The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education has launched an online survey to find out what impact coronavirus has had on recruitment and what more they can do to support employers.

Apprentice employers are being asked to forecast how their recruitment over the summer will compare to the same time last year and for “key messages” that should be “heard by the institute.”

The survey also asks when employers will “next have an apprenticeship start” and whether there is “anything preventing your organisation from starting apprentices”.

The research comes after skills minister Gillian Keegan said in April that her “biggest worry” during the Covid-19 pandemic is the “recruitment of new apprentices”.

She acknowledged that “potentially businesses and others are not going to have this top of mind right now” but was concerned about “how to keep the whole pipeline going with all this uncertainty”.

On Friday, the DfE published statistics that showed the immediate impact of Covid-19 on apprenticeship starts. From 23 March, when lockdown started, to the end of April, a total of 13,020 apprenticeship starts had been reported so far – half of the 26,330 reported for the same period at the same point last year.

The IfATE’s survey goes on to ask employers for the “key message you would like to be heard by the institute”. One message that is bound to be popular with some is a call for an extension to apprenticeship frameworks, after the Department for Education confimed last month that the 31 July 2020 cut-off date for starts is still going ahead despite sector-wide concern.

Robert Nitsch, the IfATE’s chief operating officer, said: “We are really keen to hear from you about anything further you think the Institute should know.

“We will also be running this survey again in future to make sure we are listening to your changing needs.”

The closing date for the survey is 15 June and can be found here.

The Department for Education is setting up its own “rapid rebuttal unit” to tackle so-called “fake news” in the media.

It is said to be one of the first department-specific teams in government to challenge “misinformation at the source” and rebuff “misleading content” before reaching the mainstream.

Two DfE job adverts for media officers to work in the unit are currently live and state that this work is “more vital than ever” in making sure the public aren’t “deceived by so-called fake news”.

They add: “The department is one of the first in government to be looking to tackle misinformation at the source with a team that will aim to make sure misleading content running in the media or on social media is corrected in the shortest period possible time before it reaches the mainstream and misinforms the public.

“The department’s new rapid rebuttal unit aims to spot and counter misinformation on social media at its source, making sure it doesn’t make its way into mainstream media and mislead the public. This is one of the first teams of its type across government.”

A similar but government-wide “rapid response” unit was set up in the Cabinet Office in 2018 by former prime minister Theresa May to counter fake news, and then by minister Michael Gove in August 2019 which specifically targeted Brexit half-truths.

In March, the Cabinet Office announced this unit would now combat misinformation about Covid-19.

There do not appear to be any other similar teams across Whitehall, meaning the DfE’s could be the first department-specific rebuttal unit.

Fake news was a problem raised by former education secretary Damian Hinds just before he was sacked in July 2019. Speaking at a social media summit, he spoke about the specific problem of the “spread of misleading content on vaccinations” in schools but added this “issue goes much further than that, and without firm action it is set to get a lot worse”.

The concern has not been raised by Hinds’ successor Gavin Williamson since he came into post, but there have been recent cases of his department publicly rebutting stories published by the media.

On 18 April, a preview of the Sunday Times’ front page revealed reports that senior ministers had drawn up plans for schools to reopen as early as 11 May.

But the DfE tweeted that evening: “No decision has been made on a timetable for re-opening schools. Schools remain closed until further notice, except for children of critical workers and the most vulnerable children. Schools will only re-open when the scientific advice indicates it is the right time to do so.”

Just today the DfE has also published a blog entitled “addressing misleading claims about department guidance” following two stories in the media from Sunday.

It said that one, from the Independent, reported on claims made by National Education Union joint general secretary Mary Bousted who suggested the department’s guidance to schools on how to open to more pupils have been updated 41 times since it was posted on 12 May.

The DfE claimed this is “untrue” and the guidance in question has been updated “just once since it was published last month”.

Another article, published this time by The Mirror, reported that celebrity fitness expert Joe Wicks was due to lead a review of the PE curriculum, which the DfE said again is “not true”. 

The government’s existing anti-fake news units have however come in for criticism, with the Liberal Democrats’ former Brexit spokesperson, Tom Brake, describing them as “shameful spin machines” last year.

A DfE spokesperson said: “In line with wider work by the Government Communication Service, we want to identify and counter misinformation and disinformation online, whether it is shared inadvertently or maliciously.

“That’s why we’re looking for talented individuals to join our team, helping us dispel myths and explain education policies to the public using straightforward, easy-to-understand social media content, blogs, and more.”

 

The Association of Employment and Learning Providers has decided to not pursue legal action against the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s Covid-19 supplier relief scheme.

Lawyers have advised that the only challenge they could now take would be to seek a judicial review, which the board of the membership organisation believes would come “at a significant cost”.

A statement released today added that while a positive result from a judicial review would be to review the supplier relief process, there would still be “no guarantee of substantial support from the Department for Education for suppliers even after that” and this would also “take time, to a point where it might be too late for many AELP members”.

A legal letter was sent from law firm Veale Wasbrough Vizards LLP on behalf of the AELP on 27 April after the ESFA excluded the majority of apprenticeship providers – those funded through the government’s digital system – from their supplier relief scheme.

It argued that the ESFA’s claim that apprenticeships funded through the digital system, mainly with levy-paying employers, are a contract with the employer and provider was “an abuse of power” and makes their supplier relief scheme “unlawful”.

The Government Legal Department (GLD) responded on 14 May and concluded that it is “not accepted that the relief scheme is unlawful on any of the grounds alleged by the AELP (or on any other grounds)”.

AELP said their lawyers have indicated that the GLD’s response does not make a case for defending the DfE’s position on the application of PPN 02/20, and that the AELP’s board feels “strongly” the letter is simply one of “rebuttal and it avoids addressing the key issues such as the legal agreement between the Education and Skills Funding Agency and a provider for levy-funded apprenticeships constituting a contract”.

The Labour Party’s shadow education team wrote to education secretary Gavin Williamson last week and accused the government of failing to make a “serious attempt” to answer AELP’s claim.

They also called for officials to abandon their “very flimsy case” for the majority of apprenticeships from the supplier relief scheme.

Click below to read the letters from the relevant parties in full

Veale Wasbrough Vizards LLP challenge

Government Legal Department response

Labour letter to Gavin Williamson

The Department for Education has published updated guidance for colleges and other FE providers about the return of more students next month.

It comes after the prime minister, Boris Johnson, confirmed the government was pushing ahead with plans to start to provide face-to-face support for year 12 and equivalent students from June 15.

The original wider reopening date for colleges was set at June 1 but Johnson announced a two-week delay to this last Sunday.

Here’s what we learned from today’s updated guidance.

 

1. Only welcome back 25% of students at a time

To help reduce the coronavirus transmission risk, the guidance states the number of learners attending at any one time will be “limited to a quarter of those on the first year of a two-year 16 to 19 study programme”.

This is in “addition” to vulnerable young people and children of critical workers outside of this cohort who might already be in full-time attendance.

 

2. Remote learning ‘should remain the predominant mode of learning’

The DfE said they recognise that for some programmes, remote education will be working “effectively with a high degree of learner engagement”.

Colleges and other providers will have “flexibility to decide the appropriate mix of online and face to face content for each programme, within the constraint of limiting those on site at any one time, reflecting what will maximise learner engagement as well as supporting more vulnerable learners, and enabling the provider as a whole to minimise transmission risk”.

They added that remote education “should remain the predominant mode of learning during this time”.

 

3. FE providers have ‘flexibility’ over which learners can return

From the week commencing June 15, FE providers “should offer some face to face contact for 16 to 19 learners on the first year of a study programme” alongside the current provision offered to vulnerable learners (including those at high risk of becoming NEET) and the children of critical workers.

This will “primarily” impact colleges, but will also include a “small number of local authority providers, special post-16 institutions and independent training providers”.

While the DfE’s “overriding principle” is that the focus should be 16 to 19 year olds on the first year of a two-year programme, there is “flexibility” to bring back four other types of learners.

This includes classes where there are students aged over 19 on the same 16 to 19 vocational course, as well as 16 to 19 learners who were due to finish this academic year, but have not been able to because their assessments have been deferred.

Apprentices aged 16 to 19 can also be brought back for face-to-face contact.

The last group that can be brought back are learners who “may be on extended programmes, for example because they are studying part time, alongside caring responsibilities or had to retake exams or part of their programme”. If they are part way through a study programme, and have “key” exams and assessments next year, they “can be included”.

 

4. Range of protective measures should be implemented but funded from own budgets

The DfE said they “will ask settings to implement a range of protective measures” including increased cleaning, reducing ‘pinch points’ (such as at the start and end of day), and utilising outdoor space.

Any additional costs arising from wider opening, such as personal protective equipment (PPE) must be funded “from existing college budgets”.

Almost nine in ten full Ofsted inspection reports for FE providers returned either ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ grades in May.

And all but one of the 13 monitoring reports published this month produced ‘reasonable’ or ‘significant’ progress ratings.

The education watchdog originally paused the publication of all further education and skills reports on the 20 March due to the ongoing pandemic.

They had planned to release them only when teaching returns to normal, but later decided to publish them sooner if requested by individual providers. The first of the pre-Covid reports were published on 5 May.

Since then, 17 full inspection reports have been released in which two ‘outstanding’ and 13 ‘good’ grades have been handed out. The remaining two were ‘requires improvement’ grades. In addition, nine short reports have been published where providers have retained a grade two.

Chichester College Group received grade ones across the board from inspectors who lauded leaders and managers for successfully developing a strong “collaborative culture between the campuses, particularly within teaching, training and learning”.

Similarly, Ron Dearing UTC was judged ‘outstanding’ in a report that did not include one line of criticism as it was dubbed a “guiding light in the education sector”.

Five FE providers were graded ‘good’ after previously receiving ‘requires improvement’, three of which were adult and community learning providers.

This also included Lancaster and Morecambe College after Ofsted found that leaders have “created a clear vision for the college” by “reshaping many elements of the curriculum offer”.

Essex-based independent learning provider Central Training Academy Limited also improved from a grade three to a two. It was praised for preparing learners for employment “very effectively,” and taking their existing skills and knowledge into account.

Prospects Training International Limited, which trades as Geason Training, received one of only two ‘requires improvement’ ratings this month in its first inspection.

The provider was previously found to be making ‘insufficient progress’ in two out of three themes in its early monitoring visit, which led to the government paused its ability to recruit learners. A grade three means this suspension can now be lifted.

While Prospect’s newly appointed leadership team recognised that the curriculum was “not fit for purpose” and has overhauled its content, the inspectorate said “there is still much to do to strengthen the provision further”.

UTC Swindon also received a grade three from Ofsted which reported that the quality of education is “not yet good enough”.

It found that outcomes at the end of sixth form have been low in recent years, with current pupils doing much better but “still not achieving as highly as they should”.

The most critical report to be published in May was for independent specialist college Fir Tree Fishery CIC. Inspectors found the new provider making ‘insufficient progress’ across the board in an early monitoring visit which has led to the government pausing the college’s ability to recruit learners.

The education watchdog claimed leaders and managers have “not developed a coherent, well-designed curriculum that meets the needs and interests of learners”.

In contrast, two independent learning providers, Fitch Learning Ltd and Itec Training Solutions Ltd, were found to be making ‘significant progress’ across the board after their early monitoring visits.

Lambeth College also received two ‘significant progress’ grades in a monitoring visit following a grade three report while Richard Taunton Sixth Form College was graded ‘reasonable progress’ in every assessed area in its own monitoring visit after a ‘requires improvement’ rating.

Ofsted, which has suspended all routine inspections until further notice, previously told FE Week it was sitting on 50 FE and skills reports that had been completed before the Covid-19 outbreak.

Thirty-nine of these, from inspections that took place prior to lockdown, have been published this month in total.

Independent Learning Providers	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Alchemist Consultants Limited	12/03/2020	26/05/2020	M	N/A
Apprentice Team Ltd	13/03/2020	05/05/2020	2	M
Azesta Limited	06/03/2020	06/05/2020	2	M
Bridge Training Limited	26/02/2020	06/05/2020	2	2
Central Training Academy Limited	13/03/2020	12/05/2020	2	3
CSR Scientific Training Limited	28/02/2020	05/05/2020	2	M
Dick White Academy	12/03/2020	05/05/2020	M	N/A
Fitch Learning Ltd	05/03/2020	06/05/2020	M	N/A
GK Training Services Limited	27/02/2020	12/05/2020	2	2
Ioda Limited	12/03/2020	11/05/2020	M	N/A
Itec Training Solutions Ltd	12/03/2020	20/05/2020	M	N/A
Let Me Play Limited	12/03/2020	15/03/2020	2	M
London Vesta College Limited	28/02/2020	06/05/2020	2	2
Park Education & Training Limited	27/02/2020	21/05/2020	M	N/A
Pier Technology Limited	12/03/2020	07/05/2020	M	N/A
Prospects Training International Limited	13/03/2020	28/05/2020	3	N/A
TDR Training Limited	05/03/2020	27/05/2020	2	2
The National Logistics Academy Ltd	13/03/2020	12/05/2020	2	M

 

Sixth Form Colleges (inc 16-19 academies)	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Richard Taunton Sixth Form College	27/02/2020	11/05/2020	M	3

 

Adult and Community Learning	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Central Bedfordshire Council	11/03/2020	11/05/2020	2	2
Swindon Borough Council	13/03/2020	26/05/2020	2	3
The Learning and Enterprise College Bexley	06/03/2020	18/05/2020	2	3
Training 2000 Limited	06/03/2020	13/05/2020	2	3
Tyne North Training Limited	11/03/2020	06/05/2020	2	2

 

Other (including UTCs)	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Leeds Arts University	27/02/2020	20/05/2020	2	2
University of Northampton	26/02/2020	05/05/2020	M	N/A
University of Plymouth	05/03/2020	07/05/2020	M	N/A
UTC Swindon	04/03/2020	12/05/2020	3	N/A
Mulberry UTC	11/03/2020	28/05/2020	2	N/A
Ron Dearing UTC	12/03/2020	21/05/2020	1	N/A

 

Specialist colleges	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Catcote Futures	12/03/2020	28/05/2020	M	N/A
Fir Tree Fishery CIC	26/02/2020	18/05/2020	M	N/A
Linkage Community Trust	18/03/2020	06/05/2020	2	2
Hedleys College	03/03/2020	27/05/2020	2	2

 

General FE colleges	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Chichester College Group	06/03/2020	12/05/2020	1	1
City College Plymouth	12/03/2020	12/05/2020	2	2
Lambeth College	12/03/2020	26/05/2020	M	3
Lancaster and Morecambe College	06/03/2020	14/05/2020	2	3
Southport College	14/02/2020	14/05/2020	2	M

Boris Johnson has given colleges the green light to begin their wider reopening to students from 15 June after announcing the government’s “five tests” for easing lockdown were all being met.

The prime minister said today that the country can now make “limited and cautious” changes, including that primary schools can begin welcoming back pupils in reception, year 1 and year 6 from Monday.

He then added: “A fortnight later on 15 June secondary schools will start to provide some face-to-face contact time for students in years 10 and 12.”

The Department for Education later confirmed to FE Week that this includes first year college learners, who are equivalent to year 12s in schools, on all two-year vocational study programmes, GCSEs and A-levels, as well as apprentices.

Colleges had been preparing to begin their wider reopening from 1 June but Johnson announced a two-week delay to this last Sunday.

The DfE said at the time that a “more cautious approach is being taken for FE, as for secondary students relative to primary”, which “reflects that these groups are more likely to travel longer distances to college and to use public transport – and once in colleges they will mix more with other groups”.

Around a quarter of students eligible to start returning to college are allowed in “at any point”, the DfE added.

Today, 28 May, was the key date the government had set to decide whether or not to ease lockdown measures, including the wider reopening of schools and colleges, based on progress against their “five tests”.

The five tests, which Johnson said today are all being met, are:

1.  Protect the NHS’s ability to cope. We must be confident that we are able to provide sufficient critical care and specialist treatment right across the UK
2. See a sustained and consistent fall in the daily death rates from COVID-19 so we are confident that we have moved beyond the peak
3. Reliable data from SAGE showing that the rate of infection is decreasing to manageable levels across the board
4. Be confident that the range of operational challenges, including testing capacity and PPE, are in hand, with supply able to meet future demand
5. Be confident that any adjustments to the current measures will not risk a second peak of infections that overwhelms the NHS

Apprenticeship starts for the month of March 2020 are down by a quarter while April plunged by 72 per cent on the previous year, new government data has revealed.

Monthly provisional figures for both of those months were published by the Department for Education this morning and show the huge impact that the Covid-19 pandemic is having on apprenticeship recruitment.

They show there were 19,600 starts in March 2020 compared to 25,600 in the same month in 2019.

The latest reported data for April 2020 shows just 7,000 starts compared to 24,800 in April 2019. However, it is important to note that last year’s figure was taken from a later data return than April 2020.

Opportunities for young people were hit the hardest last month as starts for under 19s plummeted by 87 per cent, and starts at level 2 dropped by 83 per cent.

The data for April chimes with the findings of an FE Week survey that was first to reveal the dramatic impact of the coronavirus crisis on apprentice starts.

The DfE states that it is key to note that in “normal circumstances” the first time a month is reported on it may “typically represent only two thirds of the starts providers go on to report later in the year”, so care should be taken with the data for April as “interpretation of the level and particularly comparisons with other periods risks being unrepresentative”.

Today’s data release also includes figures from 23 March, when lockdown started, to the end of April. Just 13,020 apprenticeship starts have been reported so far between those dates, around half of the 26,330 reported for the same period at this point last year.

The DfE said that Covid-19 has resulted in the closure of colleges and some employers are unable to start or continue apprenticeships as planned.

“Apprenticeship data for recent periods is always subject to a large degree of underreporting but, during the nationwide lockdown due to the pandemic, reporting will be further affected by collections remaining open on a voluntary basis to help reduce burden on the sector and employers,” they added.

Responding to the latest figures, Association of Employment and Learning Providers chief executive Mark Dawe said: “After yesterday’s pre-pandemic figures showing an increase in the number of young people who are NEET, today’s data is extremely worrying for young people who were looking to start an apprenticeship or traineeship this year.

“The prime minister is absolutely right in saying that apprenticeships should play a ‘huge part in getting people back into the jobs market’ but the big problem is that Downing Street and the Department for Education are not singing from the same hymn-sheet.”

He added: “A large drop in apprenticeship opportunities for young people is already hitting a fragile infrastructure.

“The prime minister’s ambition for the importance of apprenticeships, which is shared by many commentators and the Labour Party, can only be realised if DfE ministers finally smell the coffee and become supporters of the sector through actions rather than words.”

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “While the impact of the coronavirus is still becoming clear, we are supporting employers, apprentices and training providers during this challenging time so people can continue to access high-quality apprenticeship opportunities.

“It is encouraging to see that even in these challenging circumstances, many employers still recognise the value apprenticeships can bring to their businesses.”

As reported by FE Week last month, the DfE is currently consulting on how to “repurpose” their monthly apprenticeship data releases in light of Covid-19.

The department said today that they “continue to seek your feedback on the type of breakdowns of most useduring this period, such as national apprenticeship starts by age, level and individual standard etc, so we can consider going forward and in light of data quality assessments”.

Mark Dawe is stepping down as chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers to head up a major subcontractor to colleges.

He began telling staff today that he is set to leave the role this summer after leading the membership organisation for four years.

Current chief operating officer, Jane Hickie, has been promoted to become managing director as part of a new structure at AELP.

Dawe will stay on in an advisory role but will join The Skills Network full-time from August – a well-known independent training provider based in North Yorkshire that delivers mainly short online courses funded from the adult education budget and European Social Fund.

He said there is “never an easy time to leave a role like this” but the “opportunity to be part of the transformation of education delivery was too much to resist”.

“It has been a fantastic journey for AELP and its members during a period for me that started a year before the apprenticeship levy’s introduction, has included many challenges whether they be AEB procurement, apprenticeships standards and assessment development, non-levy funding, or through to the battle for survival during the Covid crisis,” Dawe added.

“AELP has established the importance of apprenticeships, work based learning and independent training providers at the heart of employers and government thinking, although we will never have to stop reminding them of that.”

The Skills Network was founded by Mick Cox in 2009. In 2018/19, the provider was a subcontractor to 48 colleges with contracts worth almost £10 million in total.

The firm was rated ‘good’ by Ofsted in 2018 which inspected its direct delivery of distance learning courses to around 400 adults, not its subcontracted provision.

Education and Skills Funding Agency data shows the provider currently has its own non-levy apprenticeships allocation of £191,000 and an advance learner loans contract worth £486,000.

The Skills Network’s most recently published accounts, for the year ending July 2018, show a turnover of £14.3 million and 184 staff.

Hickie will assume most of Dawe’s responsibilities at the AELP from mid-August. The organsiation said she will be supported by a “more hands-on approach” taken by their recently strengthened board with the formation of a policy and funding group of  members and other experts, chaired by Stewart Segal.

Dawe will sit on this group and Simon Ashworth as AELP’s chief policy officer will continue as the senior management lead for policy and funding matters. 

AELP chair Martin Dunford said: “The board and I acknowledge everything that Mark Dawe has achieved for AELP and our members including the fact that AELP’s profile has never been higher.

“We wish Mark every success in his new role and we are delighted that he will still be lending his experience and expertise to AELP’s new policy and funding group.”

Hickie added: “I join Martin and the board in wishing Mark well in his new role and the AELP staff will undoubtedly miss his very positive approach which has helped drive the organisation forward.

“A strong team at AELP is part of Mark’s legacy and this will give me great confidence in leading the organisation during the immediate post-pandemic period.”

Prior to joining the AELP, Dawe was the chief executive of exam board OCR for five years.

He had a stint as a college principal before this at Oaklands College, and is a former deputy director for FE and adult basic skills strategy at the Department of Education after joining the civil service in 2003.

Dawe started out his career by qualifying as a chartered accountant at KPMG having read economics at Cambridge University. He joined Canterbury College, becoming head of corporate services in 1994.

Aside from his current role as boss of the AELP, he is on the board of WorldSkills UK as well as the ESFA advisory board, Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education’s quality alliance and the DfE’s apprenticeship stakeholder board.

The prime minister has said he will “look at the idea” of giving young people aged 16 to 25 an “apprenticeship guarantee”.

Boris Johnson made the commitment this afternoon after stating that apprenticeships “are going to play a huge part in getting people back onto the jobs market” from Covid-19.

He was taking questions from MPs on the government’s Liaison Committee, in which education select committee chair Robert Halfon warned that “we are in danger of destroying our dream of building an apprenticeship nation” as a result of a sharp drop in apprentice starts due to the pandemic.

Halfon then asked: “Will you consider introducing a guarantee offering every young person from 16 to 25 a guaranteed apprenticeship providing they can get their qualifications from level 2 right up to degree level?”

Johnson replied: “We will be doing everything we can to get people into jobs and I will look at the idea of an apprenticeship guarantee.

“I suppose it is something that we would have to work with employers to deliver, we would have to think about the funding of that but this is a government that has done some pretty astonishing and creative things with helping business in the last few months and that is the kind of thing we could well consider.

“We are going to need to take exceptional steps to help our young people into work and we will.”

Later in the session, Stephen Timms, chair of the work and pensions committee, raised the idea of an apprenticeship guarantee again and asked the prime minister whether he’d agree that “we are going to need some pretty radical measures to tackle unemployment after the crisis”.

Johnson responded by saying “yes and that’s why I think Rob’s idea, this apprenticeship guarantee, is so attractive”.

“What we have done is we have put our arms around every worker and helped them keep their job but businesses, they may need support in the coming months as they get back on their feet in taking people on and we’ll need to think about how to help them.

“At the same time, look let’s face it, this country does have skills deficit, we do have a productivity gap still.

“This might be the moment, Stephen, when we really start to try to tackle that and use this crisis to address some of these issues.”

He added: “I can assure you that the Chancellor and I, and everybody, we’re looking at all this stuff very closely and we’ll be wanting to come forward in June, early July with much more about how we get employment going again, how we get the economy restarted but for now it is very important we focus on defeating this virus.”

It is not clear exactly how an apprenticeship could be “guaranteed”. FE Week has asked Halfon for more details.