Pat Glass appointed shadow education secretary in Corbyn team shake-up

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has appointed former shadow education minister Pat Glass as shadow education secretary following the resignation of Lucy Powell.

Ms Glass, MP for North West Durham, is one of a number of new appointments following  the continuing mass resignations of Mr Corbyn’s shadow cabinet yesterday and today.

It comes after Thursday’s referendum vote, which saw the UK vote to leave the European Union leading to the resignation of prime minister David Cameron.

Ms Glass, aged 59, was elected to parliament in May 2010, following a career working in local education authorities. She is an expert on special educational needs and has advised the government and councils across Yorkshire and the Humber.

Her special interest is in education, and she was a member of the education select committee from July 2010 until March 2015.

In September 2015, she was appointed shadow education minister with responsibility for childcare by Mr Corbyn following his election as Labour leader, at the same time that Ms Powell was appointed shadow education secretary.

Ms Glass was promoted to shadow Europe minister following Mr Corbyn’s reshuffle on January 5.

Ms Powell was among 12 shadow cabinet members to resign on Sunday citing concerns about Mr Corbyn’s leadership. A further five shadow ministers have so far reportedly stepped down this morning.

In her resignation letter to Mr Corbyn, Ms Powell reportedly wrote: “Given the big challenges faced by our country and our party over the coming months, and the possibility of an imminent general election, I do not have the confidence that you can bring the party together, lead us to a general election and be an effective opposition.”

Skills minister announces “little delay” to publishing apprenticeship reform detail

Skills Minister Nick Boles has admitted that a string of key apprenticeship reform announcements will be further delayed following Brexit.

The government was due to provide further funding information for apprenticeship reforms by the end of this month, with the long-awaited Sainsbury review report setting out new technical professional education (TPE) routes into work, and a subsequent skills white paper, also expected imminently.

But Mr Boles told the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP) conference today there would be a “little delay” following the British public’s decision to leave the European Union – although they can be expected before the summer recess.

He said: “We should all continue to assume and work on the assumption that the apprenticeship levy is coming in, in the way planned as planned.

However, he added: “We had planned to be published further detailed information about the pricing of specific apprenticeship standards in the next few days. I’m sure you will understand that is now going to be a little delayed, but only a little we still expect to get that information out well before the summer break.”

It comes after FE Week reported on June 20 that the government was looking at slashing the amount smaller firms will have to pay towards the cost of apprenticeships training after the levy launch next April.

Employers of all sizes currently have to pay a third of training costs with the Skills Funding Agency agrees to covering the rest, under the pilot for new apprenticeships.

That means a £1 employer cash contribution returns £2 funding – up to a cap – for the relevant standard.

But FE Week has learned the government is looking at a making a much bigger contribution after April 2017 for employers not using their apprenticeship levy pot — either because their wage bill is too small to pay into it, or because it has run out.

For every £1 invested by such employers, we understand that the SFA will paying up to £9, according to plans set to be announced later this month.

Mr Boles also mentioned the Sainsbury Review later in his speech.

“We will also be going ahead soon – I cannot give you a particular date, but again before the summer recess – with the publication of the Sainsbury review.

“We will be going ahead with publication of that and the government skills plan and that too will not change in any important respect as a result of recent events.”

The detail promised this month and now delayed was:

> provisional funding bands, which will set the maximum amount of funding which is available for each apprenticeship from April 2017
> the provisional level of the government support that will be available towards the cost of apprenticeship training if you aren’t a levy paying employer, from April 2017
> the provisional level of the extra payment you can get for hiring 16 to 18 year old apprentices, from April 2017
> the provisional amount that will be paid for English and maths training for apprentices who need it, from April 2017
> eligibility rules that set who you are able to spend apprenticeship funding on and where
> more information on who can provide apprenticeship training and how you can set up your organisation to deliver apprenticeship training

 

Movers and Shakers: Edition 179

Worthing College has announced that vice-principal Paul Riley will lead it on an interim basis — following the announcement that its principal Peter Corrigan would be leaving his post at the end of August.

The move also promotes Steven Fodden, the current assistant principal, to interim vice-principal.

Mr Corrigan has served the college for more than 30 years and will be moving on to other professional opportunities in the FE sector.

The chair of governors Paul Amoo said: “We would like to thank Peter for his achievements, his loyalty, dedication and commitment to students and staff.

“It has been a pleasure to work with him and we wish to express our gratitude for having led the move to our outstanding new campus, for achieving an Ofsted ‘good’ rating in all areas, and for leaving the college in a much improved financial position.”

The college governors confirmed that they will now put arrangements in place for recruiting a permanent principal during the next academic year.

Commenting on the interim arrangements, Mr Amoo said: “We are delighted that Paul and Steven have agreed to lead the college working with governors, staff and students, in achieving our goals and ensuring the best possible opportunities and successes for everyone.”

Meanwhile, the current principal at Shrewsbury College, Steve Wain, will switch over to lead Swindon College at the end of August.

Mr Wain, who has been at the helm for four years, will replace the outgoing Andrew Miller, who retires from his post at Swindon College later in the year.

Mr Wain said he is “very much looking forward” to his new role.

“Swindon is a vibrant town, with a growing economy and excellent future prospects,” he said.

“Swindon College is playing a crucial role in supporting economic growth and in providing much needed education and training for the wider community.”

The outgoing Mr Miller joined Swindon College in January 2010, and took it from a grade three Ofsted rating to grade one (outstanding) in 2013.

He said he is pleased to be able to leave the college in “such an excellent position”.

And Devon-based apprenticeship training provider, Skills Group, has appointed Chris Jeffery as a non-executive director to advise on its skills funding strategy.

Within the role, Ms Jeffery, who has nearly 30 years’ experience in the training and development sector, has been tasked with “promoting and representing” the interests of local employers in the national debate about apprenticeship reforms, and the apprenticeship levy.

Commenting on her new role, Ms Jeffery said: “It is a real pleasure to work with such a unique and successful organisation.

“I hope to help Skills Group over the transition created by the reforms in a way that builds on their ethical and moral compass, helping to add more value to their partnerships with local employers and to further improve the learner experience.”

Ms Jeffery was a founding member and chair of the Devon & Cornwall Training Provider Network, and now serves on the board of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers.

Previously, she established a chain of five hair salons around Plymouth, alongside achieving her teaching qualifications, before becoming an external verifier for City & Guilds.

She was then appointed as the managing director for Academy of Training Ltd in 1988.

In 2010, Ms Jeffery took on a role as strategy and policy adviser for GP Strategies Training Ltd until the position at Skills Group came up this year.

Seventeen-year-old youngest to land national DJ slot

The country’s next Chris Moyles could be just around the corner in the form of Stoke on Trent College’s Lucas Yeomans — after the teenager became the youngest DJ to land himself a slot on a national radio station, writes Billy Camden.

Seventeen-year-old Lucas Yeomans will be coming to you live from the airwaves every week, after he bagged a regular Saturday morning slot for a national radio network.

The first-year creative media student at Stoke on Trent College was recruited to present on Signal Radio and its network of 11 stations, which broadcasts to more than 100,000 listeners every week, after being talent-spotted while doing work experience at the station.

He became the youngest DJ at the station, starting off on the so-called B-team of presenters, who provide cover when regulars are off sick or on holiday

But after impressing during his first few live shows, Lucas has now managed to snap up his own Saturday morning radio show, from 1am to 5am.

Speaking to FE Week on the morning of receiving the news, Lucas said: “This is very exciting, I’m really eager to get going on it. I still get that buzz as if it was my first show every time I go on air so I know it is what I want to be doing.”

The opportunity came about through links with Stoke on Trent College and Signal Radio, which gives students the opportunity to work behind the scenes at the station and take part in masterclasses with radio station staff.

On Lucas’ last day of work experience, the teenager was asked along to an interview and two weeks later he got a call asking if he could do an overnight show as the presenter was ill.

Lucas said: “The first show I did felt like the scariest moment of my life, but they taught me how to use the resources and gave me pre-prepared features and music. I came up with a bit of random talk as well.”

Now managers have marked Lucas out as a future star.

Terry Underhill, programme director for Signal’s parent company, the Wireless Group, said: “I’ve been massively impressed with Lucas. He has huge potential.

“We get many hundreds of people contacting us, wanting to be radio presenters, but Lucas has that x-factor.”

Lucas, who also volunteers on a community radio station, said he was chuffed with the attention from his “fans”.

He added: “The best part for me has to be entertaining the audience.

“During one of my shows a guy requested a song because he was doing the graveyard shift. I made a little joke about it on air and the person emailed in again saying ‘you legend’. It is those kinds of things and little perks that make me love it so much.”

Feature-inset

Lucas has hankered after a media career ever since his primary school days, when he presented a talent show with his classmates.

He said his ultimate dream is to follow in the footsteps of his TV presenting heroes James Cordon, Alan Carr and Jonathan Ross to have his own chat show.

He would equally like to continue on the radio with a drive time or breakfast show on BBC Radio 1 mirroring the likes of Chris Moyles and Nick Grimshaw.

Lee Beddow, programme quality leader for media at Stoke on Trent College, said: “Lucas is the first student we’ve had who has become a Signal presenter. But we’ve had other students go on to help produce the breakfast show and help with sport.

“It’s a fantastic opportunity for him. I tuned in to listen at 4.30am on one of his shows and was excited to hear one of our students on air.”

 

Lucas’ top three bands:

1. Circa Waves

2. Peace

3. Catfish and the Bottlemen

Burton & South Derbyshire College joins AELP after quitting AoC

The Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP) has picked up a new member that quit rival organisation the Association of Colleges (AoC).

FE Week revealed last September that Burton & South Derbyshire College was leaving the AoC, although no comment was provided at the time to explain its reasons for doing this.

It has now spoken out after confirming it had joined AELP.

A spokesperson said that the college “reviews all corporate subscriptions annually to ensure that we target resources on arrangements which offer the best value for money in terms of support, opportunities and relevance in prevailing market conditions and context of the FE landscape; particularly in the current climate of apprenticeship reform and in light of the impact of the planned levy on employers.

“We’re delighted that Mark Dawe (pictured above) has taken the helm at AELP at this critical time and look forward to engaging with the association on these and other important issues for the sector in the coming  year,” she added.

The AELP now has 804 members, including more than 40 colleges.

Former chief executive of awarding organisation OCR, Mr Dawe, was appointed as the new AELP boss of in March.

A spokesperson for AELP said: “We are delighted that another college committed to work based learning is joining AELP.

“Anyone who is delivering apprenticeships should be joining AELP and that includes colleges.”

A spokesperson for the college received a grade two Ofsted rating in December 2011 and was allocated £6m by the Skills Funding Agency as of July.

It received a grade three ‘requires improvement’ rating from Ofsted following its latest inspection in March.

An AoC spokespersons said its “policy is not to comment on individual colleges”.

Precious help for the homeless

Homelessness charities have been boosted by donations of food, clothing and toiletries thanks to kind-hearted West Nottinghamshire College students and staff.

Twelve shopping trolleys were piled high with the essential provisions for the college’s annual initiative, which is known as the ‘554 Challenge’.

Held since 2011, the programme was first created by computer science curriculum manager Trudi Dean, after she delivered tutorials to students on the subject of homelessness.

From left: learner development coach Lee Bunting, Wendy Marshall from Framework, computer science curriculum manager and 554 challenge founder Trudi Dean, college principal Dame Asha Khemka, Gary Lawson from Framework, and Ann Mendham from the Beacon Project
From left: learner development coach Lee Bunting, Wendy Marshall from Framework, computer science curriculum manager and 554 challenge founder Trudi Dean, college principal Dame Asha Khemka, Gary Lawson from Framework, and Ann Mendham from the Beacon Project

Named after the challenge’s original aim of getting ‘5’ teams to fill ‘5’ shopping trolleys ‘4’ the homeless — nearly all areas of the college now contribute the much-needed items over a four-week period.

Charities benefitting from this year’s challenge — led by learner development coach Lee Bunting — are the Beacon Project, the Hall Homeless Support Project, Framework, and Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum.

Mr Bunting said: “It has been an absolute pleasure to lead the project. It’s humbling to know we’re helping these essential charities, and students have said it’s great that they can give something back to the community.”

Main picture: West Nottinghamshire College students, staff and charity representatives with ten of the shopping trolleys filled with food, clothing and toiletries

Academisation choices will be anything but straightforward

FE Week reported last week that around 60 of the country’s 93 SFCs had registered an interest in converting to an academy. Bill Watkin reflects on their option.

Recently both Sir Michael Wilshaw (Ofsted chief inspector) and Sir David Carter (national schools commissioner) discussed with MPs the part played by multi-academy trusts (MATs).

Both agreed that they represented the best way forward for delivering improvements in school standards.

But both also agreed that too many were not yet good enough, and that there were not enough of them.

Sir Michael had wanted to write a report about them recently and, on examining the 973 already in existence, had struggled to find half a dozen which were better than mediocre.

Sir David’s team of regional schools commissioners has had to re-broker almost 120 academies – take them away from one multi-academy trust and give them to another – because the original was not having the required impact on improvement.

Sixth form colleges are currently considering very carefully the academy options that are available to them.

Many have a long and successful history behind them, with better exam results, giving better value for money, with a higher proportion of disadvantaged young people, than any other sector.

Ninety per cent of SFCs are good or outstanding and they have proven experience of running a business successfully.

But they have faced appalling funding cuts in recent years, with the result that their capacity is now seriously stretched.

In the ongoing area reviews, whose purpose is to look at the financial viability of 16-to-19 providers and rationalise provision where necessary, SFCs must demonstrate that their projections and forecasts are robust and reliable, and paint a reassuringly sunny outlook.

In this context, colleges are faced with some tough choices.

The highest-performing colleges can, for example, establish either a multi- or single-academy trust — both of which require colleges to have “well-rounded plans to support another school(s)”.

This is what the government wants back from colleges, in return for the VAT concession: colleges as system leaders.

Otherwise, they can remain a SFC; join a teaching school alliance; or set up a new satellite 16-to-19 free school.

Colleges in difficulties, financial or academic, have fewer options.

They can join an existing multi-academy trust or merge with another college (SFC or general FE) – meaning they face some loss of autonomy and identity either way.

Over half of SFCs have expressed an interest in taking up the academy option one way or the other — although this is often a holding position, rather than a firm commitment.

A single academy trust is, at least initially, an attractive option — no more VAT liability, limited loss of autonomy, relatively little change.

They are making decisions for a future about which they can only guess

A multi academy trust is considerably less straightforward.

If you set up your own trust, before partner schools join, you can set your vision, articles of association, and contracts.

Schools joining later will sign up to an already established framework.

If you co-construct one, you will be involved in negotiations, entailing compromises and concessions.

However, if you join an existing one, you will have to buy into its already established framework, and comply with its articles and vision.

Some strong SFCs, even with various options available, are thinking about joining an existing multi-academy trust.

They will lose autonomy, but are often attracted by promises that their curriculum and staff will be protected (the new arrangement won’t change things).

Other factors may be the quality of personal relationships (the principals get on well and trust each other); and shared vision and values (the principals share principles).

All the options involve a leap of faith. They are making decisions for a future about which they can only guess.

Joining a multi-academy trust might be considered attractive right now, but what of the future?

A new partner principal, with a different outlook, might strain relations, while a fall in standards might change a trust’s priorities and strategies.

Colleges must consider their options in the light of their own context and circumstances.

There is no one right answer. But system leadership, transforming failing schools, alongside the premium they attach to their independence and autonomy, are at the heart of their considerations.

It’s just like watching Ronaldo

The boy who swaps bodies with football icon Cristiano Ronaldo in the new Nike TV advert is a student from Barnet and Southgate College.

Gerson Adao, 17, is studying a BTEC level two diploma in sport while also appearing daily on millions of TV screens across the world in the advert called “The Switch”.

He got the role after the sports department of the college was approached by a TV producer, who was a former student of Barnet and Southgate College.

They arranged to come along to one of the college’s football training days in search of a star for their client Nike.

Gerson said: “It was just a normal training day and I just went along with agreeing to be considered for the advert because some of my friends on the course were also going to, but the whole thing has been an amazing dream come true. My mum can’t believe it either.”

On the day of filming he got to meet Ronaldo himself, as well as players including Harry Kane, Joe Hart and Ross Barkley.

He’ll also receive tickets to the final of the Euro 2016 tournament in July.

Picture: Gerson Adao at Barnet and Southgate College

It’s the principal of the thing

A student decided to ban smoking across Bath College after standing in as principal for the day.

Nineteen-year-old Oliver Watkins took on the duties usually carried out by principal Matt Atkinson as part of the college’s first-ever student takeover week.

The level three business student attended a senior leadership meeting and was asked to investigate the issue of smoking in the college.

Oliver had to decide if the college should continue to have a dedicated smoking area, or should become smoke-free.

After doing some research and interviewing students, he presented his ideas to Mr Atkinson and Carole Stott, chair of the board of governors.

Oliver said: “I decided by 2020 the college should become smoke-free.

“Being principal is a big job, it’s easy coming up with ideas but the hardest thing is choosing the best idea and making sure you have the best decision. That’s when you really have to weigh it up.”

Throughout the student takeover week, other staff who handed over their roles to learners included the college’s graphic designer, web development officer and sports development officer.

Picture: Business student Oliver Watkins with principal Matt Atkinson