Windsor Learning Partnership
‘apprenticeships’
Colleges are sadly still proving themselves to be out of step with the seismic shift in funding priorities towards apprenticeships. Nick Boles asked a year ago at AoC Conference why they were still letting independent training providers steal their lunch. Little has changed since. In fact, the situation has worsened. I get it that colleges […]
Opinion
The mining and processing sector has been left without the means to deliver apprenticeships even though it faces a “recruitment time bomb”, sector representatives told FE Week. A trailblazer group has been working on new apprenticeship standards for over two years, but faced repeated rejections from the government – including having one plan turned down […]
News
The government’s handling of the new Institute for Apprenticeships has been “shambolic” according to shadow skills minister Gordon Marsden, after it evaded a series of parliamentary enquiries about its capacity. He says that questions he asked about staffing, resources and appointments in a letter posted on November 1 were dodged. His queries were prompted by […]
Strictly Come Dancing stars and the apprenticeships minister will be among more than 90,000 people heading to NEC Birmingham for the fifth annual Skills Show next week. Visitors will be taking part in over 50 hands-on activities, taking careers advice, and watching the country’s most talented apprentices and learners compete in finals of the national […]
A desperate principal has pleaded with the Skills Funding Agency to relax rules that would prevent Bolton College from recruiting new apprentices from May next year. On October 25 the SFA launched an application process for the new register of apprenticeship training providers, but those with the lowest Ofsted rating for the apprenticeships are barred […]
July 2016 I’ve been appointed as Minister for apprenticeships and skills. I am very excited and very happy. My first speech as a backbencher in the House of Commons was on apprenticeships – I’d never have thought that one day I’d be responsible for an area I am so passionate about. I know it is […]
General FE colleges have admitted to apprenticeship failings, after government research showed they are significantly less popular with employers than private training providers. Training providers scored 83.9 per cent in the Skills Funding Agency’s latest employer satisfaction survey published last month, while colleges’ rating was nearly ten per cent lower at 74.9 per cent. The […]
The bosses of FE’s two biggest associations have traded verbal blows over the quality of apprenticeships that are delivered by private training providers. David Hughes, chief executive of the Association of Colleges, has claimed that independent providers offer apprentices “not very much” training, mostly assessing them “on the job”. But his comments sparked a war […]
Colleges have failed to take up the apprenticeships challenge laid down a year ago by former skills minister Nick Boles – with figures showing the proportion delivered by them has fallen significantly. Mr Boles urged delegates at last year’s Association of Colleges conference to stop letting independent training providers “nick your lunch”. He also challenged […]
