Staff and students from four colleges brushed shoulders with royalty today as they picked up their Queen’s Anniversary Prizes in a special ceremony at Buckingham Palace.

London South East Colleges, Dudley College of Technology, Tyne Coast College and Belfast Metropolitan College were among 22 education providers to receive the accolade from the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall.

The awards are dedicated to outstanding higher and further education providers, which are recommended by the prime minister and approved by the Queen.

Today’s reception followed a glittering celebratory dinner at Guildhall in London last night.

FE Week was in attendance this morning, where 19-year-old Beth Jones, a level 3 mechanical engineering student from Dudley College, said she was “absolutely overwhelmed” and “lost for words” after meeting Prince Charles.

She stated she spoke to the royal about her course and long-standing passion for the subject.

Lowell Williams, who retired as chief executive of Dudley last month, said the prince “showed genuine interest” in the learners’ studies.

Dudley was awarded the prize for “contributing to the economy of the region” in the West Midlands.

Williams told FE Week he was pleased to be in attendance alongside higher education providers such as Oxford University, as further education has a “very important role to play” and was being recognised with “other key components of the skills sector”.

Another winner, London South East Colleges, was chosen in recognition of their technical and vocational education offer, including its “pioneering” strategic engagement programme within the construction industry.

Level 2 plumbing student Melissa Cummins, 19, said she was told by the Duchess of Cornwall that the royal had never met a woman plumber before and called being at the palace a “once in a lifetime experience”.

Jodie Binstead, 20, a quantity surveyor, added that the Duchess had said to the students that it was “great to have women in the industry”. 

Errol Ince, vice principal for STEM at LSEC, told FE Week: “I feel very privileged to collect this award.

“It is excellent recognition for the work that we do.”

He described the ceremony as a memory he would have for the rest of his life.

Tyne Coast College, created from a merger of South Tyneside College and Tyne Metropolitan College, was honoured for creating digital modelling and advanced training for the planning of new port facilities and for the safe management of ship movements.

Principal John Roach, who was also celebrating his 60th birthday at the palace, said being awarded the accolade was “absolutely fantastic” and meeting the royals was “a real buzz”.

The only other college to win an award outside of England was Belfast Metropolitan College.

A total of 275 prizes have been awarded to 49 further education colleges and 98 universities since the awards were created in 1993. They are granted every two years.

The 22 award-winning UK further and higher education institutions were recognised in 2018-2020 for “ground-breaking work and pioneering research” in a range of disciplines including science, engineering, education, the humanities, the environment and medicine.

Entries to the scheme are invited in any subject area and are subject to assessment in a process managed by the Royal Anniversary Trust, an independent charity.

Read next week’s edition for more from the palace.

Featured image: LSEC principal Sam Parrett and vice principal Errol Ince collecting their award from the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall

Another sixth form college has received a grade one, making it the fourth such provider to receive the coveted result in 2020.

Ashton Sixth Form College improved on the grade two it received before it converted to a 16 to 19 academy in February 2019.

Not improving are independent training providers Piper Training and People and Business Development – both of which were slapped with ‘inadequate’ grades.

Inspectors complimented Ashton’s 2,158 students on their “exemplary” behaviour and for taking pride in their work.

Leaders and governors are “highly ambitious” for them, and “promote exceptionally high standards and pursue excellence in teaching, learning and assessment across all areas of the college”.

The college also caters to 104 adult learners, most of whom are returning to education to study English and mathematics at level 2 or below, which help them develop their confidence and self-belief.

Following their grade four, Piper Training has told FE Week it has decided to stop delivering apprenticeships in England, after inspectors reported learners were “angry because assessors had not visited them” so they were making “slow progress”.

People and Business Development’s apprentices “gain little” from studying with the provider, and too few complete their qualification on time.

After previously getting a grade three, inspectors reported its leaders have “failed to act quickly to improve the quality of education” and do not share the programme of learning with employers, apprentices or adult learners.

Other independent providers performed better: Access Training (East Midlands) maintained a grade two, with a large majority of its 600 apprentices appearing to benefit from its strong links with voluntary organisations and employers.

Inspectors considered a large majority of tutors and assessors to be knowledgeable within their subject areas and leaders support their ongoing training so their subject knowledge is up-to-date.

NDA Foundation Limited made ‘significant progress’ in one area of a monitoring visit, conducted after they received a grade three in January 2019.

The progress was made in ensuring quality assurance arrangements lead to improvements in the quality of education and online training, where the watchdog said managers have created new processes for checking the quality of taught lessons through observation.

Also making ‘significant progress’ in a monitoring visit was Peterborough Regional College, where inspectors followed-up on a grade three report last May.

Managers have “focused very effectively” on supporting teachers when they are planning learning, so they and assessors can carefully plan and sequence their curriculum.

This means learners quickly grasp key concepts, whereas in the previous inspection it was noted teachers do not know if learners have understood the topics they are teaching.

Adult and community learning providers had a streak of ‘good’ results broken by Wiltshire Council, which received a grade three for not reaching enough of the people who would benefit from its adult learning programmes.

The provider, which focuses on helping disadvantaged communities, does not work closely enough with partner organisations to design and promote a curriculum to attract potential new learners, the report reads.

The adult and community learning service on the Isle of Wight impressed its inspectors with a “relaxed and inclusive environment” where the 222 learners feel comfortable asking for help.

Learners with mental health issues get to work with ponies to develop their confidence, thanks to courses with an equestrian centre.

Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council was commended on its “exceptionally well-qualified and experienced” tutors: art tutors are practising artists themselves, and sewing tutors have extensive experience of upholstery.

Governance arrangements at the provider have also been strengthened since the previous inspection, with the board providing a strong strategic steer for senior leaders to adapt provision to the council’s changing priorities.

Many courses at Norfolk County Council Adult Learning helped learners overcome their loneliness and isolation from society, such as lip-reading classes which helped students lead an active life.

Tutors’ discussions about national issues help the 143 apprentices relate the events to their own learning. For example, they understand how Brexit might affect future trading with Europe.

Independent provider T3 Training and Development and employer provider the Chief Constable of Surrey both made ‘reasonable progress’ in all areas of an early monitoring visit.

GFE Colleges	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Peterborough Regional College	04/02/2020	19/02/2020	M	3

 

Independent Learning Providers	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Access Training (East Midlands) Ltd	21/01/2020	17/02/2020	2	2
NDA Foundation Limited	24/01/2020	17/02/2020	M	3
People and Business Development Ltd	14/01/2020	18/02/2020	4	3
Piper Training Limited	07/01/2020	19/02/2020	4	M
T3 Training & Development Ltd	30/01/2020	19/02/2020	M	N/A

 

Sixth Form Colleges (inc 16-19 academies)	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Ashton Sixth Form College	08/01/2020	18/02/2020	1	N/A

 

Adult and Community Learning	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
Adult and Community Learning Service, Isle of Wight Council	29/01/2020	17/02/2020	2	3
Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council	04/02/2020	20/092/20	2	2
Norfolk County Council Adult Learning	28/01/2020	20/02/2020	2	2
The Wiltshire Council	23/01/2020	20/02/2020	3	3

 

Employer providers	Inspected	Published	Grade	Previous grade
The Chief Constable of Surrey	30/01/2020	17/02/2020	M	N/A

The troubled National College for HS2 has abandoned its attempts to stop Ofsted publishing a grade four report, after dispatching lawyers to gag the watchdog in the High Court.

FE Week understands the college has sought a consent order – used where the parties have reached an agreement – from the judge to drop the case and the report will be published next week.

This newspaper revealed last week the National College for Advanced Transport and Infrastructure (NCATI), formerly the National College for High Speed Rail, had filed for a judicial review of the report to stop publication, after inspectors visited the provider last November.

NCATI refused to comment on how much the case cost and why it was dropped. Ofsted has been approached for comment.

The report, which is expected to be highly critical of NCATI, is the latest blow to the National College, one of four to open since 2016, which in its three short years has run into problems recruiting learners and had to take a £5 million government bailout to keep running.

NCATI failed to meet learner targets in 2018/19, a recent government review of the National Colleges programme found, after delays to announcing contractors for the HS2 rail line between London, the midlands and the north meant companies could not commit to the apprenticeship volumes they had anticipated for.

The college signed up just 96 students when it first opened, even though it aims to be taking on 1,200 a year by 2022.

Last year, the National College for High Speed Rail rebranded as NCATI and announced plans to expand its provision to cover transport areas other than the high-speed rail industry.

But it denied the name change was related to the troubled HS2 project, to which it has strong links: NCATI has campuses in Birmingham and Doncaster, near the rail line; its chair, Alison Munro, is a former chief executive of the line’s builders HS2 Ltd; and the college’s chief executive Clair Mowbray, is another former HS2 Ltd employee.

The Ofsted report is not the only thing the college is trying to keep away from the public: it admitted to FE Week it has suspended the publication of board minutes, because of “exceptional circumstances in which the college was currently operating” – namely “so as to not prejudice an independent review taking place into HS2”.

And NCATI has so far failed to sign off its 2018/19 accounts, which it says the Education and Skills Funding Agency are “aware of, as we are working with their team to be in a position to finalise the statements”.

Ofsted’s damning indictment will not be the last setback either, as a notice to improve and an FE Commissioner intervention report are due to be published shortly and the influential House of Commons Public Accounts Committee could look into the college as part of a possible investigation of the HS2 programme.

Despite being in formal intervention, the governing body did not have to seek government permission to hire lawyers, as the Department for Education said it is an “independent organisation”.

This is the second, failed judicial review of a grade four Ofsted report in recent years, after mega provider Learndirect lost its High Court battle with the watchdog in 2017. Resultingly, the ESFA terminated its £100 million funding contracts and the Public Accounts Committee and National Audit Office both conducted investigations.

Exam boards will be required to publish the costs of qualifications on their websites to “create a more level playing field”.

All regulated exam boards must publish fee information about their qualifications from October. The information will include the qualification fee, any fees for other products that must be bought alongside the qualification, plus any mandatory cohort or centre-level costs.

The move comes amid a push from Ofqual to increase transparency around exam costs. A new qualifications price index, published for the first time in September, showed the price of GCSEs and A-levels had risen by 17 per cent in three years.

A report by Ofqual in 2015 found that price plays a “limited role” in why schools and colleges change exam providers. More popular reasons are for the course content/syllabus or advice from colleagues or peers.

Sally Collier (pictured), chief regulator at Ofqual, said today she was “convinced” the requirement will “benefit purchasers”.

“While price is only one factor that purchasers should consider, the absence of full price transparency in the qualifications market creates the risk of unfairness and inefficiency.”

She said the new requirement will “help to create a level playing field in our home markets”. Meanwhile, a more “flexible approach” will be taken in other countries “in order for the awarding organisations we regulate to remain competitive”.

Thirty-two of the 41 respondents to a consultation on the changes agreed they would increase transparency.

Many exam boards also agreed the changes would “ensure a level playing field between awarding organisations” and increase “customer satisfaction”.

Those that disagreed were mainly concerned about the commercial sensitivity of fees, specifically allowing larger competitors to “undercut smaller awarding organisations”.

Ofqual also said there was a concern that “making fees transparent may lead to a disproportionate focus on fees rather than content and quality, potentially leading to an unwelcome ‘race to the bottom’ on fees”.

But the regulator added around half of the market is “already transparent on fees”, adding the increased openness is “sufficient to justify the low, but real, risk of aggressive pricing policies emerging”.

Ofqual has also today launched a consultation on new guidance for exam boards on the presentation of fee information.

A new rule will also be introducted allowing Ofqual to “instruct awarding organisations not to issue results… This change will make sure the regulators can act quickly in the rare cases where it is necessary to secure a delay in the issuing of results,” the regulator said.

Ofqual doesn’t expect or intend to intervene more often as a result, though.

The regulator has also published new guidance on conflict of interests and is consulting on ‘clearer’ malpractice guidance.

The training arm of an engineering trade association has pulled out of apprenticeships in England after it was slammed by Ofsted for “unacceptable” delivery, for the second time.

Piper Training Ltd, part of the building engineering services association (BESA) – which is also an end-point assessment organisation for nine apprenticeship standards, was judged ‘inadequate’ in a report published yesterday.

The Cumbrian-based provider had already been suspended from recruiting apprentices following ‘insufficient progress’ ratings across the board in an early monitoring report from April.

It was training 68 heating and ventilation apprentices at the time of the most recent inspection, but delivery was wholly subcontracted.

Ofsted found that a “few” learners were “angry because their assessors have not visited them in their workplace frequently enough” which has caused them to make “very slow progress”.

The variation in the quality of training is “unacceptable”, inspectors said, adding that apprentices studying standards-based apprenticeships “do not receive enough information to help them fully understand their end-point assessment requirements”.

Governors, senior leaders and managers were criticised for not having an “accurate understanding of the quality of their apprenticeship provision” that is delivered solely through subcontractors, their monitoring of which is “poor”.

Leaders do not know whether the curriculum is designed well or delivered in a logical order and they are unaware of the progress apprentices make through their programmes.

They were also unaware that around a fifth of apprentices have not had workplace visits for several months.

Ofsted did recognise that the senior leadership team had recently changed and had implemented new monitoring processes to get a clear oversight of the quality of apprentices’ experiences.

However, it was still too early to see their impact.

Despite the poor provision, inspectors added that apprentices “want to achieve and do well”, they “enjoy” their training sessions, attend regularly, feel safe, and are “respectful towards each other, teachers, colleagues and customers”.

Training providers that are judged ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted typically have their funding contracts terminated by the Education and Skills Funding Agency, and are kicked off of the register of apprenticeship training providers.

BESA would not reveal who it subcontracted the provision to, but told FE Week it has already decided to stop delivering apprenticeships in England.

It will, however, continue to offer the programmes in Scotland and Wales as they are unaffected by Ofsted’s report. BESA will also continue to deliver end-point assessments.

The trade association’s director of training, Helen Yeulet, said: “We are disappointed with the outcome, but we respect the verdict of the regulator.

“We recently announced that BESA training has a new team with a new business strategy in England, which refocuses our resources where we can make the most impact for the sector. It is now our priority to get on with the job of delivering this exciting new approach.

“As an end-point assessment organisation, BESA is looking for employers to assist in ensuring the delivery is of a high quality and encourage employers and members to get involved.”

She added: “BESA training will now become the ‘bridge’ between employers and training centres in England and will encourage employers to get involved in course development to ensure the training model meets their requirements.

“BESA will also be putting more resources into short courses and experienced worker programmes in order to support much needed growth in adult training and upskilling across the sector.”

A bank has pulled a cash-strapped college’s overdraft facility as the clock ticks for its survival – which rests upon a last-ditch merger.

Southampton City College is currently operating on government bailouts but its 2018/19 accounts were signed off on a “non-going concern” basis and warn that it will run out of cash by October.

It is now in secret merger talks, with the help of the FE Commissioner who conducted a local provision area review last summer, following two failed previous attempts.

The “current intention and most likely outcome” would be for a merger on 1 August 2020 whereupon Southampton City College would “dissolve after the transfer of trade, assets and liabilities at carrying value to another FE organisation”, the accounts state.

If the merger attempt fails then the college would “require additional financial assistance” or go bust. The government has made clear there will be no more long-term bailouts available to colleges following the introduction of the insolvency regime, which allows colleges to shut down for the first time.

Southampton City College received £1.97 million in emergency funding from the Education and Skills Funding Agency last year, £770,000 of which is being treated as a grant, to “enable the college to continue to operate during 2019/20”.

To add to its concerns the college lost an agreed £500,000 overdraft after Santander withdrew the facility in August 2019 when loan covenants were breached.

The bank has £5.86 million of loans outstanding with the college. The 2018/19 accounts state that there is “no intention” by Santander to “recall the loan while the college continues to work collaboratively with stakeholders on its future position”.

Southampton City College was re-issued with a financial health notice to improve, which it first received in 2016, by the ESFA last week.

It generated income of £13 million and a deficit of £1.65 million in 2018/19 – a significant increase from £585,000 in the previous financial year and £257,000 the year before.

The college’s financial health is rated as ‘inadequate’.

Southampton City College told FE Week it is currently in talks with a merger partner, but a spokesperson said they would not reveal who this was until plans are finalised and a public consultation is launched.

In September this newspaper reported that the college was in the “very early stages” of a three-way merger discussion, involving Itchen Sixth Form College and Richard Taunton Sixth Form. The spokesperson would not provide an update on this.

It came months after Southampton City College saw its second proposed merger, on that occasion with Eastleigh College, collapse at the eleventh hour after an application for emergency funding was rejected by the ESFA.

The college’s first merger attempt, with Southampton Solent University, fell through in 2018.

A Southampton City College spokesperson said: “The college, ESFA, the FE Commissioner and all interested stakeholders are working together to find a sustainable long term solution for the provision of FE in Southampton.”

They added that the college is “very appreciative of Santander’s continued support” and confirmed they were “managing without” the overdraft facility.

The college teaches around 5,000 students. It received one ‘insufficient progress’ rating out of three in an Ofsted monitoring visit in November 2019 after being awarded ‘requires improvement’ in a full inspection in January 2019.

 

An MP has hit out at the proposed closure of a college in his constituency and is set to meet with FE Commissioner Richard Atkins to demand it stays open.

The RNN Group is planning to shut its “under-utilised” campus in Dinnington by July. At least 40 full-time jobs are expected to be lost and hundreds of students will be affected.

The move would be a “huge blow” to the area and “incredibly disappointing on so many levels”, Conservative MP for Rother Valley, Alexander Stafford, told FE Week.

Public transport is atrocious and it will just really make them struggle

RNN had a notice to improve published by the Education and Skills Funding Agency on Friday due to the FE Commissioner’s “significant” concerns with the “quality and strength of governance oversight”. It has now been “escalated” into formal intervention.

It recorded a £4 million deficit in 2018/19 – almost double the shortfall it had the year before.

RNN chief executive Jason Austin previously said the group has “no alternative” than to cut staff numbers as it battles to cut its deficit, knowing it will “no longer be ‘bailed out’ by the government” following the introduction of the education insolvency regime.

Stafford is disputing the Dinnington closure, and will meet with Atkins this week, as well as Austin, residents groups and trade unions to discuss the issue, which “is going to have a huge impact locally, and across South Yorkshire”.

The MP is concerned about the move’s effect on student and staff commutes as “public transport is atrocious and it will just really make them struggle.”

Dinnington is the only general FE college in Stafford’s constituency. Other RNN group sites are at least a 20 minute drive or a 35 to 45 minute bus journey away.

He also questioned why this was slated to take place after a restructure that saw 50 full-time jobs lost in 2019, and claimed many of his constituents are “confused about what is going on”.

The group launched a 45-day staff consultation on the closure on January 29. It detailed how 122 staff will be affected in total. More than 50 of them are expected to be relocated to other RNN Group colleges, but at least 40 full-time jobs are planned to be lost.

Around 575 learners are currently studying at the campus, in courses such as animal care and management, construction, countryside management and horticulture, foundation learning and access to higher education.

The majority, 480, are scheduled to finish this academic year with about 55 full time students and apprentices who were due to progress to 2020/21 and another 40 students studying short courses.

Stafford was critical of the proposal’s impact on local jobs and students.

He said the most important thing was to “make sure jobs are maintained but also to help those people who are studying courses, courses which aren’t available anywhere else in the area, to make sure they are fully catered for”.

“My biggest concern really is those students with complex needs, special educational needs, and to ensure that they have a good quality of education,” he added.

We understand the affection for Dinnington and regret that we are putting jobs at risk

Austin said: “We understand the affection for Dinnington Campus and regret that we are putting jobs at risk. However, further savings need to be made to ensure that RNN Group is on a secure and sustainable footing and well positioned to provide high quality education and technical training to the students, communities and businesses that it serves.

“The proposal to close Dinnington campus is part of a wider review of our estate, which involves plans for new curriculum and improved facilities at our other main college sites. Courses, and the majority of our staff, based at Dinnington would move to those sites.”

The review found the Dinnington Campus building was under-utilised – 30 per cent of the site was “mothballed”, which the group said was “costly to maintain”.

The final decision will be made by the governing body once the staff consultation has concluded in March.

RNN has more than 1,000 staff and around 12,000 learners a year including around 2,000 apprentices, mainly in South Yorkshire and North Nottinghamshire.

The Dinnington campus was formerly known as Rother Valley College, which merged with Rotherham College of Arts and Technology in August 2004.

RNN Group was formed following a merger between Rotherham College of Arts and Technology and North Notts College in 2016 and a further merger with Dearne Valley College in 2017.

Several other colleges have had to sell-off campuses to balance the books in recent years, including Cornwall College Group, Birmingham Metropolitan College and Warrington and Vale Royal College.

The second college to enter education administration has debts and liabilities of more than £100 million to over 60 creditors.

Insolvency practitioners from BDO have today released a statement of proposals for West Kent and Ashford College (WKAC).

It shows the college has outstanding capital grants worth £86 million from the Education and Skills Funding Agency.

WKAC, which went into administration on 16 August 2019, also owes secured loans of £13.2 million to Barclays Bank and £1.1 million to Ashford Borough Council.

Unsecured creditors include:

• £1 million to the ESFA in standard education funding
• £15 million to Kent County Council for the pension scheme
• £5 million to 64 individual organisations, most of which are small businesses

The £86 million was given to WKAC’s forerunner K-College to help with the construction of campuses in Tonbridge and Ashford in Kent. When K-College collapsed in 2014 and Ashford and Tonbridge campuses were taken over by Hadlow College to be reformed as WKAC, the grants were transferred to the new college.

A WKAC spokesperson confirmed the capital grant is a liability, which does not accrue interest and as the grant is written down over the economic life of the property, the college retains the liability until the grant balance has been fully written down, so there is therefore no repayment schedule.

The news comes after BDO’s report for Hadlow College, which trades as the Hadlow Group with West Kent and Ashford College, showed it had debts of £40 million with over 300 organisations.

The pension deficit, BDO stresses, does not have “any impact” on the benefits of past or present staff; but paying off those unsecured creditors is “uncertain” at this stage, as the majority of the college’s assets are designated for educational purposes and education administration carries a “learner protection” responsibility.

BDO has also been granted access to grant funding to pay for education administration by the secretary of state. The administrators expect to have to draw on the grant funding, which will have to be repaid ahead of all else, making it even less likely the small businesses will be paid back.

The report said no claims had been adjudicated upon yet, but they expect to receive “significant claims soon” and the 64 creditors have been asked to submit a proof of debt form if they want to make a claim.

The administrators had racked up time costs of £223,000 before WKAC even went into administration. Then between administration and January, £472,981 was built up by BDO’s team having worked for 2,580 hours at an average rate of £183 per hour.

The team have also commissioned a property valuation by Savills which cost £33,000, insurance and a health and safety review by AON which cost £75,863, and incurred legal costs totalling around £75,000 to WBD and £21,000 to Branchers.

BDO charged the Department for Education £627,407 for employing their services at Hadlow College between May and October; but estimated this would rise to £1.1 million by this April.

A confidential report on the conduct of “all relevant persons” in the three years preceding education administration also had to be completed by BDO and passed on to the education secretary, which they did by 13 November 2019.

The ESFA handed WKAC £3.79 million in exceptional financial support in the six months after the college applied in February 2019.

Around that time, the college’s principal Paul Hannan and his deputy Mark Lumsdon-Taylor both resigned; followed by several governors, including the chairs of Hadlow and WKAC.

BDO reports that by the time Hadlow College went into administration last May, WKAC “was reliant upon ongoing emergency funding from the ESFA,” without which the college could not pay its debts, and it had net liabilities of £17.5 million.

FE Commissioner Richard Atkins visited both colleges after the application for exceptional funding was made and reported their boards “failed in their fiduciary duty” and Hannan and Lumsdon-Taylor “regularly made decisions themselves outside of executive and any open discussion – and reacted strongly to questioning or challenge”.

Atkins recommended WKAC be split up: with its Ashford campus going to East Kent College Group; and its Tonbridge home going to North Kent. This process will not be completed before March 2020, today’s report said.

A similar process at Hadlow College has already resulted in its campus in Mottingham, London being transferred to Capel Manor College in January.

Following the FE Commissioner’s recommendations, WKAC’s governors decided education administration was the best way to “provide protection to the provision of education to existing learners while also being the most efficient platform to facilitate the implementation of the FE Commissioner recommendations”.

A BDO spokesperson said they have “maintained the stability of the college and minimised disruption for existing students as a whole” and the proposed merger transactions will “ultimately determine the likely outcome for unsecured creditors”.