No surprises here, sadly. YOIs are really, really struggling to provide a regime that gets young people out of their cells. It’s time for a complete reset of youth custody that puts education first, to give young people opportunities to develop the skills they’ll need to thrive as adults.

Unreliable. Unqualified. Unsafe. That’s what some employers are saying about the government’s proposed apprenticeship assessment reforms. @billycamden.bsky.social investigates feweek.co.uk/business-bac...

Coming up in this week’s FE Week: 💥Employers line up to attack apprenticeship assessment changes 🔍As NEET figures hover just under 1m, we look at what it takes to keep young people *in* education & training ‼️Exclusive figures show every YOI is failing to meet its 15-hour per week education duty

✍️LETTER TO THE EDITOR ✍️ 'In recent weeks, each of us has witnessed attempts to sow fear in our communities, particularly the targeting of migrants and minority groups. We feel compelled to speak out against ugly racist attacks, reminiscent of the 1970s and 1980s.' feweek.co.uk/letter-to-th...

Good evening! Coming up in this week’s FE Week: 💻 Revealed: Two IoTs ditch the brand as ministers pivot to TECs 🚧 College waiting lists soar in priority subjects 🔍 Will this NEET review be any different? PROFILE: Karen Redhead, West London College Subscribe | feweek.co.uk/subscribe/

ICYMI: I quizzed skills minister Jacqui Smith on the post-16 white paper on Monday - followed by post-match analysis with Ben Rowland, Julian Gravatt, Caroline McDonald and Anna Fritz Catch up here: youtu.be/Hl5pVS9xLWU?...

Reform UK politicians appear to be getting themselves into a bit of a bind over ESOL, and it speaks to conflicts at the heart of their politics. They cry out for integration, but are uncomfortable paying for it. feweek.co.uk/reform-uk-ma...

Good evening! Coming up in this week’s @feweek.bsky.social: 🏷️ A white paper, the CAR, and a quals consultation have landed 💡Brand damage, units register, transparency promise - what we learned at AELP’s autumn conference 🔍 Andrea Jenkyns vs ESOL 🧑‍⚖️ Why the judge threw out the Marples vs DfE case

Some updates on this breaking story: 📢 The Marples family said they are "extremely disappointed" and are discussing next steps with their lawyers 💷 Both parties have a week to agree on costs ❓The family has three weeks to apply for permission to appeal feweek.co.uk/case-dismiss...

Does the post-16 white paper have the right answers, or even the right questions? @nickhillman.bsky.social and I join @tom-richmond.com to chew over what it has to say on quality, collaboration and specialisation in the latest episode of Inside Your Ed insideyoured.buzzsprout.com/1874905/epis...

Some suprising twists and turns in the post-16 white paper this evening. Buckle up for your trusty @feweek.bsky.social roundup: feweek.co.uk/new-law-to-b...

So kind of DfE to drop a white paper and a consultation on level 2 and 3 qualifications at the same time First up - here's everything we know about V Levels, brand new T Levels and sweeping reforms to level 2 provision, including the end of the T Level foundation year feweek.co.uk/what-we-know...

Flanked by the science secretary Liz Kendall and DWP secretary (who is in charge of skills now) Pat McFadden, Bridget Phillipson has begun her statement on the post-16 education and skills white paper

The Speaker granted two urgent questions this afternoon, which has pushed Bridget Phillipson's ministerial statement on the skills white paper back. They're on the second one now, so shouldn't be too much longer.

First outing at education questions for new ministers Josh MacAlister and Liv Bailey MacAlister first up answering questions about the IB

Of course, @feweek.bsky.social readers had a head start on V Levels Here’s our story from a couple of weeks ago feweek.co.uk/revealed-v-l...

In a teaser ahead of tomorrow's post-16 education and skills white paper, the government confirmed it will introduce V Levels to go alongside A-levels and T Levels. Unlike T Levels, V Levels will be smaller, A-level sized qualifications. They will replace existing level 3 alternatives like BTECs.

Good evening! Coming up in this week’s @feweek.bsky.social: 🫖T Levels Week: Clawback investigated, ambassador chair interviewed, a student writes in 🏷️City and Guilds sold in ‘landmark’ deal 🎯Whitehall misses its own apprenticeships target Subscribe | feweek.co.uk/subscribe/ #TomorrowsPapersToday

So DfE *can* rectify a bad funding band decision … and compensate training providers feweek.co.uk/revealed-dfe...

Good evening! Coming up in this week’s FE Week: 🚛 Nearly £3m in backpay after HGV apprenticeship funding blunder 🔍 Could regional improvement team proposals work for colleges? 📋 Weston out of intervention, but investigations continue Subscribe | feweek.co.uk/subscribe/ #TomorrowsPapersToday

Badenoch confirms what was trailed last night, including a claim she was an apprentice before going to university I've sourced some evidence Badenoch had a gap year placement at an architect's firm in around 1998/1999 - not sure that counts as an apprenticeship though feweek.co.uk/badenoch-ill...

Business owner in the room: 'I have to pay my apprentice minimum wage next year. Why would I do that if I can get someone with 20 years of experience?' Erm if you're using below-minimum-wage workers to run your business, your business isn't viable #CPC25

Ex-skills minister Robert Halfon said the prime minister's speech on further education and skills was "an incredible thing" and "built on the work we did" #CPC25

I have arrived at #CPC25 at 2000% of my recommended daily allowance of vitamin C

The offending clip has now been edited out of last night's episode on iPlayer

Have I Got News For You producers need an @feweek.bsky.social subscription feweek.co.uk/100bn-digita...

📢 What do we want? Two-thirds of young people getting higher-level qualified by technical or academic routes 📢 When do we want it? … At an unspecified time in the future feweek.co.uk/starmer-swer...

We think the V stands for Vocational - but we'll see what the nation's teenagers think... feweek.co.uk/revealed-v-l...

Please join me in congratulating Woman on her appointment

Good evening! Coming up in @feweek.bsky.social edition 509 🍨SCOOP: V Levels are about to enter the chat 🌹Full dissection of Labour's conference promises 🪑FEATURE: Does paying your college chair make a difference? Subscribe | feweek.co.uk/subscribe/ #TomorrowsPapersToday

🚨Exclusive: Ministers are poised to announce new V Level qualifications as 'third route' between A-levels and T Levels Must-read story 👇 feweek.co.uk/revealed-v-l...

Tune in from 16.43 to hear @feweek.bsky.social deputy editor @billycamden.bsky.social answer questions about yesterday's education announcements from the prime minister www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Viral social media posts have claimed that Multiverse, a company founded by the son of former Labour PM Sir Tony Blair, has been chosen to run the new digital ID scheme. This isn’t true, according to both the company and the government.

"By making apprenticeships a gold standard option for ambitious young people, we are sending a message that technical excellence is as highly valued as academic prowess." Prime Minister David Cameron, 2012

Spoken to quite a few principals following yesterdays speech. Symbolically, flagging FE as a “defining mission” of government matters - but there is a sense that we’ve been here before. Starmer has set himself up for accusations of hollow words if November’s budget doesn’t deliver the goods.

Starmer shone a huge spotlight on FE today. He acknowledged the sector's historic (but for some reason completely silent these days) relationship with working class people and called out a "disrespect" towards skilled labour So the sentiment was spot on. But

Starmer's speech was a major trail for the upcoming post-16 white paper: - Regional improvement teams (presumably replacing or reporting to the FE commissioner) - £20m just been splashed on these for schools - Some kind of national CPD offer for FE teachers (no sign of pay equality though) ...

Now would be a good time to point out: - Colleges are full because no one planned for the demographic rise in 16-year-olds - There are shortages of college teachers and apprenticeship trainers and assessors *Amazing* to see the sector get the limelight in PM speech - but big decisions needed fast

Starmer claims further education will be a "defining mission" for the government, replacing the 50% to uni 'target' with a new target of 2/3s of children to go to uni OR an apprenticeship

Skills minister Jacqui Smith tells a Make UK fringe we’ll be hearing “in the next few hours and weeks” about ways the government will “incentivise and support employers” to invest more in training.

Overheard at conferece: "This is like Glastonbury for nerds"

McFadden tells a Labour conference fringe why Starmer wanted to move skills policy to DWP: "He told me he wanted to add skills to the brief of the department ... the idea behind that is to try and make the skills system face the labour market a bit more, face what employers need a bit more."

First thing I've learned from Pat McFadden is that he doesn't drink during conference any more

Good to see @feweek.bsky.social covering the recent @hmiprisonsnews.bsky.social report on child custody. Young people are spending far too much time in their cell and not enough time in classrooms or doing other positive activities.

Good evening! Coming up in this week’s @feweek.bsky.social: 😱 Raise pay by 10% or face dispute, principals told 💰 Multiverse becomes highest-earning apprenticeship provider 🎙️ Inspection Q&A with Ofsted’s Lee Owston + @jessjanehill.bsky.social previews Tom Bewick's upcoming skills policy book

🚨 NEW: MPs call for a statutory pay review body for colleges to tackle recruitment & retention crisis. FE inquiry also backs devolving 16–19 funding, modular T Levels & resit shakeup feweek.co.uk/fe-engine-ru...

We're very pleased to see the launch of our new campaign #ApprenticeshipsWork yesterday getting some really positive coverage, including this piece by our CEO Alice Gardner feweek.co.uk/landing-appr... @edgeceo.bsky.social

“To truly deliver a new deal for FE, the AoC needs to come forward with a package of measures. UCU members demanding fundamental change are prepared to take action to achieve our aims.” @DrJoGrady on the 4% pay recommendation feweek.co.uk/staff-pay-re...

Should apprentices be able to track their learning and access support through an app - yes, probably This £1.2m one from *the government* is not going well @sw1politics.bsky.social for @feweek.bsky.social (meme h/t @fcdwhittaker.bsky.social)

Always a pleasure to be asked onto the @wonkhe.bsky.social podcast This week we chat OfS quality assessment reforms, the Hillsborough Law, and machinery of government wonkhe.com/blogs/podcas...