industrial strategy

Questions remain over industrial strategy skills pledge

Skills are mentioned 140 times in the industrial strategy – proof of their pivotal role in UK competitiveness. But…

Jessica Hill
Fiona Aldridge
Apprenticeships

Ofqual’s apprenticeship assessment reforms: A bold shift with big implications

While greater flexibility and innovation are welcome, challenges around cost, consistency, and transition remain

Jessica Hill
Daniel Green
Curriculum

Lance the Boyle of English exam papers that baffle learners

Neurodivergent or foreign students are hampered when teaching demands familiarity with Ant and Dec or Susan Boyle’s BGT audition

Jessica Hill
Amanda Blinkhorn and Jacqueline Forrester
Skills reform

Skills excellence is the missing ingredient in the UK’s industrial strategy

Skills excellence – not just skills – will drive the UK’s economic future, so don’t overlook it

Jessica Hill
Ben Blackledge
Colleges

No room to learn: The data behind the post-16 squeeze

Rising teenage populations require local authorities and training providers to crunch the data so they can prepare for the…

Jessica Hill
James Farr
ITP funding

The country needs us so why treat ITPs as second-class providers?

Independent training providers are treated unfairly with unequal access to funds so it’s time funding followed the learner, not…

Jessica Hill
Stuart Allen


AI and colleges

The AI hallucination: Why tech will add problems, not solve them

The government’s AI ‘initiatives’ are little more than shiny distractions – the tech could increase burdens and threaten jobs

Jessica Hill
Andrew Otty
Apprenticeships

What England can learn from apprenticeships run overseas

From minimum durations to volunteer coaches, international examples show us the way forward on apprenticeships

Jessica Hill
Dr Rebecca Montacute
Access to HE

For Access to HE students, bills now matter more than books

Data shows economic pressures are the biggest barriers to learning but the tools we developed during Covid offer a…

Jessica Hill
Ken Duckett
Lifelong Learning

‘Get the Nation Learning’ could change our culture and society

Our L&W lifelong learning campaign is a rallying call to build the thriving country we want to live in

Jessica Hill
Emily Jones
NEETs

They’re not ‘hard to reach’ but the system is closed to them

Students who risk becoming NEET often need time, flexibility or a second chance – providers must remove barriers that…

Jessica Hill
Dhruv Patel
The Staffroom – opinion

Getting ‘back to the floor’ means staying relevant for college students

Days spent with industry and the wider community help staff re-energise and witness how their areas of specialism are…

Jessica Hill
Alice Duarte