Provider advertises £30k reward in return for their ‘achieved learners’

A training provider is offering a reward of just under £30,000 for simply adding their data on achieved learners to a government funding claim.

Taking up the emailed offer of a “cohort of achieved learners” from City Gateway, a charity that has trained disadvantaged young people in the London for eight years, would be a clear breach of the funding rules according to an auditor.

The email, sent to providers with direct access to funding, asks if they are “interested in the potential to increase your adult education budget (AEB) achievement rates by funding a cohort of achieved learners – available immediately for an AEB or traineeships subcontract?”

It states that the group has a “current 88 per cent achievement rate (due to exceed 92 per cent when outstanding results arrive)” in English as a second or foreign language (ESOL) and functional skills courses.

They are primarily made up of black, Asian and minority ethnic adult women based in east London “with the data ready to upload”. There are also traineeship cohorts aged 16 to 18 and 19 to 23.

The total value of the learners is £143,000 – but Education and Skills Funding data shows City Gateway only has £46,000 in allocations to use for 2019/20.

It also does not have any direct contracts to deliver courses with the Greater London Authority, which had the capital’s AEB devolved to it in September 2019.

The provider dropped from a grade two to a grade three in October 2017, with Ofsted claiming: “Trustees, leaders and managers have not taken sufficient action to remedy weaknesses identified at the previous inspection.”

City Gateway wants a different provider to take on the learners who have already completed their courses, act as the prime, and subcontract the provision to the charity in order to claim funding.

“We have exceeded our MCV (maximum contract value) and so are seeking to subcontract for further learners already on our system,” the email states.

It adds that the prime would receive a 20 per cent management fee, totalling £10,600 for the AEB provision, £13,000 for the 16 to 18 traineeships, and £5,000 for 19 to 23 traineeships.

ESFA funding rules state that it is “vital” that all directly funded organisations must “properly monitor and control all subcontracted delivery”.

And the GLA’s funding rules state: “You must manage and monitor all of your delivery subcontractors to ensure that high-quality delivery is taking place that meets our funding rules.”

An experienced individual learner record auditor, who did not wish to be named, told FE Week that they have “stripped all the money out for this sort of thing in the past at audit”.

The GLA said any subcontracting arrangement would have to meet their guidelines and be approved by the authority.

City Gateway did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

The revelation comes amid a fresh crackdown on subcontracting by the government.

A consultation on radical rule changes was launched last week. It states that “entering into subcontracting arrangements for financial gain” are not acceptable.

ESFA chief executive Eileen Milner sent a sector-wide letter on October 3 which said: “I am asking that you review your current subcontracting activity and satisfy yourself that it is purposeful, appropriate, and provides added value to learners. We must be confident that you are managing and overseeing it in line with our requirements.”

It went on to warn: “I want to make it clear that where poor subcontracting practice is evident to us we will act decisively.”

Inspectorate apologises to college principal after reversing grade four

Ofsted has apologised and overturned a provisional ‘inadequate’ judgement after a college complained when inspectors alleged that student safety was at risk.

Scarborough Sixth Form College was left concerned after a two-day visit in October.

Its provisional rating was a grade four, which FE Week understands related specifically to safeguarding.

Principal Phil Rumsey lodged a complaint before the report was due to be published, claiming that the lead inspector had not gathered “sufficient evidence” to make fair judgements.

Ofsted dispatched inspectors to visit the sixth form college – where education secretary Gavin Williamson studied for his A-levels – on December 6.

The resulting report showed ‘good’ ratings across the board, with the education watchdog apologising “for the inconvenience”.

Rumsey would not divulge what safeguarding allegations inspectors made, but told FE Week: “As our inspection was approaching the middle of the final day, it became clear that the lead HMI had not gathered sufficient evidence to make fair judgements in his specific areas.

“I requested an extension to the inspection and Ofsted agreed that the initial inspection was incomplete and sent two more inspectors to carry out the necessary further inspection.”

He added: “We are delighted that the inspection recognised that our ‘teachers are highly skilled’ and that ‘a high proportion of learners achieve high grades’.”

Scarborough’s published report also states that governors and leaders “successfully promote a culture of safeguarding”.

A spokesperson for Ofsted said: “This college was inspected in October 2019. The college submitted a complaint, which we investigated in line with our published procedures. We found the inspection was incomplete.

“A further visit took place in December 2019, when we gathered additional evidence to complete the inspection.

“The evidence supported a grade of ‘good’ for overall effectiveness. This is in line with our complaint handling policy. We have apologised to the principal for the inconvenience of the additional visit.”

It is the latest concern over Ofsted judgements for colleges.

Shrewsbury Colleges Group was given a provisional ‘inadequate’ rating following an inspection in November in which inspectors claimed to have found serious safeguarding concerns.

But Ofsted has now declared the inspection “incomplete” after the principal launched a formal complaint. Inspectors were due back into the college this week.

Scarborough Sixth Form College’s Ofsted visit came just days after it pulled out of offering two T-level pathways – in construction and digital – ahead of their launch set for September 2020.

Rumsey said in October that the decision was made because of a lack of work placement opportunities in the area and a shortage of good-quality teachers.

Education secretary Gavin Williamson came out shortly after and said he backed the college’s decision.

“They have to look as to how they deliver the very best quality and the very best choice, and they’ve had to make that decision and it is the right decision because it is about preserving that quality,” he said during an interview with FE Week.

“This doesn’t close the opportunity to offer it in a year after that, but it’s getting the whole package right, because every youngster that takes a T-level, we want to get it right first time.”

The college still plans to offer the education and child care pathway from September.

Donelan promoted to universities minister and says FE to be decided tomorrow

Michelle Donelan has been appointed as the new universities minister – and has not ruled out also taking on the FE and skills brief.

The MP for Chippenham has been covering for Kemi Badenoch as children and families parliamentary under secretary of state, with some responsibilities for FE, while she has been on maternity leave.

Downing Street announced today that Donelan has been promoted to a minister of state role in the Department for Education. Badenoch has been moved to the Treasury as a minister.

Speaking to FE Week after her appointment, Donelan said: “I’m going to be the minister for universities.”

Asked if she would also be taking on the FE and skills brief, which has been missing a dedicated minister since Anne Milton resigned in July 2019, she said: “Let’s figure that out tomorrow.”

Gavin Williamson, who was reappointed as education secretary in today’s reshuffle, took on the FE and skills brief personally last July.

Donelan became an MP in May 2015 and has previously sat on the education select committee.

Since joining the DfE, Donelan has been the ministerial representative in numerous Westminster hall debates related to FE.

Just this week, she represented the DfE in two debates on apprenticeships.

Gavin Williamson keeps education secretary role

Gavin Williamson is to stay on as education secretary following a post-Brexit ministerial reshuffle.

However, it’s not known whether the MP for South Staffordshire will keep the FE and skills brief he has held since his appointment last July.

Many calls, including from Conservative MPs, have been made for prime minister Boris Johnson to appoint a dedicated minister for the sector – a role that has been vacant since Anne Milton resigned.

Downing Street confirmed Williamson, who studied A-levels at Scarborough Sixth Form College, would keep his role at the Department for Education on Twitter this afternoon.

He later tweeted: “From early years to further education, I will ensure we deliver the skills the country needs .”

Michelle Donelan, who was covering for Kemi Badenoch as children and families minister with some responsibilities for FE while she was on maternity leave, has been appointed to the DfE permanently. Badenoch has moved to the Treasury as a minister.

On Williamson’s reappointment, James Kewin, deputy chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association, said: “We are pleased that Gavin Williamson will remain in post. During his short time in the role, he has already managed to secure more investment for sixth-form education than all of his predecessors combined since 2010.

“He has also engaged very constructively with us and our members, and as a former sixth form college student, has first-hand experience of the sector.

“We look forward to continuing this positive relationship, particularly with a Budget, the conclusion of the level 3 qualification review, and a spending review all due to take place in the year ahead.”

Association of Employment and Learning Providers chief executive Mark Dawe said the decision to keep Williamson on at the DfE was “sensible”.

“We hope that the secretary of state will impress upon the new chancellor the need for greater investment in apprenticeships, particularly a separate fund for non-levy payers of £1.5 billion,” he added.

The Association of Colleges tweeted to say Williamson has been “clear that FE is a priority, and we look forward to continuing to work with him to make sure colleges, communities and businesses can thrive”.

Northern Powerhouse Partnership director tells education ministers they’ve ‘run out of time’

The director of George Osborne’s Northern Powerhouse Partnership has called for skills policy to be fully devolved from Whitehall, claiming the government has “failed” to deliver the system the north needs.

Henri Murison, speaking at the launch of the Northern Skills Network in Leeds today, pinned the failure on the Department for Education’s officials and said whoever the education secretary is after this week’s cabinet reshuffle “needs to listen to us, not their officials”.

In the meantime, he said, the department has “run out of time” so “universal control of our skills system” must be given to the north.

“That’s why we’re going to have mayors in every region of the north, in the Humber, in West Yorkshire, in Chester, Warrington, then Lancaster – and we’re not going to stop.”

The Northern Powerhouse Partnership is chaired by former chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne and represents businesses and politicians from across the north.

The adult education budget has already been devolved to certain mayoral combined authorities in the north, including Greater Manchester and Tees Valley. The government is also working with Sheffield City Region and North of Tyne combined authorities with the aim of devolving the AEB to those two in September.

Murison (pictured) said his call for greater devolution has been provoked because the department took “years” to deliver money which had been promised to the north, and they are “not welcome in the north of England with that promise anymore”.

The vote to “take back control” in the Brexit referendum and the collapse of the so-called “Red Wall”, where Labour MPs across the north were replaced by Conservatives in the December election, added fuel to this fire, he explained.

“I don’t think they were just voting about Brexit. I think they were voting about their towns their places, and skills is vital to that.”

“Where is the ambition,” he asked the audience, “to mirror those like BAE and what they invest in skills in Barrow,” which puts 1,000 apprentices through their factory every year, according to Murison.

Having previously worked for the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner and Newcastle City Council, he also targeted ire at the government’s announcement this week of HS2, a high-speed rail line connecting London with the north and midlands.

Without greater skills devolution, “all the train lines in the world will make no difference on their own,” he said.

His call for greater control over skills policy in the north comes as the Northern Skills Network, which is aiming to provide a “single voice for skills” for over 300 providers, announced it had entered into a strategic partnership with awarding organisation NCFE.

This partnership will involve NCFE representatives sitting on the network’s board and means they will become “the ‘go to’ organisation for insights and advice on the skills and education issues affecting the north,” according to the awarding body’s executive director for customer and commercial strategy Sian Wilson.

The partnership, according to network chair Mike Smith, will help them promote the value of technical and vocational skills to employers and stakeholders, as well as support leaders of all ages to achieve the qualifications they need to advance their chosen careers and increase their social mobility”.

Williamson announces plan to scrap 5,000 qualifications – but will anybody notice?

A consultation on plans to remove funding for more than 5,000 legacy qualifications at level three and below has been launched by the Department for Education.

Those at risk are courses that are currently not being studied by any learners or have cohorts of fewer than 100, and are coming to the end of their three-year operation.

More than 200 BTECs are among the list. The plan is to switch their funding off by August 2021.

Reviewing and removing funding for qualifications with few or no enrolments used to be an annual task undertaken by the Skills Funding Agency, but the last full review of this sort was conducted in 2015.

Education secretary Gavin Williamson believes today’s announcement will help “make sure students have a clearer choice” of what is on offer as there is currently a “confusing” market of 12,000 qualifications at level three and below.

But Tom Bewick, chief executive of the Federation of Awarding Bodies, said his members will have few concerns with a “genuine housekeeping exercise” that removes qualifications which are “obviously no longer needed by learners and employers”.

“The vocational training marketplace evolves all the time, so there are bound to be obsolete qualifications on the register that will discontinue in future,” he added.

The DfE claimed that today’s announcement is part of the government’s two-stage review that aims to crackdown on “poor quality post-16 qualifications”, which has been quietly delayed.

The first ‘review of post-16 level 3 and below qualifications’ consultation ran from March to June 2019 and was supposed to be released before the turn of 2020, along with the launch of a second stage.

But the DfE has now told FE Week it will not be forthcoming until at least the spring.

The department wants to make A-levels, T-levels and apprenticeships the “gold standard” option for young people after they take their GCSEs from 2020/21.

It will only continue to fund alternative qualifications at level 3 and below – such as applied generals, BTECs and Tech Levels – that do not overlap with them and are “high quality, are necessary, have a clear purpose, and lead to good outcomes”.

James Kewin, deputy chief executive at the Sixth Form Colleges Association, said he agrees that funding for qualifications with low or no enrolments should have their funding reviewed.

But, he told FE Week, colleges and schools are “much more concerned about an issue that involves a very high number of students – and that is the future of applied general qualifications”.

“Removing funding for unpopular qualifications is one thing, but removing funding for popular and highly effective qualifications like AGQs is quite another, and we will continue to make the case for these qualifications playing a vital role in the future,” Kewin added.

A spokesperson for Pearson, the organisation that offers BTECs, said: “It’s important that the 16 to 19 phase continues to offer young people a range of options to support access for a diverse cohort of learners with differing starting points and requirements – an academic pathway, a career-focused pathway and more specialised occupational routes.”

Tom Bewick

On today’s announcement, Williamson said: “Trying to decide what course will put you on the path to a great career is hard enough, but with over 12,000 qualifications available and many in the same subject – it can feel like a needle in a haystack.

“Removing funding for qualifications that have no or low numbers of enrolments will help make sure students have a clearer choice of the qualifications on offer, and ensure they get the skills they need to progress.”

But Bewick warned: “We know from past experience, that some really adverse effects can arise where a top-down exercise in Whitehall leads to learners being cut off from valuable and relevant opportunities in their local communities.

“There are hundreds of niche qualifications with low enrolments or they serve those with special educational needs, that could be axed by this exercise if government does not proceed with some caution.”

The deadline for submissions to the consultation relating to the 5,000 qualifications (click here to see the full list) is 27 March.

Ministerial ‘gap’ at the DfE needs to be resolved soon, says Tory MP

A Conservative MP has called for the “gap” at the Department of Education for a dedicated apprenticeships and skills minister to be filled ahead of an expected reshuffle this week.

Gloucester MP Richard Graham requested prime minister Boris Johnson “resolve” the vacancy “soon” during a Commons debate on the effectiveness of the apprenticeship levy.

His call was echoed by shadow skills minister Emma Hardy, who represented the opposition during the debate, when she stated her belief the government “could show their commitment to FE and skills by appointing a separate FE and skills minister”.

The sector has been without a dedicated minister since the resignation of Anne Milton in July.

Since Boris Johnson’s election as prime minister, the FE and skills portfolio has been split between education secretary Gavin Williamson and junior ministers Lord Agnew, who serves as minister for the FE market, and Michelle Donelan, who is covering for Kemi Badenoch while the latter is on maternity leave.

This situation persevered through the Conservative election victory last December, and since then sector leaders have called for the issue to be addressed.

Federation of Awarding Bodies chair Paul Eeles wrote to Johnson in January to say while they have been “impressed” with Williamson’s engagement with improving FE, losing a minister has meant the sector “has lost a daily champion and reformer with whom we could effectively engage”.

This is in “stark contrast,” Eeles says, to schools and universities, who have dedicated ministers in Nick Gibb and Chris Skidmore, respectively.

Eeles encouraged the prime minister to appoint a dedicated minister “with a laser like brief, who is ruthlessly focussed on improving productivity, apprenticeships, skills and FE”.

Association of Employment and Learning Providers chief executive Mark Dawe, who was at today’s debate, said while they are pleased Williamson seems to have skills and apprenticeships at “the top of his agenda”, the level of partnership between the sector and government “necessitates the return of a dedicated minister”.

This is because the task ahead with the sector is “too big to rest” with Williamson when he also has other “major challenges” in education to address.

Johnson’s ministerial reshuffle is expected to take place on Thursday.

This afternoon’s debate was held just under three years on from the introduction of the apprenticeship levy. MPs from a number of different parties spoke about how their constituents perceived the policy and what problems they had faced with it.

MPs hoping the debate would give them advanced notice of any levy reforms in the upcoming budget left disappointed, though.

Education select committee chair Robert Halfon asked education minister Michelle Donelan, who was representing the government in the debate, whether she had any figures about apprenticeships from the Budget, which is due to be held on 11 March.

Donelan said Halfon gave her “more credit than my position owes,” as she does not set the Budget; but assured him they are keeping “everything under review” and the levy is worked on by both the DfE and the Treasury.

She added they will be looking at the impact the levy has on businesses, social mobility and “opening up apprenticeships in the long run so we can make sure it is not only sustainable, but it opens door after door for young people and older people”.

Sixth form college staff to strike against 16-19 funding cuts in lead up to the budget

“Angry” sixth form college staff will hit the picket line tomorrow as they step up their protest against government funding cuts in the build up to next month’s budget.

National Education Union members from 34 sixth form colleges will be taking strike action.

Two further strikes will take place 27 February and 10 March. The action later this month will include a rally in central London.

The NEU says it is in dispute with the education secretary Gavin Williamson, rather than the colleges themselves, and is calling on the government to invest an extra £700 million into the sector.

It believes this is needed on top of the £400 million in additional funding promised for 16 to 19 education in August 2019, which the union has labelled as “grossly inadequate”.

Staff want to secure the funding to reverse job losses, class size increases, and cuts to teaching time and curriculum provision.

A survey by the Sixth Form Colleges Association last March found that nearly half of all colleges and schools with sixth forms have had to reduce student mental health and careers support in 2019.

It also found that over three quarters of respondents do not believe the amount of funding they will receive in 2020 will be sufficient to provide the support required by disadvantaged students.

The NEU has said if the “crisis” of 16 to 19 funding continues to go unaddressed, the future of the sector is “at threat and it is students’ education that will continue to suffer”. 

Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the NEU, said: “The Conservatives have neglected 16 to 19 education and sixth form colleges in particular. No wonder our members are angry and determined to secure a properly funded post-16 sector for both students and staff.

“Gavin Williamson must take heed of this very real concern from a long-suffering sector and make the case to the chancellor and the prime minister that the budget on 11 March must include at the very least a £700 million injection of new money to close the gap with schools. Otherwise the crisis in 16 to 19 funding will continue.”

The NEU held sixth form college strikes in October, which included marching on the Department for Education and handing officials an invoice for £700 million (see picture).

The 34 sixth form colleges taking action are:

Bilborough College, Nottingham

Brighton Hove and Sussex Sixth Form College

Cheadle and Marple Sixth Form College, Stockport

City & Islington Sixth Form College

Esher College

Hereford Sixth Form College

Hills Road Sixth Form College, Cambridge

King Edward VI College Stourbridge

Long Road Sixth Form College, Cambridge

Longley Park Sixth Form College, Sheffield

Newham Sixth Form College

Notre Dame Catholic Sixth Form College, Leeds

Priestley College, Warrington

Reigate College

Richard Huish College, Taunton

Shrewsbury Colleges Group

Sir George Monoux College, Waltham Forest, London

St Brendan’s Sixth Form College, Bristol

St Francis Xavier Sixth Form College, Clapham, London

St John Rigby RC Sixth Form College, Wigan

The Brooke House Sixth Form College, Hackney, London

The Sixth Form College Solihull

Varndean College, Brighton

Gateway Sixth Form College, Leicester

WQE and Regent College Group, Leicester

Ashton Sixth Form College, Ashton-Under-Lyne

Coulsdon Sixth Form College

Havering Sixth Form College

King Edward VI College, Nuneaton

Peter Symonds College, Winchester

Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College, Darlington

The Blackpool Sixth Form College

Thomas Rotherham College, Rotherham

Xaverian College, Manchester