” he told FE News. “However, the company is focused and determined to improve this position to a grade two within the current financial year.”

Both the ESFA and the Department for Education declined to comment on the notion.

Learndirect’s accounts did however leave major question-marks hanging over its future, after figures showed how its long-term survival hinges on the success of its sister companies, including Learndirect Apprenticeships (LDA), over the next 12 months.

Its parent company, Pimco Holdings Ltd, is saddled with debts of £48.5 million, on top of a loan of £2.9 million from Lloyds Development Capital (LDC), both of which need to be paid back in November 2018.

There is a further loan from LDC of £48.8 million which will be repayable in May 2020.

The accounts did suggest Learndirect was still a “going concern”, and in order to survive, Pimco has secured a “working capital facility” of up to £5 million from its bank lenders, which will be available until November 30, 2018.

Pimco’s ability to repay, refinance or extend these loans will depend on the performance of its subsidiaries – Leanrdirect Ltd, LDA, and Learndirect Professional – over the next 12 months.

While the government currently stands by its commitment to terminate Learndirect’s funding in July 2018, the provider said it would “continue to reduce the exposure that it has from costs related to delivery of ESFA-funded learning” by reducing its numbers of delivery centres and staff.

In the meantime, alongside the DfE, it is currently under investigation by the National Audit Office after a referral from the Public Accounts Committee.

The NAO will look into claims the DfE gave Learndirect special treatment, allowing it to keep its contracts for much longer than usual despite its grade four.

The outcome is expected to in “winter 2017-18”, while the PAC is also planning to hold a subsequent hearing on the fiasco.

It’s been an outstanding week for general FE colleges, with one awarded a grade one and a second going up to ‘good’.

But the picture for sixth form colleges has been less positive, with two having slipped from their former grade one ratings.

Wirral Metropolitan College went up from grade three to grade two overall in a report published November 7, and based on an inspection in early October.

The college’s provision for students with high needs was found to be ‘outstanding’, and inspectors noted that these students “make exceptional progress”.

The report noted that changes since the college’s last inspection had “led to significant outcomes in students’ outcomes”, and that leaders and managers had a “clear and ambitious plan to become an outstanding college”.

Achievement rates for students on 16 to 19 study programmes had “improved significantly” from 2015/16 to 2016/17, although “too many” apprentices were making slow progress and failing to complete their courses on time.

As previously reported by FE Week, Fareham College became the third college in six months to be rated ‘outstanding’, in a report published November 10 and based on an inspection in early October.

John Ruskin College, a sixth-form college, went down two grades from its previous ‘outstanding’ rating in a report, published November 8 and based on a report in early October.

College leaders were criticised for being “slow to address the decline in standards since the previous inspection.

The proportion of learners completing their courses was found to be “too low”, while teachers “do not take sufficient account of the full range of learners’ abilities in lessons” which meant that a “minority of learners” made “slow progress”.

But it also noted: “Learners develop good personal, social and employability skills and undertake valuable work experience, which gives them the confidence they need to progress towards the world of work.”

Another SFC, King Edward VI College Stourbridge, was rated ‘good’ overall – down from its previous ‘outstanding’ rating – in a report published November 7 and based on an inspection overall.

Governors, leaders and staff were found to have “high expectations and ambitions” for students, the “large majority” of whom achieved “well”.

Teachers were deemed to “have excellent subject knowledge and a very strong understanding of the requirements of the A-level course and assessments”.

But the report noted: “Despite the actions of leaders and managers, in 2017 too many of the most able students did not achieve the grades of which they are capable.”

Two full adult and community learning provider inspection reports were also published this week – Isle of Wight Council, and City Gateway.

Isle of Wight Council was rated grade three across the board, down from its previous ‘good’ rating, in a report published November 10 and based on an inspection in early October.

Managers were criticised for their “over-optimistic” self-assessment of the service, which did not “take sufficient account of the weaknesses of the provision”.

“Managers have not made sure that the quality of teaching, learning and assessment on English and mathematics courses improves quickly enough, that more learners stay until the end of their courses and that a higher proportion achieve their functional skills qualifications,” the report said.

But the report noted that “most learners” on non-qualification courses “achieve their personal learning goals”.

City Gateway also slipped from a grade three to two, in a report published November 7 and based on an inspection in early October.

Leaders at the charitable provider were found not to have taken “sufficient action to remedy weaknesses identified at the previous inspection”.

“Too few” learners at level 1 and 2 English and ESOL achieved their qualifications, while “too few” learners and apprentices “receive effective careers advice and guidance” – meaning that “too few continue into further training and employment”.

However, “The proportion of apprentices who successfully complete their apprenticeship within the planned time is high.”

Three further adult and community learning providers held onto their grade twos this week, following short inspections, as did one independent training provider.

GFE Colleges	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Fareham College	03/10/2017	10/11/2017	1	2
Wirral Metropolitan College	03/10/2017	07/11/2017	2	3

 

Sixth Form Colleges	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
John Ruskin College	03/10/2017	08/11/2017	3	1
King Edward VI College Stourbridge	03/10/2017	07/11/2017	2	1

 

Adult and Community Learning	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Adult and Community Learning Service, Isle of Wight Council	04/10/2017	10/11/2017	3	2
City Gateway	03/10/2017	07/11/2017	3	2

 

Short inspections (remains grade 2)	Inspected	Published
Fircroft College of Adult Education	10/10/2017	10/11/2017
Independent Training Services Limited	03/10/2017	08/11/2017
West Yorkshire Learning Providers Ltd	11/10/2017	10/11/2017
Swarthmore Education Centre	03/10/2017	10/11/2017

More than one third of English colleges are currently rated less than ‘good’ by Ofsted, whose boss has refused to rule out funding as a root cause.

In its annual report next month, the inspectorate is expected to show that the overall ratings at general further education colleges have plummeted for the third year running, and that just 69 per cent of colleges were rated ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ in 2017.

The findings back up Amanda Spielman’s recent comments to the education select committee, when she admitted that colleges “have the biggest funding challenge” and said Ofsted had seen “disappointing outcomes” in FE.

“We have seen a deterioration at a time when school outcomes have been stable or increasing slightly, but it is a correlation,” she said. “I cannot definitively conclude that it is a causative effect.”

She added that colleges are dealing with “an enormous amount of work” and “a big challenge” as they face “reforms in practically all areas.”

Ofsted’s annual report is due next month, and is likely to address this decline in standards.

Last year’s report warned that “many general FE colleges face a period of continuing turmoil”.

The Association of Colleges’ chief executive, David Hughes, wants more funding for colleges in this month’s budget and said a “rise in rates to reflect the true costs of delivering high quality further education” is needed. 

“It is clear that the annual real-term cuts in income for colleges, combined with challenges created by constant reform, mean it’s often difficult for colleges to make necessary and sustained improvements,” he added.

Although he accepted there had been “a number of disappointing inspection judgements”, he warned that Ofsted’s statistics are based on a “risk-based approach” of returning to the same colleges.

FE Week’s own analysis shows that sixth-form colleges and independent learning providers were rated ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ 81 per cent of the time, a massive 12 percentage points ahead of colleges.

The ratings slump continues an annual trend which has seen the number of high-achieving colleges fall by 10 per cent in just three years, after a high of 79 per cent in 2014.

Over the last academic year, 18 colleges that were previously grade one or two declined to grade three or four, including Blackburn College and Bury College, which both slumped from ‘outstanding’ to ‘requires improvement’, and Hereward College of FE which fell from ‘good’ to ‘inadequate’.

Just nine colleges improved to a grade two, including Stanmore College and Ealing, Hammersmith and West London College, which both climbed up from a grade four rating.

A spokesperson for the DfE said there are “many high-performing, innovative colleges across the country” but acknowledged that “there is more to be done to ensure we have the same standard across the board”.

“We have taken steps to champion high quality further education and put in place new funding and support to target weaker colleges and help them improve,” she said.

This includes the National Leaders of FE programme, launched last month as part of a package of support unveiled over the summer, which also includes a £15 million college improvement fund, as well as an expanded role for the FE commissioner and more support for FE teachers over the next year.

 Ofsted did not comment.                                  

The Association of Colleges has asked the government not to “punish” young people by making 315-hour work placements mandatory in T-levels, as officials begin to explore whether the policy is feasible.

Apprehension about a tough compulsory component planned for the new “gold standard” technical qualifications has been rife across the sector since initial plans were released last July.

The Department for Education only advertised for researchers to find out whether the idea could actually work in practice on October 30, ending the tender just eight working days later.

The terms of the contract, worth £96,000 to the winning firm, explained that the required qualitative research should “explore the extent to which employers are able to offer work placements, taking account of their size, industry and occupational area”.

It added that “typologies developed should outline employers’ current capacity to offer work placements and barriers” to them doing so across all 11 classroom-based T-level routes.

DfE guidance suggests that it expects 180,000 work placements per year, each with an average length of 50 working days, within a range of 45 to 60, lasting a minimum of 315 hours.

Officials have so far been clear on their approach; “no work placement, no certificate”, was the phrase used by Sue Clarke, the DfE’s qualification policy lead, at a DfE T-levels awareness event run by the AoC last week.

But the association’s boss, David Hughes (pictured above), believes the rule will limit young people’s choice as it stands, and wants a change.

“There is the need for some T-levels to be delivered without the work placement in a route specific work setting,” he told FE Week in an exclusive interview ahead of the AoC conference (see page 16 for more).

There is the need for some T-levels to be delivered without the work placement

“The danger of it is you limit people’s choices to what they can attend on a local basis in labour markets that are sometimes very limited in scope.

“You might not have engineering, manufacturing and creative, for example, where you live, so does that mean you can’t do any of those? That doesn’t feel right or fair.”

He said the government should “not punish the young person just because their local labour market doesn’t allow them to do something they are passionate about”.

A commitment for 315 hours would be a massive step up from the current two-week work experience period, and is considered one of the most challenging aspects of T-levels, which will be phased in from 2020 and fully rolled out from 2022.

Penny Wycherley, the principal of Waltham Forest College, echoed Mr Hughes’ concern and pointed to what she called an “unhelpful assumption” that underpins the rule: “that one size fits all in terms of ease in finding these work placements”.

“You can’t give a universal judgment on the work placement position for students in different curriculum areas,” she told FE Week.

“Catering and hospitality are fine, easy to get placements, but try and get one into electrical or public services, and you are in a different ball game because of health and safety and the rest.”

Gordon Gillespie, Lewisham Southwark College’s vice-principal, added that he is worried about the feasibility of fitting in 10-week work placements alongside the academic parts of T-levels – an issue on which Mr Hughes has also previously been vocal.

“Using the summer breaks, Easter and other holidays for placements could be an administrative challenge for colleges, but 10 weeks cannot be taken out of teaching time,” he said. “It would be impossible to deliver curriculums in that case.”

Persuading thousands of businesses across England to offer the work placements is another issue, and something which is likely to require financial incentives.

A survey of more than 1,000 small businesses in England released last month by the Federation of Small Businesses showed that only six per cent would be willing to offer work placements under current plans for T-levels.

Mike Cherry, the FSB’s national chairman, said that for T-levels to work there “needs to be clear incentive and guidance” for small businesses to offer placements.

He added it would have “made more sense” to undertake research into the feasibility of this rule “before announcing plans for lengthy work placements”.

Justine Greening revealed in July that £50 million would be available from April 2018 for “capacity building”.

The DfE has conducted other research into work placements, and one project delivered by The Challenge Network is now being piloted (see below).

One other project, conducted by the Learning and Work Institute, has not provided easy reading for ministers, after it found that employers may already be experiencing work placement fatigue before T-levels even kick in.

A DfE spokesperson said that T-levels will include a high-quality work placement so students “can apply their learning in a real workplace environment”, which will ensure they have the “skills and knowledge that employers and the country needs for the future”.

The tender closing date for the new research into employer feasibility for work placements was November 8. The contract will start December 4 and end May 31, 2018.

Work placement pilots delivery under-way

Around 2,500 students currently on vocational courses will pilot the 45-day minimum work placement rule this academic year, before the T-levels debut in 2020.

The Challenge Network won a contract in February to design and create “high-level principles and models” for proposed placements, and is now delivering this work at 21 FE providers across the country.

During the design phase, the network said it had involved over 150 employers and providers through interviews and workshops, as well as focus groups for learners.

It is hoped the pilots will help the DfE to “identify what good placements should look like” in all 11 routes, and identify “specific challenges and ways of overcoming these before the implementation of these routes”.

“It will also support providers and employers to prepare for and make the shift to offering the substantial, longer-term work placements expected as part of the technical education routes,” a spokesperson for the network told FE Week.

The pilots started at the beginning of this term and will end in July 2018. The results are expected to be released in autumn 2018.

Nick Linford editorial: Mandatory workplacement madness

I’m sure when the DfE came up with the idea to make the substantial T-level work-placement mandatory and call it an “entitlement”, it was done with good intentions.

But in the real world, they should not need to commission research to confirm what we all know: it’s simply impossible.

Will all T-level routes and related occupations, from engineering to legal and financial, have sufficient employers in all parts of the country to offer the placements?

It’s obvious to me and others that the answer is no, which means we will be creating a post-code lottery, and some young learners will not be able to follow their career choice.

David Hughes at the AoC is therefore right to seek a rethink from the DfE.

And the obvious lesson, as highlighted by the Federation of Small Business, is that the policy should follow the research, not the other way around.