Marples vs DfE trial set for 2025

The High Court trial between 3aaa co-founder Peter Marples and the Department for Education is set to take place in 2025 – and the loser will have to foot a near-£3 million legal bill.

A costs and case management conference for the high-value case was held this week, in which the DfE was ordered to disclose “key” evidence relating to the sales of other training providers ahead of the 15-day trial.

Ten witnesses are expected from Marples’ side, while the DfE will have five witnesses of its own.

Costs were not discussed during this week’s hearing, but FE Week understands the total legal bill for Marples will be just over £1 million, while the DfE is expected to rack up £1.9 million in costs.

Whichever side loses the case will have to pay the other side’s legal fees.

Marples and three members of his family are attempting to sue the DfE for the then-Skills Funding Agency’s alleged refusal to sign off on the change of ownership of former apprenticeship giant 3aaa in 2016 to TLP (Trilantic Capital Partners LLP), two years before the company went bust amid an investigation and police referral.

Peter Marples

The family is seeking at least £37 million in damages.

The DfE’s legal bill is higher than Marples’ due to the disclosure of evidence costs involved, which hit nearly £1 million on their own.

Master Clark this week ordered the DfE to release documentation that related to the “change of control” of 11 other provider sales that the SFA allegedly consented to between 2015 and 2019, despite resistance from DfE lawyer Michael Walsh.

Walsh argued that this was an attempt by Marples’ team to “cast the widest possible net in what is a fishing expedition”.

“What the disclosure issues ought to relate to is the actual decision under challenge where the allegations are made about the TLP acquisition and not some early decision or indeed a decision about companies which bear no relation to the claimants,” he said.

Marples’ lawyer, Mark Harper KC, argued the DfE’s decision to not consent to the 3aaa change of control was “negligent” because the department has never taken this approach in relation to any other change of control request.

“We will say when it comes to considering those documents, there’ll be a clear difference in approach as to how the defendant approached the request by other companies to how it then approached the TLP request,” Harper said.

Master Clark ruled that the documents are relevant, but their release must be “proportionate”. Discussions between the two legal teams are now ongoing about what specific documentation relating to other provider changes of control should be released.

The DfE was also ordered to release “narrative” evidence related to how the SFA made the decision not to approve the claimant’s change of control request in respect to the TLP acquisition, including what matters it considered in doing so and what process and procedure was adopted.

DfE is now required to search for and disclose, for example, emails between then-Skills Funding Agency chief executive Peter Lauener and his colleagues where they discussed the decision.

Master Clark also ruled that the DfE must disclose communication between the SFA and former FE Week editor Nick Linford which related to 3aaa and Peter Marples during a specific time period.

Disclosure of all documents must be completed by the end of June 2024.

The exact date of the trial is yet to be decided, but the window for it will be between January and October 2025.

You can download all of the published legal files related to the case at the end of this article

Apprenticeship levy turns into Treasury ‘cash cow’

The Treasury has been accused of short-changing employers after FE Week analysis revealed HMRC pocketed around £415 million generated from apprenticeship levy receipts last year.

Experts have now called on ministers to rapidly address the emerging mismatch between the cash the apprenticeship levy raises compared to what is being allocated for public spending before it becomes a government “cash cow” amid the fiscal crisis.

Treasury figures show that £3.580 billion was raised by the levy in the 2022-23 financial year but just £2.554 billion was handed to the Department for Education to spend in England, while FE Week estimates that £608 million was handed to the devolved nations.

It means that £418 million of apprenticeship funding went unallocated. On top of this, the DfE underspent its budget by £96 million, meaning the total savings to the Treasury hit £514 million in 2022-23.

And in 2021-22 the Treasury boosted their coffers by over £200 million in unallocated apprenticeship funding.

Simon Ashworth, director of policy at the Association of Employment and Learning Providers, said the figures show “just how much employers are being short-changed”.

He added: “The purpose of the levy is to fund high-quality apprenticeship training and assessment so the overall programme budget must reflect the amount raised much more closely. We cannot allow the levy to become a cash cow for the Treasury.”

‘Employers are being short-changed’

Since 2017, UK businesses with a payroll of £3 million or more pay each month into a levy pot which is used to fund apprenticeships for both large and small businesses.

The Treasury then distributes a portion of those receipts annually to the Department for Education which is ring-fenced to be spent on apprenticeships in England.

The devolved nations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland also receive a slice of the receipts. But while the first three years – from 2017-18 to 2019-20 – had allocated budgets, the Treasury has kept exactly how much the devolved nations receive from the levy since 2020-21 a secret. It did however commit that beyond this point the “normal operation of the Barnett Formula should provide a similar outcome”.

FE Week analysed the early budgets for the devolved nations and found they were, on average, handed 17 per cent of the total levy receipts, so we used 17 per cent as an estimation for their share of the levy from 2020 onwards. The devolved nations also do not have their share of the levy ring-fenced for apprenticeships, so it can be spent on any area they choose.

In the early years of the levy, the Treasury appeared to over-commit to the devolved administrations, as figures show HMRC distributed more than what levy receipts generated. But underspends from the DfE’s budget prevented it from an overall overspend.

By using 17 per cent as the best estimate for devolved nations’ levy allocations, FE Week can reveal that the Treasury has retained around £316 million of levy receipts since 2017.

When we take into account DfE underspends, and assuming the devolved nationals spent all of their allocations, it shows that almost £2.5 billion of apprenticeship funding has been kept by, or returned to, the Treasury.

Experts told FE Week the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) believes the levy will raise £3.7 billion this financial year and that levy receipts have already raised £120 million more this year compared to the same period last year.

The government has only committed to increasing England’s apprenticeships budget to £2.7 billion by 2024-25.

Mark Corney, senior policy adviser at the Campaign for Learning, said the levy is raising more and more for the government because of “higher nominal wages and relatively stable number of employees, as the fall in employment is driven by fewer self-employed people”.

He told FE Week: “The bulk of the savings seem to be coming from the underspend in DfE rather than what the levy is yielding above allocation. What’s really interesting is the last two years, when we have got a fiscal crisis, the Treasury has got an extra £200 million in 2021-22 and £418 million in 2022-23.

“The levy is raising far more than is being allocated if we assume the devolved nations have spent all their funding.

“The decision clearly is that the country needs to keep reducing its deficit rather than investing in apprenticeships.”

He added that while these are the best estimations, it would be “better if the Treasury gave us an indicative devolved nation budget for full transparency”.

It comes at a time when big and long-running apprenticeship providers are either closing down or pulling out of the apprenticeship market due to unviable funding rates for apprenticeship standards and functional skills teaching.

Ashworth said: “Against the backdrop of a skills sector crisis this could then pay for a vital new minimum funding threshold and an across-the-board uplift in all apprenticeship funding bands to tackle the rising costs of inflation. It would also help to address the long-standing issue of inadequately funded English and maths qualifications.”

A government spokesperson said: “The apprenticeship levy is designed so that money not used by levy-paying employers is re-allocated to fund apprenticeships from smaller employers. In the last financial year, we were encouraged to see employers utilised over 99 per cent of the apprenticeship budget, benefitting big and small businesses alike.

“The government sets out its plan for departmental public expenditure at spending reviews. This was done most recently in 2021, where plans were set to 2024-25.”

1 in 3 colleges challenge TEF rating

Nearly a third of colleges seeking a teaching excellence framework (TEF) rating this year have challenged their judgment.

The Office for Students today announced the results of the 2023 TEF, the first time the quality ratings have been release since 2019. Gold, silver, bronze or ‘requires improvement’ ratings are handed out based on an assessment of the quality of a provider’s higher education teaching.

Six of the 56 colleges who were part of this TEF round secured gold, while 22 achieved silver and 11 were given bronze.

But 17, almost a third, of colleges entering TEF have appealed their results, giving them a ‘pending’ outcome.

For the first time this year, HE providers received subsidiary judgements for student experience and student outcomes alongside their overall rating.

The revamped TEF led to nearly a quarter (53 of 228) of all universities, colleges and other HE providers challenging their rating.

Some have complained that the TEF grading process penalised those with higher numbers of disadvantaged students.

In a letter to skills minister Robert Halfon, Frances Corner, warden at Goldsmiths University of London, said not including the number of students eligible for free school meals in the benchmarking for the TEF process was a “significant oversight”.

She said that could have affected performances, after research by London South Bank University showed universities with a smaller proportion of students with free school meal eligibility were more likely to receive a TEF gold rating.

TEF outcomes are determined by an OfS panel using provider performance data alongside evidence submissions from the provider and their students.

No college received the ‘requires improvement’ judgement for their overall rating, but this could change once appeals have been finalised. South Essex did receive ‘requires improvement’ for the subsidiary judgment of student experience, while City of Sunderland College and Barnsley College got ‘requires improvement’ for student outcomes.

South Devon College, Blackpool and the Fylde College and City College Plymouth each secured straight golds, with Weston College, Morley College London and The Northern School of Art achieving gold for student experience and silver for student outcomes.

Dr Andrew Gower, principal and chief executive of Morley College London, said: “As the only specialist adult education institute in the country offering higher education as an integral part of its strategic mission, we are delighted to receive the overall rating of gold with the teaching excellence framework.

“Whatever their age and background, our TEF gold rating means that students can have confidence in a high-quality higher education.”

Blackpool and the Fylde College principal Alun Francis said: “This gold rating is evidence that our extensive efforts for every student and apprentice, and our personalised approaches with wraparound support, are working.”  

Three colleges saw their TEF rating improve on their previous score. City College Norwich, Bradford College and South Essex College of Further and Higher Education each moved up from bronze to silver, with the latter also scooping a gold for student experience.

Jerry White, principal of City College Norwich, said the silver rating shows the “quality of our vocational, career-focused higher education stands in comparison with the learning experience and student outcomes available at many prestigious universities”.

“I hope that this will encourage more students to consider the employment-focused Higher Education opportunities that are available to them locally,” he added.

Ten colleges in this TEF round saw their overall ratings decline.

Leicester College dropped from gold to bronze, while Loughborough College, RNN Group, Truro and Penwith College, Middlesbrough College and Myerscough College are now silver.

Susan Lapworth, chief executive at the OfS, said the TEF ratings “clearly demonstrate the excellence on display in universities and colleges”.

Four things we learned from the Employer Skills Survey 2022

The amount of money spent on training in England has flatlined as UK-wide spending sinks to its lowest ever recorded level, according to the government’s latest employer skills survey.

The report, published today by the Department for Education, sought out data on labour market and skills challenges faced by employers across the four nations.

Nearly 73,000 employers across England, Wales and Northern Ireland took part in the biennial survey for 2022. Data collection took place between June 2022 and March 2023.

Here are the key findings…

Investment in training flatlines

Employers in the UK spent less on training and development than in the previous 12 months. 

Total employer expenditure was £53.6 billion in 2022, a 7.7 per cent real terms decrease from the last reported figure in 2017, which was £58.1 billion. In 2011, when data collection began, employers spent £59.1 billion on training.

Training expenditure in England increased slightly since 2019 from £44.9 billion to £45.8 billion.

Employers with five to 24 employees spent the most as a cohort on training – £16.65 billion in 2022 which is a decrease from 2017, when they spent £18.1 billion on staff training.

Large employers (with 100 plus employees) spent £14.7 billion on training in 2022, a decline from the £16 billion spent in 2017.

According to the latest figures, the average investment in training per employee in England was £2,971, plummeting 27 per cent since 2011 when £4,095 was spent per employee (adjusted for inflation).

Stephen Evans, chief executive of the Learning and Work Institute, said today’s figures show the amount employers in England invest in training “continued to flatline.”

Fewer employers are providing training

The survey also found that 60 per cent of companies funded or arranged any training for staff over the past 12 months in England, a drop from 66 per cent in 2017, and 61 per cent in 2019.

Figures show there was a decrease in UK employers providing training in all sectors, apart from the public administration sector. The largest decreases were seen among manufacturing employers (decreasing six percentage points in 2017 to 54 per cent in 2022), and arts and other services sectors (falling eight percentage points in 2017 to 60 per cent in 2022).

Larger employers were more likely to provide training over SMEs – 94 per cent among companies with 250 or more employees compared to 45 per cent in firms with two to four employees.

In 2022, around half (49 per cent) of UK employers provided on-the-job training to their staff over the past 12 months; down from 53 per cent in 2017. 

Furthermore, the proportion of employers providing off-the-job training fell nine percentage points from 2017 to 39 per cent in 2022. 

Around one in five (21 per cent) UK employers offered on-the-job training only, rising from 18 per cent in 2017.

Skills-shortage vacancies growing

More employers are reporting having a skill-shortage vacancy – defined as a hard-to-fill vacancy due to a lack of skills, qualifications or experience among applicants.

In 2022, 10 per cent said they have a skill-shortage vacancy, higher than in 2017, when 6 per cent of employers reported so.

Additionally, more of the UK workforce was not fully proficient in their jobs, i.e. a skills gap.

The proportion of employers that had at least one member of staff with a skills gap was 15 per cent, slightly higher than 13 per cent of employers in 2017.

The percentage of skill-shortage vacancies as a proportion to vacancies in England was 36 per cent, a 14-percentage point increase from the 22 per cent skill-shortage vacancy density reported in 2017.

Education sector among the hardest to fill vacancies

Employers also reported difficulties filling roles, for reasons such as low numbers of applicants with the required skills, a lack of interest in the job, competition from other employers and poor terms and conditions offered for the post. 

These so-called hard-to-fill vacancies were most prevalent among employers in the health and social work (26 per cent had at least one hard-to-fill vacancy), 26 per cent of education employers and 21 per cent of hotels and restaurants sector firms.

“We need a clear plan for economic growth and better incentives for employers to invest in skills, such as a skills tax credit and improved apprenticeship levy,” Evans said. “Our analysis suggests improving skills could boost the economy by £20 billion per year.”

£40m fund launched to fix ‘market failures’ in degree apprenticeships

Bidding is open for a £40 million fund to address “market failures” in the government’s flagship degree apprenticeship programme.

The Office for Students is seeking projects that will improve take-up of level 6 degree apprenticeships and “address equality of opportunity”.

Ministers were urged to get a grip on access to degree apprenticeships last year as research by the social mobility charity the Sutton Trust found the “middle-class grab” on opportunities was getting worse.

This comes on top of £8 million that has already been allocated to over 100 existing degree apprenticeship providers this year to develop their provision.

To be eligible for the new fund, providers must be registered with the Office for Students under their approved (fee cap) category, but they don’t have to be currently delivering degree apprenticeships. 

Robert Halfon, minister for skills, apprenticeships and higher education, said: “Expanding degree apprenticeships is crucial if we are to build a skills and apprenticeships nation that is fit for the future.

“This extra £40 million will allow even more people to benefit, and I am delighted that the OfS has asked universities ands colleges to show how their projects will create more opportunities for people from disadvantaged backgrounds as part of their bids for this funding.”

Bids for the first wave of funding, for projects running up to July 2024, open today and close on November 20, 2023.

Addressing ‘market failures’

According to OfS analysis, of the 343 higher education providers registered in their approved (fee cap) category, 240 were also registered on the apprenticeship provider and assessment register (APAR), formerly known as the register of apprenticeship training providers.

Of the 240, just 99 providers had recorded any degree apprenticeship starts, which the regulator describes as a “market failure”.

“We consider that the relatively small proportion of registered providers currently delivering degree apprenticeship starts represents a market failure. We wish to address this by using our funding to incentivise providers to begin delivery of degree apprenticeships,” OfS funding guidance said.

And although the number of degree apprentices doubled from 6,920 in 2019/20 to 13,510 in 2020/21, the OfS reports that most of that growth was seen in just 24 providers. 

This “uneven and slow” growth was also described as “market failure”.

Fixing ‘middle-class grab’

DfE ministers have consistently lauded the degree apprenticeships programme in recent years, but it has been criticised for providing opportunities for already well-qualified people. 

The Sutton Trust reported in December that degree apprenticeships were more socially exclusive than the traditional university route. They found that only 5 per cent of those starting a degree apprenticeship in 2020/21 were from lower-income areas, compared with 6.7 per cent of those going to university.

The OfS said it wants to fund projects that target students who are least likely to access higher education. 

Using their associations between characteristics of students (ABCS) measure, the OfS found that 50 per cent of degree apprentices that started in 2021/22 were in the top two quintiles of people who are more likely to access higher education. 

Projects should target students that are under 21, have a disability, are from under-represented ethnic groups and come from the two lowest quintiles by the index of multiple deprivation. 

Currently, just 30 per cent of degree apprentices are under 21 years old, 12 per cent recorded a disability and 86 per cent are from a white ethnic background.

Waves and strands

To be in with a chance of winning funding, providers have to bid under one of two strands in three funding waves.

Strand one of the fund is for providers that are already delivering level 6 degree apprenticeships but with low take-up. Projects in this strand should increase starts on apprenticeship standards already being delivered and begin delivery of new standards.

Strand two is for providers that are new to delivering level 6 degree apprenticeships to “expand provision of apprenticeship standards with currently lower uptake among providers”.

Across both strands, the OfS expect projects to “increase equality of opportunity” in degree apprenticeships.

Eligible providers can compete for funding in three waves. Wave one, for projects that run until July 2024, and wave two, for projects that run until July 2025, open for bids today. Wave three will open in May 2024.

A total of £16 million is available in wave one and £24 million is available for waves two and three.

Providers have until November 20 to bid into wave one and December 19 for wave two.

Why it’s easier than ever for employers to take on apprentices

The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) and Department for Education (DfE) have released the funding rules changes for 2023-2024. After exploring the changes from the previous year’s rules, a theme emerges: many of the changes make it logistically easier for employers to take on apprentices.

Here are some of the changes that have particular significance for employers.

Flexibility in off-the-job training

Some of the greatest changes in terms of impact for employers are around off-the-job (OTJ) training. Previously, some active learning and OTJ had to take place every 4 weeks; now it must take place every calendar month.

This doesn’t sound like a massive change, but it provides important flexibility for employers who may want their apprentices to be working throughout most of a two-month period. For example, this will benefit those employing retail apprentices over Christmas and January sales.

Making enrolment easier

To help facilitate the sign-up process, the apprentice’s line manager is no longer required to sign the documentation. Any suitable individual at the employing organisation with responsibility to agree to the programme can do so.

In addition, training providers can now accept agreement on a training plan in the form of an email from the employer on the apprentice’s start date and obtain the employer’s signature within 42 days of that. However, using this new prerogative should remain an exception. To maintain a smooth onboarding process, we advise that employers continue to look to provide confirmation and a signature before the start date as a matter of policy.

There is also greater flexibility in the initial assessment process. The employer must, of course,  agree on the recognition of prior learning, how the apprenticeship will be achieved, the price of the apprenticeship and have input in progress reviews. However, if the employer is unable to attend the initial assessment, the provider can give them the opportunity to contribute afterwards and send them the relevant information after the meeting for review and signature.

Simplifying completion

Where an apprentice works less than 30 hours per week, employers must still extend the planned duration of the apprenticeship. However, apprentices can now complete once they have met the one-year minimum duration provided they have met the OTJ requirements.

On the more administrative side of these changes, a statement signed by the apprentice and the employer to agree that OTJ was less than planned only needs to be provided when both the duration is shorter than planned and hours worked are less than planned.

More flexible review timings

Progress reviews must be completed at least four times a year rather than every 12 weeks, and an alternative frequency can be agreed if there is evidence of good a reason. Similar to the initial assessment, employers must be sent details to review and sign after the meeting if they can’t attend the progress review.

A clearer role for ITPs

The changes also take some of the administrative workload from the employer and place the responsibilities with their training provider. Most noticeably, providers are now responsible for choosing the end-point assessment organisation (EPAO) for the employer, which allows them to draw on their experience and existing relationships. That said, the employer may continue to select the EPAO if they wish.

It has also been clarified that the provider is only responsible for checking that the apprentice is being paid a lawful wage by the employer while the apprentice is on programme.

What’s next?

Providers may wish to make employers aware of this greater degree of flexibility as part of their marketing processes. They should mean more businesses are incentivised to start offering apprenticeships or to expand the number they already offer.

These changes represent a leap forward in simplifying apprenticeships for businesses. However, the ESFA must now ensure that there is a robust and clear framework that allows employers to properly appreciate what is expected of them. The best way to do that would be to recognise and build upon the invaluable experience and expertise of training providers and EPAOs.

I have the answer to better classroom practice. Steal it if you’re busy

Every day we come under increasing pressure to do everything that little bit quicker and better than before. Five-minute meals, 20-minute work outs, 30-minute make overs – harder, better, faster, stronger… The same applies in education, particularly in the chronically under-funded further education (FE) sector, which seemingly normalises ‘more for less’. As availability of resources reduce, pressure increases to be better each year in the various metrics that FE is measured against. Teachers and their learners are ultimately the ones that suffer.

Obvious take alert! Doing things quickly is riddled with issues. Not only does it focus attention on the outcome over the process, but it also leads to irrational thinking. In Thinking Fast and Slow, behavioural psychologist, Daniel Kahneman argues for more focus on slow, rational thinking. He shows that when we have to think quickly, we act on emotions, intuition and impulse. We think our thinking is logical, but in fact we make more errors and rely more on chance for our success.

Take this example for Kahneman’s book. Answer this question without thinking:

If a bat and ball cost £1:10 and the bat is £1 more than the ball, how much is the ball?

Given little time to process, most people’s immediate response to this is 10 pence. It’s got to be, hasn’t it? Well, no. Slow down and read the question carefully. Give yourself a moment to think it through and you can see why that answer is wrong. Give yourself another moment or two and you come to the right answer. (If you’re in a hurry, it’s 5 pence).

Kahneman suggests that the average person makes around 35,000 decisions each day. I’d argue that teachers make many more than this, what with responding to learners’ needs, covering the vast curriculum and countless administrative tasks. And that’s before even considering the cognitive load of moving from one classroom to another several times a day while carrying a smorgasbord of resources.

While these decisions differ in difficulty and importance (e.g., when to nip to the loo), if we had to consciously process all these decisions, we would suffer from serious overload. So, our fast-thinking system acts like a shortcut for us to minimise this. However, making almost all of our decisions based on this system clearly has implications.

You can’t rely on your fastest thinking to improve your teaching

For example, let’s take one of the most fundamental assessment tools that teachers use daily: questioning. I’m as guilty as most here when I check for understanding. Without thinking about a carefully crafted question that can elicit understanding, I often find myself asking an open, voluntary response question instead: ‘Who knows what X is?’

This isn’t going to help me very much as a teacher, as it will always be the one confident learner that responds the quickest. It’s also not very useful for the rest of the learners in the group, those who have little time to think about the question being asked and are essentially being forced to think fast themselves. It sets them up to make errors.

Because the vast majority of our thinking happens quickly, Kahneman suggests that one should ‘inform their gut and then trust it’. The way to do this is through deliberate practice to create habits, so that our fast response system makes fewer errors.

K. Anders Ericsson and colleagues pioneered the idea of deliberate practice, which they suggest is a highly structured activity with the explicit goal of improving performance. However, this isn’t just a case of doing more of the same in the classroom; it requires the isolation of a practice which is rehearsed outside of the classroom.

Thinking back to my example of questioning, deliberate practice requires slow and careful crafting of key questions that allow the whole class to think and contribute. Sure, I hear you. You don’t have  time for that. But if you really want to improve an aspect of your teaching, whether that’s behaviour management, explicit instruction, questioning, feedback etc, you can’t rely on your fastest thinking to get it done.

It’s as good an argument as any for leadership that removes extraneous load from teachers and a system that values experience. Failing those, it’s still a great argument for slowing down when we can – and borrowing someone else’s answer when we must.

Why it’s time to recognise the work of colleges as social action leaders

As the further education commissioner and a strong advocate for the sector, I see the value that colleges add to their communities every single day. Further education is a driver of social mobility that enables people from all backgrounds to gain the qualifications they need to achieve their career goals.

But what we have seen over the past two years is a phenomenal movement within the sector that has begun to reflect the real additional value that it provides. Over 140 FE colleges signed up to the Good for Me, Good for FE campaign in 2021, which to date has generated over £4 million of real social value through volunteering.

This figure – verified by a social action calculator based on the TOMS framework – is the result of an extraordinary collective volunteering and fundraising effort led by college staff and students. Much of this activity was ongoing before the campaign launch, but by equating it with a monetary value, colleges have been motivated and inspired to increase and expand their contribution.

The desire and commitment of people within the sector to help others is evident. This is despite the many working pressures experienced by FE staff and reflects the inherent community spirit that runs through colleges. It has also further reinforced the importance of colleges as civic anchor institutions. 

Students too are playing an important part. We are seeing a huge amount of inspirational support from young people across the country’s colleges, with student unions driving impressive fundraising and volunteering activity. For example, a group of students and staff cooking food for the homeless and joining me in sleeping in cardboard boxes to raise awareness and funds.  This is particularly important to me since I have chaired a local homeless charity board for over ten years.

Students and staff have also raised money for Macmillan by selling cakes; they have sponsored and joined in Moonwalks for their local hospices; they have sponsored young people to attend school in Kenya and travelled there to help build infrastructure.  In Chichester, engineering, travel & tourism and construction staff came together to plan and build a children’s play area in a deprived part of the city. I could go on!

We have seen a phenomenal movement within the sector

These activities benefit everyone – the recipients and the person offering the support. Volunteering is proven to positively affect mental health, which was very much part of the rationale behind the Good for Me, Good for FE campaign.  

Crucially, the skills and knowledge young people develop through volunteering activities are immense – from improving communication to developing a first-hand understanding of a specific industry. Gaining experience within a workplace (or any other non-education setting) is not only valuable but essential for every young person, whether it’s paid or unpaid.

Plus, someone who has shown commitment and dedication to a voluntary placement on a regular basis is extremely attractive to a future employer. Volunteering is unequivocally advantageous to everyone involved. I believe it should be encouraged on a much wider scale.

With such stark, all-round benefits – coupled with the goodwill and social conscience found within FE communities, colleges need to harness and enhance this fantastic potential.    

By encouraging staff and students to undertake community-focused activities, colleges can be social action leaders. Whether this involves giving staff some annual ‘volunteering days’ or supporting students to take up placements at voluntary services or organisations, all will have an incredibly positive impact. 

The value a college adds to its local community has obvious reputational benefits. Leading by example in this way as anchor institutions reflects how colleges deliver much more than just qualifications.  

That’s why I am so pleased to be on the judging panel of the inaugural Good for Me, Good for FE awards. These will recognise and celebrate some of the amazing individuals, teams and colleges who go above and beyond to support their communities – helping to make FE the unique sector it is.   

I look forward to hearing the winners’ stories – and those of all the runners-up – and celebrating their hard work. I very much hope this will inspire more people to get involved so that more communities, including employers, can reap the benefits of a co-ordinated and successful social action movement across our wonderful sector. 

Nominations for the 2023 Good for Me, Good for FE awards close at 11.59pm, September 29, 2023.

Colleges are key to closing employment gaps for young people with learning disabilities

This past decade has seen great strides towards genuine inclusion in education and employment for people with disabilities. National Inclusion Week celebrates its eleventh year this month, the Disability Confident scheme launched in 2016 has seen over 18,000 employers sign up, and the number of people with a disability who receive high qualifications increases every year. But when it comes to young people with a learning disability, how close are we to closing the inclusion gap?

While the employment rate for disabled people remains low at 53%, compared to 81% for non-disabled peers, the situation is a lot more dire for those with a learning disability or who are autistic. Employment outcomes for people with learning disabilities have declined from 5.6% in 2021 to 4.8% in 2023, even as that same period saw the highest number of job vacancies in the country.

Increasing numbers of educators and employers are now embracing the social model of disability and know inclusivity brings enormous benefits for disabled and non-disabled people alike. And yet, young people with SEND who want to finish their education, find their feet and earn a living wage face enormous challenges.

The partners in our consortium, Internships Work, have helped thousands of young people into work through supported employment schemes. We know that for young people with SEND the journey to fulfilling employment starts in education. Colleges are agents of change. By helping students access supported internships and other employment pathways, they are offering young people a chance to gain lifelong skills and to be ambitious about their future.

Supported internships are not new. Introduced in 2013, they have a proven track record of success, consistently driving change for young people with additional needs. Stories like Toseef’s are the rule, not the exception, for supported interns. On average, 70 per cent of supported interns in our partnership get a full-time, paid job upon completion. Research shows that supported employment programmes consistently achieve better outcomes for young people.

High-quality support is available to colleges

When Internships Work was launched in 2022, commissioned by the DfE, the programme aimed to double the number of supported interns by 2025, with 4500 young people benefiting annually – transforming their lives and defying societal assumptions. We are on track to deliver that goal, but we cannot do it without the support and involvement of our education partners.

Colleges and schools are pivotal in driving inclusion for young people with SEND and setting them up for success. They can and must offer young people who come through their doors not only qualifications but the skills to raise their ambitions and succeed in life. The key now is to make sure that support and opportunity follow every young person as they leave college and step into their future. With local authorities, employers, mentorship schemes and charities, we need to work together to make supported internships work.

For busy colleges, getting involved in supported employment can feel overwhelming: it is a responsibility and might involve additional administrative pressures. In reality, high-quality consistent support is available to guide colleges in making the process work seamlessly for them. We can offer efficient tools and support fostering partnerships that will enable colleges to build sustainable transition to employment programmes.

In return, colleges that provide supported internships can benefit from enhancing their reputation, attracting funders’ interest and creating enormous positive impact for their communities.

We are asking colleges to open their doors to supported internship programmes. Embrace the resources and support available, collaborate with their local SEND employment forums, and together, let’s shape a future where every young person’s potential is recognised and fulfilled. Join us in creating a world where diversity and inclusion are not just aspirations, but employment pathways for all.

Five practical tools for engaging in supported internships:

  1. Access the college information page at Internships Works, a 360-degree employment support package for education providers.
  2. Sign up for job coach training to equip your staff with the skills to guide students toward successful careers.
  3. Connect with local SEND employment forums to collaborate with stakeholders to drive lasting change.
  4. Engage with Internships Work’s regional leads to unlock the potential of supported internships for young people with learning disabilities.
  5. Become a peer reviewer for the Supported Internships Quality Assurance Framework (SIQAF) to play an active role in elevating the quality of supported internships.

This article was also co-authored by Claire Cookson, CEO, DFN Project SEARCH

NDTi, BASE and DFN Project SEARCH are partners in the Internships Work consortium, commissioned by the Department for Education to double the current supported internship provision in England.