Kate Green has been appointed as the new shadow education secretary.
The MP for Stretford and Urmston, a former chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group, replaces Rebecca Long-Bailey, who was sacked on Thursday.
She has previously served as a shadow minister for disabled people, shadow minister for women and equalities and shadow minister for child poverty strategy.
Green said: “It’s a privilege to have been asked to serve as shadow education secretary.
“The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating impact on children’s education. I look forward to working with teachers, unions, parents and councils to help ensure we get our children back in school as soon as possible.”
The Education and Skills Funding Agency’s director for apprenticeships has revealed that discussions are underway with Treasury about what “incentives” they can give employers as part of the prime minister’s “apprenticeship guarantee” pledge.
Peter Mucklow revealed the first bit of detail of how the proposal might work during an Association of Employment and Learning Providers webinar this morning, in which he said apprenticeships are “central to the government’s view on recovery” from Covid-19.
“We are looking at what incentives can be provided including to employers to incentivise them to make more new starts available than would otherwise be the case given the current lack of confidence or indeed available funds for many employers,” he explained.
“That is something we are discussing internally and with Treasury.”
Mucklow, who was previously the ESFA’s director of further education but got moved to the apprenticeships role after Keith Smith left for the Department for Education last month, added that an apprenticeships guarantee also means ensuring “that we have sufficient budgets to meet small and medium sized enterprises ambition to recruit”.
“That is in relation to contracts but also numbers of SMEs coming forward and we have the money in the budget to meet that demand.
“Specifically, [those are] the three things we can take away from that apprenticeship guarantee statement and you might expect more to be said over the coming weeks on that.”
His comments come three weeks after prime minsiter Boris Johnson told the nation during a coronavirus briefing that young people “should be guaranteed an apprenticeship” after warning of “many, many job losses” expected from the fallout of Covid-19.
Various sector bodies, such as the AELP and the Association of Colleges, have since said that wage subsidies would have to be central to the policy to make it a reality.
Apprenticeship starts have continued to drop sharply since the outbreak of coronavirus. Data published yesterday by the Department for Education showed that from March 23 – when lockdown began – to May 31 there were 26,090 starts compared to the 50,050 reported between those months in 2019 – a fall of 47.9 per cent.
Skills minister Gillian Keegan told an FE Week webcast in April that her “biggest worry” during the Covid-19 pandemic is the “recruitment of new apprentices”.
Mucklow told today’s AELP webinar that the government is also looking “more broadly” than apprenticeships to areas such as traineeships.
“Apprenticeships depend on some things that we can’t control while we might be able to incentivise them so we are really interested in what we can do to improve and expand traineeships for example,” he said.
“I haven’t got time to say anything more on that but that could also provide some significant opportunities.”
Johnson and the chancellor Rishi Sunak are expected to announce their Covid-19 recovery strategy in the coming weeks and reports suggest skills and training will be at the heart of their plan.
The Education and Skills Funding Agency’s new director for apprenticeships has pledged more “collaboration, communication, and clarity” as he bids to “strengthen relationships” with training providers.
Statements on building greater partnerships have this afternoon been published by Peter Mucklow, Association of Colleges boss David Hughes, and Association of Employment and Learning Providers chief executive Mark Dawe.
They come as the government develops its recovery package following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mucklow, who took over the top apprenticeships role from Keith Smith in the ESFA last month, said that since his appointment, he has been “immensely proud of the tenacity and adaptability of our innovative provider base, employers of all sizes, apprentices, end-point assessment organisations and wider stakeholders in dealing admirably to the situation we find ourselves in”.
However, “I can see opportunities for improvement in how we work with you all,” he added.
“A great apprenticeship requires an equal contribution from employers, apprentices and providers. As we look to develop and deliver a recovery package to support employers, individuals and the economic recovery, I want to strengthen how the apprenticeships directorate works with all apprenticeship providers.”
Mucklow said he wants collaboration “to be the ‘golden thread’ that permeates through all our relationships for the benefit of apprentices and employers”.
“I want early and meaningful communication and engagement with the sector about our plans. Trusted communication is two-way and I want to focus more on bringing our providers closer together with the ESFA through greater – and more productive – partnerships on the ground.
“Finally, I want a greater clarity about the future of apprenticeships; a common understanding of the clear benefits and value that apprenticeships bring to employers, apprentices, local communities, and the economy.
“Collaboration, communication, and clarity. That’s my commitment to the sector.”
Hughes said he was “pleased” that ESFA recognises the partnerships it needs to forge with colleges and other providers.
“An apprenticeship is a complex animal, requiring joined-up action and commitment from the apprentice themselves, alongside the employer, the college or training provider and government,” he added.
“Reflecting that collaboration is important in communications and policy.”
Dawe said AELP was “delighted to have had constructive conversations with ESFA and welcomes this announcement by Peter Mucklow which offers greater collaboration, communication and clarity, as we work together on making apprenticeships a vital component of the economic recovery”.
“Having performed miracles to keep thousands of apprentices learning remotely during the lockdown, providers are now facing the challenge of keeping apprentices in employment as the furlough scheme ends and AELP knows that they will pull out all the stops in doing so,” he added.
“We also want to generate new opportunities and this means encouraging employers to look at the benefits of the programme. As Peter says, this can only happen if there is a common understanding between ESFA, AoC and AELP, working with the local provider groups, on the messages to employers, apprentices and other stakeholders such as parents and teachers.
“The pandemic has reminded us that out of adversity comes opportunity, and AELP sees this new approach from the ESFA as a fresh chapter in collaboration which should help transform the skills landscape across the country. “
The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education is delaying its decision on whether to remove the integrated degree from the popular digital solutions apprenticeship as it launches a wider review of its mandated qualifications policy.
A review into the level 6 digital and technology solutions professional (DTSP) standard was first launched two years ago and will decide whether or not to remove the degree from the apprenticeship.
But the quango said today it is postponing the decision and will now conduct a “broader review of policy on degree apprenticeships” at level 6.
In a statement the IfATE said: “We are listening to employers and taking time to review plans for an updated DTSP apprenticeship. We will conduct a broader review of policy on degree apprenticeships and take a look again at the DTSP standard in light of the review.
“Students can continue to start on the existing DTSP apprenticeship and degree apprenticeships at level 6 will continue to play an important role in the overall programme.”
They added: “We are listening and taking the time to consider all of the different points of view here. We did not want to make a decision without doing that.”
There are 39 apprenticeship standards with an integrated degree which are currently available for delivery at the moment.
The DTSP is very popular with universities and has had 5,219 starts so far with a maximum funding cap of £25,000 each.
Outreach community work, always a cornerstone of one Essex adult education provider, came to the fore during the pandemic, writes Tony Gallagher
Southend Adult and Community College (SACC) has long been well-rooted in its community. Managers have been determined and outward-looking in ensuring that the Essex college attracts and retains vulnerable learners and the make-up of the student body is a good testament to the college’s inclusive mission, spanning ethnicity, class and cultures.
Ros Parker, the principal, has concentrated on skills development and close ties with employers. Senior officers of the sponsoring Southend Borough Council have been quick to spot the potential of the college in furthering the council’s strategies in areas such as welfare, housing and employment.
But that was before Covid-19. The first concern after lockdown was to ensure students continued to participate in learning. True to its community- ethos, managers recognised the social dimension, structure and security that attending college brought to the lives of learners. Older learners had flourished within their art lessons, often forming wider social networks. Young people struggling with mainstream education patently benefited from the inclusive culture. The need to ensure that learners maintained a personal link with tutors and peers was therefore paramount.
In common with many other FE institutions, managers introduced online learning. Existing technology was adapted and new technology and pedagogy introduced. Tutors rose to the challenge and a high proportion of learners continued with their studies remotely. In truth, this level of continued engagement was higher than managers could have anticipated.
Far less commonly, managers moved overnight to support the welfare and well-being of the Southend community and, in some instances, put food on the plates of vulnerable local people. Outreach community work has always been a cornerstone of SACC. Its relationships with partner voluntary organisations and charities enjoy a good reputation.
As the pandemic accelerated, it was clear to Ros Parker that the college was well-positioned to respond to immediate local needs, above and beyond the conventional. She and her senior leaders recognised that the college’s assets included ancillary, catering and support staff who knew their communities well. It also had kitchens and stocks of food.
Overnight, college staff arranged to put food on the plates of vulnerable families, provided 140 meals daily for homeless people and helped to respond to the personal safety problems faced by sex workers in the town. This response illustrated well a community college’s wider mission, the motivation of managers and arguably, a moral imperative.
Parker says that in a time when 8.9 million jobs have been furloughed, adult education providers could be upskilling and retraining these adults remotely and in college to supplement online learning.
“There has been a significant increase in levels of anxiety, depression and loneliness during the pandemic impacting on adult’s and young people’s mental health.
“However, no one is talking about adults returning to learning, which is incredible when our society needs us to provide that lifeline.
“I could take out space in the shopping centre, I could even take my construction students to the park to build a social distance resting station, but I can’t have them back in college.
“We are ready, we are open and safe, we just want to be recognised for the massive positive contribution we can make to economic recovery by allowing us to partially open for adults in the same way we are for young people.”
Many recipients of SACC’s support were not, and will not, be registered as learners, but benefit they did. Were college managers’ actions in deploying SACC’s – the community’s – resources to support the well-being of Southend residents a blip, or an altruistic response from a bighearted team of educators?
Given the necessary actions SACC took in relation to the broader welfare, health and fortunes of the community, what then for established accountability and standards frameworks…and how are locally determined social actions such as these given credit?
The ESFA said any provider that bid in the first scheme can apply for support from this second round.
A spokesperson for the agency said: “In offering supplier relief, the aim is to continue to retain capacity within the apprenticeships and adult education sector to deliver the skills needed to support economic recovery post-pandemic.
“As part of that, ESFA also want to support training providers to maintain delivery to and support for existing learners and employers and enable new learners to enrol.”
The ESFA has also opened up another round of supplier relief applications for providers that deliver the European Social Fund (click here details).
Who is eligible?
Eligibility rules for apprenticeship and AEB Covid support have largely stayed the same as the first round.
Providers must hold a direct contract that was procured as a service under Public Contract Regulations 2015, and their 2018/19 qualification achievement rates must be above 40 per cent.
Providers with rates below that threshold can however submit an “exceptional case that they are a critical supplier based on niche provision”.
Those bidding for supplier relief must also have submitted their latest financial accounts to the ESFA where these are due by 19 June 2020, not been judged by Ofsted as making ‘insufficient progress’ as a result of a new provider monitoring visit which resulted in a suspension on new starts, and delivered under the contract prior to April 2020.
Providers must also plan to deliver learning under the contract in July, August, September and October 2020, and demonstrate the “ability to continue to deliver without additional support from November”.
They also must not have furloughed the staff required to deliver the contract, and not received a notice of termination from the ESFA.
What do providers need to prove to be successful in their bid?
The ESFA stressed that providers will need to demonstrate that they have a “need” for the funding requested “in order to maintain capacity within their organisations to support learners and respond to the economic recovery”.
They will also need to “explain how they are going to update and change delivery models to operate without further relief from November 2020”.
The ESFA said training providers receiving support from this scheme “must be prepared” to provide “all evidence of spend for future reconciliation and provide ‘open book’ access to accounting records, upon which their application is based”.
They must also be prepared to “provide forecast financial information with an accompanying commentary to demonstrate their plans for sustainability over the coming year”.
What support will successful applicants receive?
The ESFA will calculate a “funding cap” for each training provider requesting support from the scheme, which will be “applied to the amount requested by the provider”.
“The cap will be based on the proportion of funds you were paid, through each eligible contract for services for the corresponding month in 2019,” the agency explained.
“For example, if you were paid 8 per cent of your allocated AEB funds in July 2019, then your AEB funding cap for July 2020 will be 8 per cent of your current allocation.
“A cap for August, September and October 2020 will be applied using the same method. However existing maximum contract values (MCV) continue to apply and your funding cap cannot exceed 25 per cent of the MCV even where the average earnings exceed this.”
The relief scheme will apply to activity undertaken in July, August, September, and October 2020 and will be paid in the subsequent months.
“Funding through this relief scheme will be paid on top of the regular payment claimed via the ILR,” the ESFA added.
“The total of the two payments will not exceed the provider’s funding cap, if you earn more funds through your ILR claim than your funding cap we will not pay any relief.”
Closing date for applications is midnight July 9. The ESFA will respond to applications by August 6.
10 key workers share their experience of working and learning as they kept the UK going during lockdown, in partnership with Pearson.
Covid-19 has highlighted the crucial role of key workers in society, including those in industries such as health and social care, the supply and distribution of food, utilities, transportation, the emergency services and the armed forces.
FE Week, in partnership with Pearson, wants to celebrate the contribution of these heroes and highlight how colleges and training providers have helped them develop the knowledge, skills and experience they are now using to serve their communities at this unprecedented time.
We spoke to ten critical workers about their roles during the coronavirus pandemic and how further education has prepared them for the crisis.
Susan Miller, registered nurse degree apprentices from Northumbria University and the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Miller, 54, completed her 18-month apprenticeship in March and is now working as a registered general adult nurse at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle upon Tyne on a ward converted to care for Covid-19 patients. During her first eight weeks, it witnessed 23 deaths, which she said was “emotional and stressful”.
Miller explained the importance of the role. “I would say the nursing job is crucial really because you take a lot of responsibility for patients’ health… [and] the doctors look towards you for extra support.”
Miller has been employed by the trust for 21 years, working her way up from a domestic assistant (cleaner) to her current position.
She praised the apprenticeship programme, which she feels “passionate about”, for developing her ability to keep calm in a crisis environment.
“The lectures actually give you good theory and it marries really well with the practical that you see in the hospital. And without the lecturers I couldn’t have [gone] on the ward and been as confident as I am.”
Toby Roberts, police constable degree apprentice with Nottinghamshire Police
During Covid-19, Roberts, 23, has been deployed in three different departments across the force, the first of which was criminal investigations. After this, he was part of the prisoner-handling team, where a new system had been introduced to limit exposure to the virus.
“There was a significant increase in the amount of Covid-19-related offences coming in, specifically assaults on emergency workers.”
Roberts is now working within neighbourhood policing. “It is important for the police to be enforcing the laws and making sure that the public are safe and feel confident.”
The three-year degree apprenticeship, which he started in September 2018, has allowed him to “understand more about why crime happens” as well as provided awareness of criminological theories and investigative strategies.
After gaining experience in multiple departments, he added: “I’ve been able to gather knowledge from every single one.”
Roberts said the apprenticeship has also taught him to manage his time, be adaptable and always to expect the unexpected. “Covid-19 was definitely something that changed the whole world but, because I’m used to different changes every day, it didn’t shock me that much because I was ready for it.”
Darbie Hughes, level 3 craftsperson apprenticeship with UK Power Networks
Hughes, 23, completed her apprenticeship with the employer provider last year and is now an electrical extra-high-voltage fitter helping to maintain different types of equipment at sub-stations across Sussex and Kent to prevent power cuts.
She said: “Although [people] may not initially think of the power industry as key workers, it is nice to know you are doing your bit.”
The utilities worker claimed the best example of why her job is important at this time is that doctors and nurses rely on electricity. “We need to do our job so they can do their job.”
Hughes said her apprenticeship “hammered home the importance of safety” and a gold Duke of Edinburgh award, which apprentices completed alongside their programme and received from Prince Edward, developed her resilience and taught everyone how to work as a team. “We’re using the knowledge that we’ve learned to find any problems before they become a problem.”
She added: “I think that, although it has been quite a scary time, it has been nice to know you are going out there and making a difference.”
Alice Pendlebury, Georgia Crowe (centre) and Saranjeet Kaur Soni
Alice Pendlebury, adult support worker level 2 apprentice at Oldham College
Pendlebury, 22, has been deployed to work at Medlock Court care home in Lees, which provides rehabilitation for residents after they have been in hospital, as part of her rotational programme with care and support provider MioCare.
“It gets them back on their feet, back home, where they want to be. It’s just a really lovely job to have.”
She has to wear a full set of personal protective equipment while currently working three days a week. Her shifts involve general care, which can range from getting residents in and out of bed, to socially distanced activities and dinner.
Pendlebury said: “I love going in for a chat with them sometimes because they are all isolating in their bedrooms.”
Pendlebury’s apprenticeship helped her prepare for this role by emphasising a duty of care, safeguarding and safe methods for manual handling. “I’d say my communication has also improved a lot.”
She started her apprenticeship last summer and is due to finish in October. “I’m feeling proud of everyone working, especially all through the pandemic. It has been stressful at times but we’ve got through it as a team.”
Georgia Crowe, BTEC level 3 extended diploma in business student at Halesowen College
Crowe, 19, has been working at supermarket Sainsbury’s throughout the pandemic to ensure local residents are still able to buy the essentials. She has helped ensure floor markings, signage and customer-level controls are being adhered to, as well as social distancing and the regular cleaning of surfaces to ensure there is no risk of contamination.
“It has been a lot busier than we first anticipated,” she says.
She mainly works on the checkouts, which are protected by screens, but she is also the public relations ambassador for the Wombourne store, in south Staffordshire, and manages its social media pages.
“It has been very surreal but really rewarding, as well, to be part of people’s Covid-19 journey.”
The team decided to deliver 100 care packages containing necessities such as pasta, tinned goods and toilet rolls to the local community. “Some of them were just so grateful and they were in tears. With a few of them, we had a good cry, me included.”
Crowe says her studies help prepared her for working during a pandemic by developing her interest in marketing as well as improving her customer service skills and understanding of the way the business runs.
She said that the coronavirus has showed how much people rely on supermarkets. “I had some customers who had been isolating for ten weeks and we were the first people they’d seen in that period of time, and it is amazing – that is what we are there for.”
Saranjeet Kaur Soni, dental nursing apprentice at Uxbridge College
Kaur Soni has been working up to seven days a week at a practice which was selected as an urgent care hub and has remained open during lockdown.
She said: “I’m feeling proud of myself that I’m there in this crisis to help our patients and any patients around London.”
The dental surgery has received 50 to 60 referrals every day and, without the service, Kaur Soni explained “people would be suffering from toothache, which is really unbearable”. Her team has received chocolates and promises to clap on Thursday evenings in recognition of their work.
The apprentice has been wearing double or triple layers of PPE, including masks, gloves, a gown and apron, a visor and cap and shoe coverings throughout her shifts which involve checking the medical history of patients, passing instruments to the dentist during procedures as well as disinfecting tools and cleaning the surgery after appointments.
Kaur Soni said that support of her tutor developed her confidence and communication skills. “When someone is there to push you, and you make progress, then that makes you stronger as well,” she added. “My apprenticeship really helped me a lot.”
Private Kai Weir, Chloe Timperley (centre) and Clare Ramsbottom
Private Kai Weir, logistics supply apprentice in the British Army
Weir, 18, has been deployed to a walk-in mobile testing unit in Leicester during the pandemic at which up to 200 people are tested for Covid-19 a day.
He helps facilitate the general public to perform the test on themselves and walks them through step-by-step if necessary. “I get a lot of questions because they’re quite confused and scared.”
He started his class three apprenticeship in November 2019 and was originally due to move to the next class in February. The training taught him about “dealing with a lot of people, keeping everyone calm and reassured”.
Other skills Weir has picked up include working with hazardous items and ensuring kit does not get mixed up to avoid the wrong results. “Safety comes into play.”
During Weir’s shift he has to wear a face mask and gloves and must follow the correct technique while changing PPE. His other tasks during this period have included dealing with large quantities of kit and prepping vehicles to go out to mobile testing units.
Chloe Timperley, VTCT level 3 advanced professional cookery at Truro and Penwith College
Timperley, 19, is volunteering at Hillcrest House nursing home in Cornwall, to help out during the pandemic. She works one or two shifts a week in the kitchen preparing meals and stocking up on food supplies for the elderly residents.
Her role involves “trying to keep them as safe as possible, especially during this time” and “just making sure they are cared for”.
Timperley started the level 3 in September and is due to finish next week.
“College has definitely helped me.” She said her course meant that it was “quite easy to be able to adapt to looking after and feeding different people”.
She has also been applying transferrable skills developed during her work placement at a pub to be able to cater for the different needs.
“I’ve just quite enjoyed being able to help and feel like I’m giving back to the community.”
Timperley received training on the use of PPE but noted wearing a mask has made it more difficult to communicate in the kitchen.
Rhona Sapsford, assistant principal for SEND, London South East Colleges
Sapsford has been in charge of the FE provider’s Bexley campus, which has remained open since the outbreak for vulnerable learners and the children of key workers. It first only had one vulnerable learner coming in at the start of lockdown but this grew to 25 – the majority of whom are on individual personalised timetables – by the time of the wider reopening last week.
Rhona Sapsford (centre) and some of her students
“Initially at the point of lockdown you do take a little sharp intake of breath because we didn’t know what was happening, but once you’re in work… by the end of it, it becomes the norm.”
The department has also been completing annual reviews of students’ education and healthcare plans and assessing whether they can meet the needs of students wanting to join in September.
Sapsford said she was “always there for giving guidance and support” to the original team of four teachers who were coming on to campus, which she described as a “little family”.
The college had protocols such as temperature checks, signage for social distancing, hand sanitiser and cleaning stations in place. “I’m really proud because we never shut down in Bexley and we’ve had absolutely no cases.”
Clare Ramsbottom, apprentice development coach, Seetec Group
Ramsbottom has been continuing to remotely train 50 learners on the independent learning provider’s level 3 international freightforwarding apprenticeship. “These are the young people who are keeping the country going, distributing PPE, bringing in food,” she explained.
Ramsbottom reminds the apprentices they are “an integral part” of the response to Covid-19, with the logistics industry arranging the delivery of stock to hospitals, factories and shops.
She said there has been a few early starts and late finishes but “it doesn’t feel like a job. I absolutely love what I do.”
Ramsbottom has had to adapt her work so now schedules video calls with learners, checks in with their managers and puts on “bitesize” days with regular mini-tasks such as workbooks or 30-minute online courses issued along the way.
She has also been “putting in extra time so that I can learn about the functional skill side and help my learners when it comes to maths and English”.
Ramsbottom started as an apprentice herself 27 years ago. She says that to now “be able to see the learners, who are also so passionate about it – it’s fantastic. It has come full circle.”
Susan Miller, Toby Roberts and Darbie Hughes are pictured in the featured image.
A land-based college facing closure could retain its educational purpose after the government agreed to conduct a review of the proposals put forward to take over the site.
Newton Rigg College, in Penrith, was due to shut in July 2021 after a local provision “needs analysis” conducted by the FE Commissioner last month found it was no longer financially viable.
But the Department for Education said on Thursday that “several interested parties” have since approached Askham Bryan College, the owner of Newton Rigg, who are interested in acquiring the site “for educational purposes”.
As a result, “the college governors have agreed that the FE Commissioner will conduct a strategic review on their behalf in order that the merits of each proposal can be fully explored,” a spokesperson for the DfE said.
The outcome is expected in December and transfer of ownership will take place “in time for the beginning of the 2021-22 academic year”.
The DfE told FE Week that the strategic review is an open and competitive process, and any further interested parties who wish to submit an expression of interest “should write in the first instance to the chief executive at Askham Bryan College by July 10”.
While neither the college nor government could disclose what bids have been put forward, local MP Neil Hudson, who is campaigning to save the college, told FE Week that “educational provision will certainly be at the heart of the proposals”.
“I am glad that Askham Bryan have agreed to this process, which will allow the FE Commissioner to fully evaluate the exciting proposals for Newton Rigg and I truly believe it will help in securing a viable and sustainable future for the campus,” he added.
Despite this, Askham Bryan is continuing with a consultation on the potential loss of 117 jobs.
Principal Tim Whitaker said: “We understand the strength of feeling about Newton Rigg, and are committed to supporting the strategic review, given the interest expressed in the potential future use of the site.
“The statutory consultation process with Newton Rigg staff and the trade unions is continuing and is unaffected by the strategic review of proposals from interested parties.
“We regret putting staff at risk of redundancy and are doing all we can to support colleagues at this difficult time.”
The college said the first FE Commissioner review, which started in March and concluded last month, found that Newton Rigg lacked “a sustainable business model due to declining student numbers and demographics”.
It was also said to have found that the estate would require around £20 million worth of capital investment in order to “keep pace” with land-based sector skills needs.
Newton Rigg was first established in 1896 to “serve the needs of agricultural and rural industries” in Cumbria and since incorporation in 1992, it has been owned or governed by four different corporations including two universities.
Askham Bryan College, based 100 miles away in York, took over the running of Newton Rigg from the University of Cumbria in 2011.
Courses currently provided include agriculture, gamekeeping, animal and equine management, forestry, horticulture and agricultural engineering.
The University and College Union previously vowed to fight the closure of the Penrith-based college.
Officials called the decision “a hammer blow” to the region and said it would leave the county without any specialist agricultural education.
Around 888 learners are currently based at the college including 221 apprentices as well as 667 FE students – the majority of whom are enrolled on one-year programmes.
Newton Rigg is one of a number of colleges that have announced plans to close campuses and been met with MP opposition.
