York College
‘apprenticeships’
Students from colleges and independent training providers will be able to read the Financial Times for free, despite the offer for 16 to 19-year-olds initially only appearing to be available for secondary schools. The FT this week advertised a scheme, sponsored by Lloyd’s Bank, for “secondary schools” with sixth-forms to register for free subscriptions starting […]
News
Conservative manifesto pledge: Allow employers to use their levy to pay apprentices’ wages Neil Carberry argues FOR The Conservative manifesto pledge to allow firms access to levy funding to cover wage costs for some forms of training came as a surprise – and we certainly shouldn’t read too much into one line, in what was […]
Opinion
Manifesto promise: Scrap fees and loans in further education by doubling the Adult Education Budget Graham Taylor argues AGAINST There is much to admire in the Labour manifesto on education and skills. Labour has promised to make all further education free at the point of use. And who wouldn’t want this? They would “introduce free, […]
Since the snap election was called by the Conservatives seven weeks ago, it has been interesting to see the reaction to their handling of the media. The overriding theme has been one of avoidance: stories of the press being locked out of events, being allowed to ask pre-vetted questions only and of ministers darting in […]
The proportion of adult trainees funded by the ESFA who progress onto an apprenticeship has dipped below 20 per cent, FE Week can exclusively reveal. Traineeships were launched four years ago, as part of the government’s drive to help low-skilled unemployed people below the age of 25 onto apprenticeships. The scheme, which funds work placements, […]
In an embarrassing U-turn, the National Skills Academy for Food and Drink has dropped controversial plans for mandatory vetting of apprenticeship qualifications. The body, which leads the food and drink apprenticeship trailblazer group, recently announced that any awarding organisation wanting to develop their own versions of qualifications included in food and drink standards must submit […]
The Conservatives have been accused of hiding from FE Week in the run-up to the general election – and the party’s central office has persistently blocked us from grilling the skills minister on his own manifesto. The entire sector is desperate for more detail from Robert Halfon on his party’s plans for FE. Many, for […]
There’s no sign that the non-levy allocations farrago will be solved any time soon – and now higher education leaders are issuing dire warnings about the future of degree-level apprenticeships. The FE sector reacted in horror after the Education and Skills Funding Agency announced in April that it would pause the procurement process for providers […]
A college in the north-east has used public funds to pay its students cash bonuses for completing online short courses. Middlesbrough College advertised a £50 “cash bonus” on its website for anyone who took up free distance learning courses in the health and care, business and customer service industries – in a move that’s previously […]
