A residential college in the north of England has gone one step better than being simply an outstanding FE and skills provider.

The Northern College, in Barnsley, got grade one results in each of the headline fields and every other graded area — and it was also told by Ofsted that it had nothing major to improve upon.

The “no significant improvements required” statement under the adult and community learning provider’s ‘What does the provider need to do to improve further?’ report section is a first for the FE and skills sector.

Each of the sector’s other 24 grade one results — including two independent learning providers and seven general FE colleges — under the education watchdog’s current common inspection framework have listed areas for improvement.

Principal Jill Westerman CBE (pictured below right) said: “We are thrilled that Ofsted has recognised the excellence of the Northern College. It is a tribute to the work of all college staff that the inspectors did not identify a single area for improvement.

“Everyone at college works hard to achieve the college mission — to support the transformation of lives and communities through outstanding adult education, and the inspection result celebrates our success in doing this.”

The college, a registered charity, is one of four adult residential colleges in England and was also rated as outstanding following its last inspection, in late 2006 by the Adult Learning Inspectorate.

And among the positive comments in Ofsted’s report, published yesterday, was: “Inspirational tutors provide exceptional challenge and support which transform the lives of students and their families. Students develop good independent study skills and an appetite for lifelong learning.”

The report added: “Governors have an excellent understanding of the college’s mission. They use their wealth of experience to support and challenge the college’s senior leadership team to provide an exceptional residential learning environment.”

MidKent College principal Sue McLeod has died, aged 53.

The mum-of-one, who who had joined the college as a travel and tourism lecturer in 1993 before climbing the ranks to deputy principal and then principal, had been diagnosed with a brain tumour last month.

A college spokesperson, who described Ms McLeod as a “much-loved principal” at the college, said she died suddenly in hospital yesterday.

Chief executive Stephen Grix said: “Sue was an exceptional leader who inspired students and staff alike, and her commitment and passion for teaching was what drove her.”

Scottish-born Ms Mcleod became MidKent College’s first female principal on September 1. Before joining the college, she worked across the Caribbean, United States and Europe during her time in the travel industry, including a stint aboard cruise liners.

She had earlier achieved a degree in business studies at the Dorset Institute of Higher Education — now Bournemouth University — where she returned to study travel and tourism before embarking on her teaching career with MidKent College.

A highlight of her time as principal came in February when she visited Buckingham Palace to accept the Queen’s Anniversary Prize for further and higher education from the Queen on behalf of the College.

“Her energy, enthusiasm and ability to motivate others will be sorely missed. We have lost a very dear friend and a great principal,” said Mr Grix, who Ms Mcleod had succeeded as principal.

Vice principal Simon Cook has been appointed acting principal.

Providers given a grade three rating by Ofsted will get an extra six months to improve as the education watchdog brings in a two-year reinspection deadline.

The timeframe for reinspection for providers with a grade three (‘requires improvement’) judgement was between a year and 18 months, but from September that will change to between one and two years. Providers inspected before September will remain subject to the 18-month deadline.

Ofsted national director for FE and skills Lorna Fitzjohn (pictured) told FE Week: “Many grade three providers will still be re-inspected within a 12 to 18-month timeframe.

“This change will allow us greater flexibility in taking into account evidence such as annually issued performance data. Ofsted uses this information when considering whether providers are making the necessary progress in raising standards.”

An Ofsted spokesperson said the change was not linked to staffing issues and inadequate (grade four) providers still faced reinspection within 15 months.

Stewart Segal (pictured right), AELP chief executive, said: “We welcome the more flexible timings for re-inspections so that specific issues can be factored into the timing of the inspection such as particular recruitments or completion patterns or the issue of up-to-date data.

“However, in some circumstances, a provider would be ready for an inspection at an earlier stage and this should be taken into account when timetabling inspections and re-inspections.”

Joy Mercer (pictured below left), director of education policy for the AoC, said: “Ofsted’s decision to extend the window of reinspection to two years for a providers judged to require improvement is sensible.

“It gives providers the time to develop their evidence base and embed systems. AoC encouraged Ofsted to take a more flexible approach to improvement timetables in 2012 so we are pleased that this practical approach is now in place for next year.”

James Kewin, SFCA deputy chief executive, said: “This flexibility is to be welcomed and will provide more opportunity for providers to use annual performance data to evidence the progress they are making.”

It comes as Ofsted prepares to give FE Commissioner Dr David Collins access to draft inspection reports as part of the changes.

A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills said: “Ofsted and the FE Commissioner have an agreed Memorandum of Understanding outlining how they will co-operate and communicate effectively with one another when carrying out their independent roles.

“Included in this is Ofsted’s agreement to share draft inspection reports with the FE Commissioner.

“This is to ensure the FE Commissioner has all the relevant timely information and data necessary to make a judgement on the capacity and capability of a college.

“The communication between the FE Commissioner and Ofsted benefits all learners studying with providers that fall within the scope of the FE Commissioner.”

Two Midland colleges set to merge next month have won approval for their new name from Skills Minister Nick Boles after a local MP said their first suggestion was “an aggressive act” towards nearby competitor colleges.

Worcester College of Technology and New (North East Worcestershire) College were turned down by Mr Boles’s predecessor, Matthew Hancock, who six weeks ago rejected their ‘Worcestershire College’ suggestion.

Conservative MP for Mid-Worcestershire Sir Peter Luff (pictured below right) had complained the name was “insensitive” to other colleges in the county, but he was happy with their ‘Heart of Worcestershire College’ proposal — and so was Mr Boles, a spokesperson for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills told FE Week.

It comes with Worcester College of Technology principal Stuart Laverick (pictured above, bottom right) having been announced as the merged college’s first principal, from August 1.

He said: “We are extremely pleased that the new name has been approved by the Skills Minister. Although finding a suitable name has not been easy, we believe that this name truly reflects the values of the new organisation.

“We are fiercely loyal to the residents and businesses within Worcestershire and are dedicated to providing relevant education and training to meet their needs. Over the next few years, we will work tirelessly to make Worcestershire proud of the standard of education and training provided by Heart of Worcestershire College.”

Sir Peter had argued that ‘Worcestershire College’ potentially undermined South Worcestershire College and Warwickshire College, which has a campus in Pershore, Worcestershire.

He wrote a strongly-worded email to college bosses about their first suggestion, saying: “Sorry to be negative, but it is a grossly insensitive name when you are not the only FE college in the county, but one of three.

“South Worcestershire and Pershore [which is situated in Worcestershire, but part of Warwickshire College]… are excellent institutions that would be marginalised by the name chosen.

“This county-wide name for a college that only serves part of the county would make their marketing much more difficult and be confusing to potential students. Indeed, it looks a very aggressive act to me — I urge the governors to think again.”

And Mr Hancock’s subsequent rejection came with the BIS statement: “The request to change the name of North East Worcestershire College to Worcestershire College following the merger with Worcester College of Technology has been declined. All parties have been informed and the decision was taken in line with the department’s name-change guidance.

“The guidance states that a corporation name should not be confusing or misleading and as such should not wrongly suggest regional or national pre-eminence, or imply that a college serves a wider or different area than is the case. We are more than happy to consider a new name-change application.”

However, Mr Luff had already welcomed the second suggestion and today said: “This is a very sensible outcome. The previous name would have been very misleading and undermined the other colleges in the county. The new name is much better.”

The merged college will cater for around 10,000 students in total and employ around 1,000 staff. A spokesperson for the colleges said the new website address would be howcollege.ac.uk and added that new email addresses were yet to be finalised.

Nobody from South Worcestershire College was available for comment. Warwickshire College declined to comment.

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has received a “significant” response in its effort to boost the five-strong team of advisers to FE Commissioner Dr David Collins (pictured above from an FE Week cartoon story in November).

The application process for the part-time roles, which pay a daily rate of £600, closed on July 11 with appointments to the one-year contract posts expected by the end of the month.

A BIS spokesperson declined to reveal exactly how many applications had been received, but she said: “No appointments have yet been made, interviews are scheduled to take place in the next few weeks.

“It’s not appropriate to comment on the number of applications at this stage, but we have had a significant response to the recruitment of additional FE advisers.

“We are confident that with the significant number of applications, we will be able to recruit a number of additional FE advisers who have the necessary skills and expertise by the end of the summer.”

The spokesperson went on to say that the recruitment drive was not being carried out to replace advisers, but in a bid to add to the advisory team, which was first revealed in August having initially been planned as a seven-strong group.

She declined to say why the team, which has so far carried out 10 inspections, needed to be expanded nor by exactly how many advisers.

She said: “There are currently five FE advisers supporting the FE Commissioner. The decision to recruit additional FE advisers is not to replace existing ones but to further ensure that the FE Commissioner is able to be fully supported in his assessments wherever they happen across the country.

“The aim of the current recruitment is to identify more people who bring the right experience, credibility and expertise to become an FE adviser.”

Dr Collins’s team of advisers includes Marilyn Hawkins, chair of the 157 Group for 2011/12, and Malcolm Cooper, managing director and owner of MCA Cooper associates, which advises FE providers on finance and general management issues.

Lynn Forrester, director of Quality4fe, which is part of the FE Solutions confederation, and David Williams, director at education management consultancy W3 Advisory Limited, complete the team of FE Commissioner advisers along with Joanna Gaukroger, director of J2J Partnership Limited and former principal of Tower Hamlets College and Kensington and Chelsea College.

The latest FE Commissioner advisers job ad, carried by FE Week last month, read: “FE advisers are critical in tackling weak performance within the sector and supporting the work of the FE Commissioner.

“Recognising the range of assessments being undertaken by the FE Commissioner across the country, there is a need to increase this resource and as such BIS is looking to recruit a number of additional FE advisers.

“We are seeking high calibre individuals with a good knowledge and understanding of the education sector and a proven track record in change management and commercial skills. We are looking to appoint candidates who will bring excellent analytical skills and the ability to make recommendations based on complex evidence.

“These roles present an outstanding opportunity to help create a world class FE sector that will deliver benefits now and for generations to come.

“These are national roles that are being offered on one-year fixed term contracts, on a part time basis. The roles will be remunerated at up to £600 a day for circa 60-80 days.”

A funding “pledge” from new Skills Minister Nick Boles (pictured) for learners taking on a fourth A-level, or baccalaureate programme, has been described as “misleading” and “robbing Peter to pay Paul”.

The Sixth Form Colleges Association (SFCA) criticised today’s announcement from the Department for Education (DfE) that an additional funding programme would be extended for learners taking on a fourth A-level, international baccalaureate or new technical baccalaureate programmes once funding protection ended in 2016.

At the moment, schools and colleges which have learners who want to take a fourth A-level subject or a larger technical qualification like the baccalaureate have their funding topped up through formula protection funding (FPF), which was established when the government moved for 2013/14 from funding per qualification to funding per learner.

But Mr Boles (pictured) has announced that from 2016, schools and colleges will receive between £400 and £800 more in their basic funding for learners who take on the extra qualifications. A DfE spokesperson told FE Week was expected to cost between £20m and £30m.

James Kewin (pictured right), SFCA deputy chief executive, told FE Week: “The long delay in making this announcement has been very politically convenient for ministers — for well over a year they have been able to suggest that good news for sixth form colleges was just around the corner in the form of a large programme premium.

“But the plans announced today will only benefit a very small number of students in a very small number of Sixth Form Colleges, and not until 2016. Describing this as a funding ‘pledge’ is misleading, there is no new money here, this is a redistribution of existing resources — the only winners will be highly selective sixth form providers, particularly grammar schools.

“To fund this initiative, the government is robbing Peter to pay Paul — it would have been more equitable to increase the basic rate of funding to help students of all abilities get the support they need to progress to higher education or employment.

“The government should focus on addressing the fundamental under-investment in sixth form education, rather than introducing a measure that will only benefit a small number of high flying students.”

It comes after Professor Alison Wolf called for a per-learner funding system in order to stop institutions pushing learners to take more qualifications than they need in her 2011 report on vocational education.

Announcing the extension of the policy Mr Boles said: “Our funding should support all young people to fulfil their potential. And it is vital that schools are encouraged to offer their brightest students the broadest possible range of qualifications at age 16.

“Alongside reforms to academic and technical qualifications, this announcement demonstrates our support for schools and colleges to stretch and challenge all their students.”

Julian Gravatt, assistant chief executive at the Association of Colleges (AoC), said: “DfE has acknowledged what we’ve known for a while that funding levels for large academic programmes are insufficient. This problem was identified just last week by Professor Nigel Thrift in his letter to DfE about changes to maths and language A-levels and AoC is pleased to see this response.

“However, today’s announcement will help less than one per cent of the thousands of sixth formers study A-levels or land-based courses. Colleges and schools will be starting to advise Year 11 students in September on their sixth form options for 2015 and have no firm information about their 2015-16 budgets and nothing at all about the second year.

“DfE needs to act quickly to resolve the uncertainty about future funding and formula protection grant.”

A government spokesperson said it was also securing funding for specialist land-based courses, such as agriculture, land-based engineering and environmental conservation, who also receive funding through FPF. From 2016, it will increase the funding premium that recognises the extra cost of such provision delivered in a specialist setting (known as the programme weighting) from its current 60 per cent premium to 75 per cent.

“The announcement that the specialist programme weighting is rising to 75 per cent is really helpful for colleges running much-needed specialist land-based education, though it is a little unclear how DfE takes decisions like this and what its process is for revising funding weightings up or down,” said Mr Gravatt.

Lynne Sedgmore, 157 Group executive director, said: “The principle of ensuring young people are stretched and able to achieve their full potential is one that everyone can agree with, and any announcement of additional funding to enable this to happen is of course welcome.

“We would like to see that principle applied to all young people through a fair and equitable funding system, rather than just to those whom today’s announcement refers to as ‘the brightest’.”

Skills Funding Agency interim boss Barbara Spicer has announced she is to step down in September as officials at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) continue the search for a permanent chief executive.

Ms Spicer, who signed up to a nine-month contract for the post in November, is to set to become chief executive of Liverpool-based housing agency Plus Dane Group.

She told FE Week: “I leave the agency at the end of my interim contract, knowing that it is both sound and strong.

“The importance of the work that the agency does in terms of funding quality skills to help deliver real jobs, for real people, will continue and remain its focus.”

The hunt for Ms Spicer’s replacement began last month, when the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) advertised the role with a salary of £142,000 a year — £2,000 more than was paid in 2012-13. It also comes with a possible bonus of up to £17,500 after three years, plus annual payouts “in line with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills’ Senior Civil Service policy”.

Ms Spicer said: “I have enjoyed my time here at the agency enormously and been very impressed at the quality of work, the professionalism and dedication of the staff.”

“The process has begun to put in place a new chief executive for the agency; a move that I have already signalled as very positive. I wish my successor and the staff within the agency the very best for the future.”

The job of overseeing an annual sectoral budget of around £3.5bn was advertised by national press with the requirement that applicants “have a substantial track record of delivering structural and cultural change”.

The specifications for the 42-hour a-week job (including one-hour meal breaks) added: “Politically astute, you will quickly command the respect of government and the sector.

“Prior experience of FE and skills policy is not essential, but you must be able to demonstrate an understanding of the challenges associated with operating a dynamic and efficient skills system that changes lives through learning.”

A BIS spokesperson declined to comment on when the new agency chief executive would be announced, but said: “Ms Spicer has done an excellent job in her role as interim chief executive of the agency and we thank her for her commitment and hard work. We are now recruiting for a new chief executive for the agency.”

The move to the Merseyside and Cheshire landlord will mark the return to a role in the north of England for Ms Spicer, who joined the agency having quit as the £175,000 a-year chief executive at Salford City Council after eight years amid an alleged row with elected mayor Ian Stewart.

She was also chief executive of Greater Manchester Police Authority and is a member of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills.

“I am absolutely delighted to be joining the team at Plus Dane and to have been given the opportunity to lead the organisation as it further develops its already excellent work in neighbourhoods across Cheshire and Merseyside,” said Ms Spicer.

“I was excited by the fact that the chair and board are clear about their vision for the future; a vision I wholeheartedly buy into.

“Housing has been the one constant for me throughout what has been a varied career of public service, and this very much feels like coming back to my roots.”

Linda Minnis, chair of Plus Dane Group, said: “The Plus Dane board is delighted to have appointed Ms Spicer at an exciting time for the organisation. We feel her vision, values, experience and leadership qualities will be invaluable in delivering our future goals and aspirations.”