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‘ofsted’

Ofsted: Bigger colleges aren’t always better

“Big is not always beautiful,” Ofsted’s main man for FE has warned, admitting he is considering the effect of mega-colleges formed through mergers on quality. Paul Joyce’s admission comes just a week after the nation’s largest college group NCG saw its rating slip to ‘requires improvement’. “We are looking at our survey programme as to […]

News

Ofsted should renege on its merger deal

“Big isn’t always beautiful” is something of an understatement coming from Ofsted in the context of FE providers. The biggest private training provider, Learndirect, was awarded a grade four last year and in recent weeks the biggest college group, NCG, slumped to a grade three. Despite this, the average size of colleges, far from shrinking […]

Opinion

An eighth UTC gets the bottom Ofsted grade

Yet another university technical college has been rated ‘inadequate’, the eighth to receive Ofsted’s most dubious honour. Derby Manufacturing UTC has been placed in special measures after getting a grade four across the board – the school equivalent of FE commissioner intervention. “It is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and […]

News

Bids reopen for £13m strategic college improvement fund

Colleges can bid for the remaining £13 million from the strategic college improvement fund using newly released guidance. The first round of the fund was launched last year, when 14 struggling colleges shared £2 million. Today’s announcement invites struggling colleges, supported by a stronger institution, to ask for money to help them improve in specific […]

News

Staff at Lowestoft SFC out on the first of six strike days over merger

Staff at Lowestoft Sixth-Form College have walked out on the first of six days of strike action protesting a planned merger. The industrial action involves 20 of the SFC’s 70 staff, and is being led by NASUWT. Further strikes are planned for July 2, 3, 10, 11 and 12. A spokesperson for the teachers’ union […]

News

Ofsted: New apprenticeship provider monitoring visits a ‘concern’

The results of the early monitoring visits to new apprenticeship providers are “concerning”, Ofsted’s deputy director for FE has said, after a quarter were given ‘insufficient progress’ verdicts. Paul Joyce (pictured) hit out at the newcomers in his speech at the AELP conference today, asserting that apprentices “deserve better than that”. “Our monitoring visits to […]

News

AELP presents its new code of governance

A new code of governance will be unveiled today at the Association of Employment and Learning Providers’ annual conference. The code, which is still in draft and out for consultation, sets out the principles the AELP believes any independent learning provider should adopt in order to conduct its business in the best interest of its […]

News

FE commissioner reflects on six months of change

Six months ago the FE commissioner embarked on a series of new initiatives designed to support colleges before they get into too much difficulty. Using diagnostic assessments and peer-to-peer support, Richard Atkins aims to avoid a repeat of the high-profile college failures of recent months. These new measures are all the more important, given the […]

News

Ofsted watch: Private provider celebrates grade one

A private provider has been rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted. But there was no cause for celebration at the country’s biggest college group as it was downgraded from ‘good’ to ‘requires improvement’. Weir Training Limited, based in Surrey, was rated grade one across the board as it progressed from its previous ‘good’ ranking. Inspectors lauded directors […]

News