Lifetime Training replaces David Smith with Charlotte Bosworth as CEO

Investors at Lifetime Training have parted ways with CEO David Smith and replaced him with FE stalwart Charlotte Bosworth.

Staff were told today that Smith, who took on the top job at England’s largest apprenticeship provider in July 2023, has left the company.

Bosworth has led Innovate Awarding – part of the Lifetime Group – for the past eight years.

She will be Lifetime’s fourth CEO in the past three years.

Group chair Mike Thomas said: “We are delighted to announce the promotion of Charlotte Bosworth to group CEO.  As the apprenticeship sector continues to change and evolve, we are excited to have someone of Charlotte’s ability and deep understanding of the industry at the helm to drive the continued growth of the group.”

Lifetime Training is rated ‘good’ by Ofsted and latest accounts show a healthy financial position following a period of instability that involved lender Alcentra taking over the company from previous private equity owner Silverfleet Capital and waiving £100 million worth of debt.

Smith was headhunted for the CEO gig as a turnaround specialist. He previously ran big-name companies from outside the FE sector including the Post Office, Parcelforce, Royal Mail, City Link, Serco and estates management company The Bellrock Group.

Thomas said: “We would like to thank David Smith for all his hard work and dedication in stabilising Lifetime and for his efforts in ensuring Lifetime achieved an Ofsted 2 rating at our recent inspection.”

Bosworth has worked in the education and skills sector for around three decades, including 10 years at exams board OCR. 

She is vice chair at Walsall College having held a position on the board of governors since 2018. Bosworth is also chair of the Federation of Awarding Bodies and sits on the board of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers.

She previously held board positions at David Nieper Education Trust, Career Colleges and the Learning and Work Institute.

Lifetime Training was founded in 1995 and has become the largest apprenticeship provider when it comes to starts in England, training apprentices for big-name employers including the NHS, McDonalds, Wetherspoons, B&Q and David Lloyd, as well as the civil service.

The company recorded 16,330 starts in 2023-24 and latest stats shows 6,500 starts for the first two quarters of 2024-25. It holds a qualification achievement rate of 40.5 per cent.

Lifetime Training had been led by former CEO Alex Khan for 10 years before he was replaced by Jon Graham in June 2022. Graham held the post for a year before Smith was brought in.

During an interview with FE Week last year, Smith said the company was planning to grow the commercial training side of the business and explore other training routes like skills bootcamps amid the Labour government’s plans to turn the apprenticeship levy into a growth and skills levy which can fund non-apprenticeship training.

DfE’s apprenticeships budget passes £3bn mark

The Department for Education’s apprenticeships budget has risen to more than £3 billion for the first time.

New Treasury documents for 2025-26, known as ‘main supply estimates’, show that ministers have increased England’s apprenticeship budget for this year by 13 per cent, from £2.73 billion to £3.075 billion.

The Department for Education confirmed the £345 million boost to FE Week.

The increase is the largest in cash terms since the apprenticeship levy’s introduction in 2017, and comes as the sector awaits reforms such as the axing of level 7 apprenticeships and pivoting to the ‘growth and skills levy’.

It also suggests a cut to the Treasury’s top slice of the apprenticeship levy – the amount the government keeps after collecting the funds paid by employers and dishing out spending for apprenticeships to the DfE and devolved nations – which hit more than £800 million in 2024-25.

The Office for Budgetary Responsibility (OBR) has estimated that total apprenticeship levy paid by businesses in 2025-26 will be £4.2 billion, which leaves a top slice of around £600 million once the DfE’s new budget is released and devolved nations are paid their share.

Simon Ashworth, deputy chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP), said: “On the face of it, this is very welcome news against the backdrop of an extremely tight fiscal environment.

“A 13 per cent increase doesn’t just reflect the anticipated growth in levy take by the OBR, but a substantial release of the amount the Treasury has been retaining as a top slice.

“AELP have long called for the gap between what’s raised by the apprenticeship levy and the amount spent on the programme budget to be minimised so this is definitely a step in the right direction.”

However, he added that the DfE’s budget increase “does call into question why the government need to proceed with slashing and burning level 7 apprenticeships if there’s more money coming in the budget”.

Waiting for level 7 crunch

The sector is waiting on a final decision on the axing of level 7 apprenticeships, which accounted for about 9.2 per cent, or £240 million, of 2023-24’s £2.7 billion budget.

A letter from education secretary Bridget Phillipson, seen by FE Week this month, revealed a “concession” is on the cards that would allow young people aged 16 to 21 to continue to access all master’s level apprenticeships following pressure from other cabinet ministers.

But it referred to other “challenging steps needed” ahead of reforming the apprenticeship levy into the growth and skills levy that could include other types of work-based training.

Gradual increases

England’s apprenticeship budget has increased steadily from £2 billion in its first year, 2017-18.

However, during the same period the amount raised through the levy grew from £2.271 billion to £4.1 billion in 2024-25.

The Treasury’s budget documents were published yesterday as part of the government’s annual cycle of seeking Parliament’s formal approval of its spending plans through a vote, usually in July each year.

SEND job scheme extended after recruitment success

A flagship employment programme for SEND learners has won a year’s extension after hitting its recruitment target. 

An extra £1.5 million has been handed to two organisations delivering the Department for Education’s supported internships programme after ministers declared at least 4,500 learners took part in the scheme in the last year.

Though no figures were provided for 2024, publicly available data suggests the scheme enjoyed an impressive comeback after enrolments on supported internships had slumped to 1,526 starts in 2023, following a total of 2,477 starts in 2022.

Supported internships provide 16 to 25 year olds with education, health and care plans (EHCPs) with bespoke learning, a dedicated job coach and work placements of six to 12 months at firms including Asda, Amazon and Goldman Sachs.

DfE pledged £18 million in 2022 for three years. The original support package was to help deliver the government’s target of doubling the number of supported internships to 4,500 across the country per year by March 2025.

Children’s minister Janet Daby said in a recently answered Parliamentary question that the department had reached its target, according to indicative data.

The cash boost went to two existing suppliers – The British Association for Supported Employment (BASE trading as Inclusive Trading CIC) and The National Development Team for Inclusion.

The money will be used to deliver training for job coaches, administering local council grants and signing up employers to offer work placements.

The original delivery organisations also included a charity called DFN Project SEARCH. It is unclear why the organisation is not named in the contract extension.

In November 2023, the Treasury approved nearly £200,000 for additional grants for SEND learners without EHCPs to get into supported internships in 12 local authority areas.

An interim government evaluation of the programme in October found that interns’ biggest challenges were finding the right job placement and losing benefits.

Though the scheme aims to ease SEND learners into paid employment, it has not translated into tangible success. 

A previous FE Week investigation found that just one in four special educational needs students remained in employment a year after their supported internship had ended.

The evaluation report found almost half (47 per cent) of interns had a job six months after completion despite securing employment being a “primary goal” for the scheme.

Nevertheless, the contract award documents claimed recent data was showing a “much higher success rate” but did not specify what the higher rate was.

“We know they work,” documents added.

The DfE, BASE and NDTI declined to comment.

DFN Project Seach was approached for comment.

SEND college awarded first ‘outstanding’ from Ofsted

A specialist college in south west England had been upgraded to the highest Ofsted rating after finding SEND learners “regularly exceed” expectations set by teachers and leaders.

The Ofsted commendation went to Oakwood Specialist College, operated by Phoenix Learning and Care, whose learners build confidence and gain “meaningful employment” after leaving the specialist institution.

The glowing report is a bump up from its previous ‘good’ award from Ofsted in 2018.

At the time of its March 12 to 14 inspection, there were 129 learners split across the three campuses in Devon, Cornwall and south Gloucestershire.

The watchdog found students had high levels of attendance and were “highly engaged” and productive.

Inspectors were impressed by learners behaving “impeccably” and their enthusiasm to contribute in class.

The report said that leaders monitored attendance carefully and were quick to intervene when there were absences.

Principal Esther Williams said everyone was “delighted” with the outcome.

“Being rated Outstanding across the board is fantastic and a real reflection of the heart, hard work, and care that everyone in the Oakwood community puts in every single day.

“Our learners are at the centre of everything we do, and it’s such a joy to see their efforts and achievements recognised like this. We’re also incredibly grateful to our local and National employers who have been amazing partners in helping our learners gain real work experience that enables them to make informed and confident choices about their futures.” 

Ofsted also noted that learners are well equipped to regulate themselves and identify their triggers due to the colleges’ “highly individualised” therapeutic interventions and curriculum planning.

The individualised courses and “ambitious” curriculum set up learners for life after college, the report said.

As a result, students “regularly exceed” the expectations of their education, health and care plan, such as gaining meaningful paid employment or participating in professional art exhibitions.

The report praised leaders for improving the use of learners starting points to plan curriculums and for teachers’ frequent reviewing of learner targets, which helps them to progress “swiftly”.

Inspectors were also impressed by the range of “high-quality” work experience activities and a personalised careers programme that matches learners’ aspirations.

Ofsted said: “Staff take exceptional care to plan learners’ next steps as they prepare to leave the college. Future placements are well considered, and close liaison with adult services and employers ensures well-planned and helpful support is in place.”

“Learners feel reassured and secure when they finish their studies, and continue to develop their skills and confidence,” the report added.

Meanwhile, the work of the therapy team was highlighted for their specialised training techniques to upskill teachers and learning support assistants (LSA) to help learners with communication skills.

One strategy inspectors pointed out was the “wondering aloud” practice, which encourages learners who previously could not verbalise their thoughts to contribute to short conversations.

“Consequently, learners make excellent progress from their starting points,” the report said. 

Williams added: “What makes me especially proud is that the inspectors saw the real Oakwood – the way we support each learner as a whole person. Our therapeutic approach isn’t just something we talk about; it’s something we live every day, making sure every young person feels safe, confident and valued.”

Ofsted added they were pleased that teachers and LSAs set high expectations and model good practice so learners can develop independence and confidence.

The governors were also commended for their expertise and active involvement in the college.

“They actively encourage leaders to use reflective practices to improve learners’ experiences,” inspectors said.

Leaders quit as Furness College continues recovery

The principal and chair of a college recently placed in intervention have stood down.

Furness College chair Gary Lovatt has been replaced “with immediate effect” by former deputy FE commissioner Meredydd David. Lovatt took on the role in October shortly after the college was dealt the ‘inadequate’ Ofsted blow that triggered government oversight.

Principal and CEO Nicola Cove has also resigned, but she will leave the college in October.

Following the October Ofsted inspection, the college was subjected to an FE Commissioner intervention report, published last month, and is now undergoing a structure and prospects appraisal (SPA) to determine if it can continue as a standalone institution.

FE Commissioner Shelagh Legrave’s report described the college as “vital” for Cumbria but said a reputation rebuild was required as it battles declining student numbers and leadership and governance issues flagged by inspectors.

Ofsted criticised college leaders for overseeing a “decline over time” in attendance, retention and achievement.

Lovatt, Legrave said, is an “experienced non-executive” but has “limited FE experience”.

After standing down, Lovatt said: “I have taken the decision to stand down as I believe the college needs a chair with a depth and breadth of knowledge and experience in further education to see it through the next phase of its journey.”

His successor, David, was a deputy FE commissioner between 2018 and 2023 and, before that, principal of Reaseheath College. He is also currently president of the council of the University of Chester.

Cove, who joined as deputy principal in 2018 before being promoted in 2023, said her decision to resign “has not been easy”.

In a statement, she said: “I have enjoyed my time here immensely, working in partnership with the FE, wider education and business communities in Barrow and across the wider Furness Peninsula.

“I am very proud of what we do day in and day out here at college in support of our students achieving their education goals, being successful in work and life and transforming their futures.

“When I reflect on the seven years I have worked here, I can honestly say that we have achieved a great deal. With the positive trajectory set, I have every confidence that our disappointing Ofsted judgment will be turned around; our recent monitoring visit demonstrated just how much progress can be made in a relatively short period of time.”

Devolving 16-19 funding would be a nightmayor, minister warned

Ministers have been urged to ignore mayors’ demands for devolution of 16 to 19 budgets as relinquishing Whitehall control would lead to “less funding getting to the front line”.

Skills minister Jacqui Smith this week said there was “potential for further devolution” as she admitted to “tensions” with mayors over skills funding powers.

But the Sixth Form Colleges Association warned splitting money between devolved areas risked an increase in bureaucracy.

Around 60 per cent of the government’s adult education budget has been devolved to mayoral combined authorities since 2019. Mayors have repeatedly called for control of more skills pots, including apprenticeships and 16 to 19 funding.

Greater Manchester and the West Midlands have been engaged in “trailblazer” deals since 2023 that were meant to involve “deeper” devolved powers. But within the skills space such powers have been limited to minor flexibilities around careers education, skills bootcamps and the ‘free courses for jobs’ offer.

Quizzed on whether mayors were still asking for the Department for Education to go further with skills devolution during a business and trade committee hearing on the industrial strategy, Smith said: “Yes, they are”.

She added: “Let me be completely clear. There is tension over the funding for 16 to 19. We have a compulsory education system between 16 and 19 that is a national system, and I think there is a limit. I could not envisage that we would devolve all of that 16 to 19 funding to mayors.

“I meet frequently with the mayors on this. We’re currently doing quite specific work with Greater Manchester about how we could go further on devolution. And I think there might be some elements of that that we could look to devolve.”

Her comments came two weeks after Greater Manchester Combined Authority leaders told the same business and trade committee about their desire to control more skills funding, particularly in the 16 to 19 space, including mayor Andy Burnham who described the DfE has his “biggest frustration”.

It is not clear, however, whether mayors want to control the full £8.5 billion 16 to 19 budget, more than a third of which is dished out to school sixth forms, or just the chunk that goes to FE colleges and providers.

But James Kewin, deputy chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association, warned releasing further budget lines to mayors would lead to more “bureaucracy” and “inequalities”.

He told FE Week: “DfE officials have significant experience and expertise in overseeing the current 16 to 19 national system that funds all types of providers using the same formula.

“Devolution would potentially lead to more bureaucracy but less funding getting to the front line. It could also exacerbate existing inequalities if funding is devolved for some providers, such as colleges, but not others, such as school sixth forms.”

Mayors top-slice millions from their adult skills fund budgets each year to pay for administration costs associated with handling and procuring the funding line. This would likely increase if 16 to 19 funding or other skills pots were devolved.

Simon Ashworth, deputy chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers, said it was “no surprise metro mayors are eyeing up 16 to 19 funding” considering it has a budget bigger than adult skills and apprenticeships combined.

He told FE Week that while this “could be a positive development” there is a “real risk that commissioners see 16 to 19 as college-only territory”.

“Independent training providers already deliver £200 million in this space, offering responsiveness, the ability to scale quickly, and vital support for some of the most disengaged learners,” Ashworth added.

“There’s real opportunity here to tackle NEETs and increase opportunity, but only if devolved bodies recognise the full skills landscape – not just one part of it.”

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: EDITION 497

Lucy McLeod

Principal & CEO, East Kent Colleges Group

Start date: April 2025

Previous Job: Deputy CEO, East Kent Colleges Group

Interesting fact: Lucy’s FE career began nearly 30 years ago, starting out as an English foreign language teacher. She has since risen through the ranks at EKC, holding programme management roles before progressing to senior leadership

Kevin Hamblin

Principal & CEO, Bath College

Start date: May 2025

Previous Job: Group CEO, South Gloucestershire and Stroud College

Interesting fact: Kevin played for Nottingham Forest as a schoolboy when they were European champions under Brian Clough and holds an honorary 5th Dan in Taekwondo for services to the sport

‘Remarkable’ spike in ‘outstanding’ college grades

Colleges have seen a spike in ‘outstanding’ judgments as Ofsted prepares to close the door on the current inspection framework.

FE Week analysis shows that 10 of the 52 full inspections published for general FE colleges so far this academic year resulted in an overall grade one.

Ofsted had handed the top grade to just two colleges by this point in both 2023-24 and 2022-23, and to one in 2021-22.

Thirty-eight of the full inspections conducted so far this academic year for colleges have ended with a grade two. It means 19 per cent of full inspections in 2024-25 to date have been judged ‘outstanding’, while 92 per cent are ‘good’ or better.

This compares to 5 per cent and 70 per cent respectively for the same period in 2023-24, 5 per cent and 79 per cent in 2022-23, and 3 per cent and 83 per cent in 2021-22.

College leaders said the “remarkable” feat was a testament to the hard work of leaders and staff.

But an ex-inspector suspects inspectors could be being more generous in their grading as they approach the end of overall headline grades.

Ofsted said it would “caution against” comparing inspection outcomes across different years because “varying proportions” of previously outstanding, good, requires improvement or inadequate providers are inspected each year, as well as “differing numbers of providers inspected due to concerns”.

“This means inspection outcomes will inevitably fluctuate within and across years, so any trends identified are likely to be misleading,” a spokesperson said.

‘Amazing’ results

Ofsted is nearing the end of the education inspection framework launched by then chief inspector Amanda Spielman in 2019.

The watchdog, which ditched overall grades for schools in September 2024 and plans to do the same for FE and skills providers from September 2025, is currently consulting on the introduction of new-style report cards.

If green-lit, a new five-point grading scale will be introduced and applied to up to 20 categories for colleges. There will, however, be no headline rating.

There have been 224 full inspections published across the FE and skills provider base, excluding 16 to 19 schools and academies, between September 1, 2024 and when FE week went to press on May 15.

Of those, 14 per cent were judged ‘outstanding’ and 85 per cent were ‘good’ or better.

This compares to 8 per cent and 79 per cent respectively in 2023-24, 5 per cent and 64 per cent in 2022-23, and 7 per cent and 70 per cent in 2021-22.

FE Week broke the results down by the provider types, such as independent training providers, higher education institutions and adult and community learning providers, and found the most notable driver for the boosted results to be because of general FE colleges.

Gemma Baker, south east area director and senior policy lead for Ofsted at the Association of Colleges, said the increase in the number of ‘outstanding’ colleges “shows the amazing work colleges do and their quality of provision”.

Anne Murdoch, senior adviser in college leadership at the Association of School and College Leaders, told FE Week that the results are “testament to the hard work of college leaders and their staff” and are “all the more remarkable considering the financial pressures that colleges continue to be under”.

She added that while there will be a “degree of natural variation from year to year”, there is “no reason to think inspectors were being particularly generous”.

Inspection ‘nowhere near as rigorous as it used to be’

One ex-inspector, who did not wish to be named, said they “noticed” how inspectors got “more generous” towards the end of an inspection framework cycle during their time at the watchdog.

They also flagged that inspection teams are not always “adequately resourced”, especially for bigger college group inspections, which puts inspectors “on the back foot” and at a disadvantage as college leaders then have the “whip hand” from the start.

Some inspectors also “do not have the gravitas and necessary experience to ‘front up’ against the senior leadership teams of big college groups who are very formidable and expert as a collective”, the ex-inspector told FE Week.

“Ofsted leads have often never attained a higher position pre-Ofsted than head of department, assistant principal or similar. Indeed, very few, if any, senior inspectors have ever led a college or provider.”

They added: “There are lots of inspectors out there, current and ex, who will tell you inspection is nowhere near as rigorous as it used to be and is much more of a ‘fly by’ experience, particularly on big college group or training provider inspections.”

The 10 colleges to be judged ‘outstanding’ this academic year so far are: Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group, City of Sunderland College, West Suffolk College, Bridgwater and Taunton College, Hugh Baird College, West Thames College, Nelson and Colne College, Cornwall College, New City College, The Education Training Collective.

Personal reasons for Burnley College boss’s exit – reports

Burnley College has broken its silence on the sudden departure of its principal, according to reports.

FE Week revealed two weeks ago that Karen Buchanan had left the post just before Ofsted came knocking.

Leaders and governors repeatedly refused to comment on the mysterious exit or say who was leading the publicly funded institution, and staff were said to have been “left in the dark”.

A statement has now been released to the Burnley Express, which said: “Karen Buchanan is currently absent for personal reasons. Kate Wallace will assume the role of interim principal and will provide leadership and guidance in this period.”

Burnley College has continued to stay silent when approached for more details by FE Week.

Karen Buchanan

Buchanan began working at Burnley College in 1986 as a part-time lecturer and became deputy principal in 2011 before taking on the top job in 2018.

The college teaches around 10,000 students and is in a financially healthy position according to its latest 2024 accounts which show a £1.9 million surplus, £21.5 million in reserves and an ‘outstanding’ financial health rating.

Almost 700 people are employed at the college which was rated ‘good’ by Ofsted in 2021, and last year self-assessed as ‘outstanding’ on the watchdog’s scale.

It boasts on its website that it is the “number one” college in England for 16 to 18 achievement rates on the government’s most recently published achievement rates table in March 2024, and claims to have held the position since 2018.

Wallace joined Burnley College in 2022 and was promoted to deputy principal in 2023.