York College
‘ofsted’
After 131 Ofsted visits, independent learning providers (ILPs) are still waiting for their first outstanding verdict under the education watchdog’s current common inspection framework. The sector has failed to achieve a single grade one result since the start of the last academic year, when the new framework was put in place. But across the wider […]
News
New policies due soon, says Hunt New announcements about Labour Party policy on FE will be released within a month, Shadow Junior Education Minister Tristram Hunt told FE Week editor Nick Linford. On a tour of Walsall College, the first college graded outstanding under Ofsted’s current inspection framework, Mr Hunt said many policy ideas were […]
Schools weren’t the only ones frowned upon by Ofsted when it assessed careers guidance. The National Careers Service came in for criticism too and also needs careful consideration, says Stephan Jungnitz. If you’re working in the commercial sector, perhaps the quickest way to your P45 and the dole queue is to encourage potential customers to […]
Opinion
The government has pledged to act over careers guidance problems in schools but, asks Martin Doel, is it going to do enough? Not many of us can have been surprised by the conclusions of Ofsted’s report on careers advice, but that doesn’t make it any less of a concern. Nor does it mean the report […]
After an hour with Jacqui Henderson CBE, the former London regional director for the Learning and Skills Council, I feel I have barely scratched the surface. The energetic Henderson is certainly busy — aside from being managing director of Creative Leadership and Skills Ltd consultancy, she is vice chair of Newcastle University, chair of governors […]
Profiles
Taking the learner voice into account is key — but the teacher voice needs to be listened to as well, says Dr Peter Lavender. Learner voice specialists are staff we often admire, but who frequently remain invisible in professional terms, not being part of the teaching workforce. As a college governor, you find evidence of […]
Allegations of bullying and physical abuse have prompted three subcontractor colleges to take over apprenticeships from a Midland-based prime contractor. A damning Ofsted report found “serious allegations of physical and verbal bullying and harassment” and deemed the National Farrier Training Agency (NFTA) to be inadequate, as reported by FE Week in June. The Skills Funding […]
Kwik Fit has come under fire from the National Union of Students (NUS) for running unpaid traineeships of up to 936 hours across five months. An investigation by FE Week found the car servicing firm advertising “multiple” 16 to 18 vacancies “nationwide” on the government’s National Apprenticeship Service (NAS) website. But the advert, which said […]
Q&A with Ofsted inspector Karen Adriaanse, author of the education watchdog’s report Going in the right direction? Careers guidance in schools from September 2012. The report, and Ofsted boss Sir Michael Wilshaw, was critical of schools for their careers guidance offering since they were made responsible for the service. Mrs Adriaanse, who is also Ofsted’s […]
