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Collaboration providing the key to success

By Rachel Hopkins, Marketing Officer, Thursday 21 September 2017

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We’re delighted to highlight the successful working relationship of Stephenson College and educational publisher and NCFE partner, Learning Curve Group (LCG). Working together, the two organisations have enjoyed a successful working relationship for over 5 years, which has had significant impact and benefits for the learners at Stephenson College. Debbie Torr, Development Manager at Stephenson College, said of the partnership: “Over the past 5 years, we’ve been able to grow and improve our offer for learners as a direct result of working alongside Learning Curve Group who provide materials to facilitate distance learning”.

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A positive start to the new term

By Esme Winch, Managing Director, Thursday 21 September 2017

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Following the latest announcement from the Department for Education (DfE), we’re delighted to have strengthened our offer for schools with 19 qualifications approved in the 2019 tables. This includes the extension of our creative provision with qualifications in Craft where the flexibility of this qualification allows for the ability to cover topics such as Materials Technology, Fashion and Textiles and Food and Cookery. Alongside CACHE qualifications in Childcare and Development and new NCFE Technical Awards in Graphic Design and Interactive Media, our qualifications for schools represent a broad and comprehensive introduction to technical learning. We are responding to feedback from the DfE on the qualifications which were not successful. Although, it must be said, we have fared somewhere in the middle when comparing ourselves to the variations in success seen by other Awarding Organisations (AOs).

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AELP release 14 points for government to address on Apprenticeship reform

By Andrew Gladstone-Heighton, Policy Leader, Thursday 21 September 2017

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Today, the Association of Employers and Learning Provides (AELP) set out their recommendations for government to address as part of the apprenticeship reforms.  The 14 recommendations centre on enhancing of social mobility and broadening apprenticeships opportunities. The recommendations are timely, coming just 4 months after the implementation of the apprenticeship Levy, and after the recent iteration of the tendering process for non-levy procurement. Everyone engaged in the delivery and assessment of apprenticeships is mindful of the consequences of the ‘new world’ of levy funding.

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U-turn

By Esme Winch, Managing Director, Thursday 21 September 2017

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Over the summer, the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) set out how they would fund workplace learning. In an example of how a seemingly minor piece of wording can alter delivery throughout the sector, they initially set out how they wouldn’t fund any workplace learning, relevant to a learner’s job and/or their employers business. The Funding Rules for 16/17 stated that:

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Time for T?

By Esme Winch, Managing Director, Thursday 21 September 2017

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Once parliament returns on 9 October, we hope to see some visible process on the Post-16 Skills Plan. What is a positive revelation, is the inclusion of independent training providers being properly referenced. The initial release of the Post-16 Skills Plan appeared to only mention college-based programmes of learning. We have since learned that this was an oversight from the Department for Education where they were making a shorthand reference to all classroom-based learning.

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