Skills England urged to confront government on FE funding Joint AoC and UUK report also calls for 'excessive' competition to be challenged

🤝 Skills England should challenge the government over FE funding gaps and 'excessive competition and poor alignment' between colleges and universities, a new report has said feweek.co.uk/skills-engla...

A “major shift” in policy is needed if Labour is to succeed in uniting England’s post-16 education and skills system and reaching its new target for participation, a report has argued
www.timeshighereducation.com/news/significant-policy-...

College leaders from all four UK nations unite to call for more cash from PM College leaders have come together to urge the Prime Minister to provide more cash for the sector in the UK Government’s upcoming spending review. The first-of-its-kind letter has been sent to Sir Kei...

Ahead of the CSR, college leaders across the UK back the UK Government's ambitions for economic growth and opportunity, but say that to truly deliver on these, Whitehall must invest. Colleges:
💪 Empower Young People
🧱 Support Industry
📚 Uplift Adults.
nation.cymru/news/college... @colegau.cymru

We’re hiring! Please share if you can @medr.bsky.social @emmaraczka.bsky.social @josephbaldwin.bsky.social @llandrillomenai.bsky.social @nptcgroup.bsky.social @bridgendcollege.bsky.social @lewis-cooper.bsky.social @fenews.bsky.social @susietsegay.bsky.social

Great to see this package of measures helping colleges to scale up their construction training, in partnership with employers. Looking forward to working with DfE on making it happen. Pleased that colleges being recognised for how vital they are on this

UK growth push held back by poor Whitehall co-ordination, watchdog finds National Audit Office says departments needs to work together more effectively on industrial strategy

I seem to spend quite a lot of my time in this space (ie between industrial strategy and skills)…

Good stuff from @pmdfoster.bsky.social at @financialtimes.com

www.ft.com/content/c14b...

For #CollegesWeek2025 I'm proud to draw attention to the incredible work of Bracknell and Wokingham College delivering cutting-edge skills education right in the heart of Bracknell

Colleges of further education in England will get less funding than promised Reduction to two-thirds of budgeted top-up payments for additional students a sign of looming government squeezes

One reason I am sceptical of the idea there are real-world savings to be had from the bucket marked 'welfare' is shouldn't some people who are currently 'NEET' (not in education, employment or training) be....in further education?

Congratulations to the newly appointed leadership team at #SkillsEngland. Looking forward to working with them to help establish a better, coherent, inclusive post-16 education and skills system

🌎 Esol provision has changed drastically but what are the real benefits of devolution?
@wmc-adultlearning.bsky.social 's Ziya Moustafa

Further to my question to the PM on improving training in trade skills, it was great to meet with the Minister for Skills, alongside MidKent College’s CEO

A productive discussion on how we support young people across Medway to fulfil their potential &how we can improve and grow our training offer.

Bar graduates from enrolling on apprenticeships, urges thinktank Social Market Foundation estimates more than £430 million was spent last year on funding apprenticeships for people who already hold degrees

"The SMF estimates that last year a total of £431 million was spent on funding apprenticeships for people who already held degrees."

Yet more coverage of my new @smfthinktank.bsky.social report - out today.

Report link: bit.ly/3DXrd2S

www.timeshighereducation.com/news/bar-gra...

SNP urged to give power to regions to boost economy and save Scotland's colleges and universities Principal says each area should be handed new ‘authority, freedom and autonomy’

Great piece from Audrey Cumberford in the @thescotsmanpaper.bsky.social making the case for strengthening regional tertiary systems across Scotland - allowing colleges and unis to play a more active & better coordinated role in regional economic development www.scotsman.com/education/sn...

ESOL: Immigration charge on businesses should fund courses The government should spend some of its £2.1 billion revenue from the immigration skills charge to boost declining levels of ESOL funding over the last 7years

'The government should spend some of its £2.1 billion revenue from the immigration skills charge to boost declining levels of ESOL funding over the last seven years.' @feweek.bsky.social write-up of joint @aoc-info.bsky.social- Bell Foundation report out yesterday. feweek.co.uk/aoc-immigrat...

One thing I love about the Paris cycling revolution is it’s also reminding us of the power of cities to imagine different futures. In line with a long history of municipal reforms stretching back to mid-19th century.

Have written for @politicshome.bsky.social on how HM Treasury makes its biggest decisions, how this has changed in recent years and how this looks to be changing for the future.

Does the UK have enough workers to ‘get Britain building’? The Labour government dreams of kick-starting a housebuilding boom, but the construction sector relies heavily on migrants to plug a skills gap

Solid article on Britain's skills needs on.ft.com/41wa0HC

Takeaways:
-300,000 houses/annum isn't just about planning. May not even be the biggest constraint
- countries succeeding in this area devolve skills needs
- construction cyclicality a big issue
- overseas route under strain

1/8. OECD’s survey of adult skills is a once-in-a-decade test of what people know across 31 countries, including England (but not rest of UK). There’s a lot going on but I’d say this is a big story

www.oecd.org/en/publicati...

We were thrilled to launch our 'Mission accepted' report in the House of Lords yesterday, celebrating the incredible work of colleges alongside college members and parliamentarians.

You can read the report here: www.aoc.co.uk/news-campaig...

Honoured to attend @AoC_info Winter reception & to meet our supportive local MPs @LSEColleges today, discussing all things FE, Skills & SEND with @danfrancis02 @helenhayes_ and our amazing local & sector advocate @DLawrenceOBE @UKHouseofLords 👇

Antonia blonde hair silver patterned scarf and Lisa in red dress

Great to meet Lisa Capper the new principal of Sandwell College just five weeks into her new job! Of course we talked apprenticeships, adult skills, basic skills, Esol - and what we can do to drive up skills and quals and good jobs in Tipton and Wednesbury

Looking forward to #TCAinternational25 in Wales!!

Great 2nd day of the College Alliance's international conference- inc. keynotes from Barney Glover, Jobs & Skills Australia and @pmdfoster.bsky.social @financialtimes.com, a case study exploring the skills system in the Basque Country & a panel of employers from across NI &Ireland #TCAinternational

Some thoughts from #TCAInternational on what FE needs to thrive:
1. A trust-based funding environment
2. accountability based on outcomes
2. The opportunity to shape their offer to meet local/sector needs
3. Structures that facilitate meaningful partnerships with employers
4. Collaboration!

So many thanks to @hughesdavid.bsky.social and @lewis-cooper.bsky.social for inviting me to #TCAInternational. Such a brilliant event and so many fascinating conversations, my mind is completely buzzing!

It was really great to have you with us, Smita - thanks very much for joining, and your inputs!

Fascinating to here from @pmdfoster.bsky.social about a growing (if still slightly confused) political and policy consensus around the importance of skills, the potential for FE to position itself as key to this but the need to avoid this becoming an oppositional HE/FE battle #TCAInternational

ColegauCymru welcomes additional in-year college funding - ColegauCymru Today, the Welsh Government has announced an additional £10million in-year allocation to support the further education sector this year.

The additional £10million in-year funding for colleges from Welsh Government is very welcome - and a recognition of the budget pressures facing the FE sector www.colleges.wales/en/blog/post...

List of Jobs & Skills Australia’s legislative functions

Day 2 of #TCAinternational begins with a presentation about the new Jobs & Skills Australia. These are their legislative functions - some similar to those we see here, some slightly different. V interesting

Really good first day of the College Alliance's international conference, at Belfast Met College - a great range of international inputs from Sweden, South Africa, Singapore and the OECD, along case studies from across the four UK nations and Ireland #TCAinternational