Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 02/10/2026To address plummeting apprenticeship uptake in young people and by SMEs, govt is funding local 'brokerages' to push numbers back up, but the only criteria for getting this funding is whether the area has a combined authority run by a directly elected mayor. bsky.app/profile/fewe... 100
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 28/09/2026📚 The government will ‘rebirth’ funding for union learning advisers five years after it was cut by the Conservatives, chancellor John Healey has announced feweek.co.uk/healey-to-re...feweek.co.ukHealey to ‘rebirth’ union learning advisors five years after cutsThe government will 'rebirth' funding for union learning advisers five years after it was cut by the Conservatives, chancellor John Healey has announced. 010
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 18/09/2026Sadiq Khan, who has a £335m+ training budget for adults, is tightening ‘job outcome’ targets for the training businesses that get about £35m of this big pot each year. 023
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 14/09/2026In 2024 Labour promised to link migration and skills policy by refusing skilled worker visas for jobs in sectors that lack clear plans for increasing the supply of domestic workers. The policy will finally be in place from January 2027. 🧵: feweek.co.uk/migration-ad...feweek.co.ukMigration advisers get tough on pleas for foreign labourCommittee tells ministers to block visas for two-thirds of proposed occupations 100
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 08/09/2026📉 Spending on English and maths training for adults has fallen by about 40 per cent since skills devolution, a think tank’s analysis has found feweek.co.uk/english-and-...feweek.co.ukEnglish and maths spending fallen 40% since devolution, research findsSpending on English and maths training for adults has fallen by about 40 per cent since skills devolution, a think tank’s analysis has found. 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 04/09/2026Up in Ben Houchen’s Tees Valley, contracts to pay for training for more than 700 unemployed people a month will be delayed for six months. Was it because he wanted to review the specs (as claimed), or was it caused by mid-procurement legal action from local training company Learning Curve? 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 04/09/2026One of the most interesting unanswered questions in this case for me, is what role the independent directors of the employee ownership trust had in governing this company. I’d love to speak to anyone who knows about EOTs, or who worked with or at Prevista in the years leading up to its closure. 000
Reposted by Josh MellorFE Week @feweek.bsky.social · 03/09/2026⚠️ Money earmarked for adult education in Tees Valley will not be released for another six months as the region’s mayoral authority reruns a procurement feweek.co.uk/six-month-de...feweek.co.ukSix-month delay for Tees Valley adult educationMoney earmarked for adult education in Tees Valley will not be released for another six months as the region’s mayoral authority reruns a procurement. 001
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 19/08/2026By far the most convoluted web of ownership and liquidation at a training provider that I have covered. 101
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 13/08/2026Here's FE Week's handy list of key takeways from this year's VTQ results. 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 24/07/2026Subcontracting adult education at a few West Midlands colleges seemed very high this year, with one college planning to sub 95% of its £14m grant, way above the 25% target cap. This came out via an internal audit, which sees ASF subcontracting as high risk. bsky.app/profile/fewe... 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 14/07/2026📈 Mayors with new devolution deals are complaining that targets dictated by Whitehall are limiting their local flexibility, according to a report by the national spending watchdog. feweek.co.uk/whitehall-ta...feweek.co.ukWhitehall targets limit flex, mayors tell spending watchdogMayors with new devolution deals are complaining that targets dictated by Whitehall are limiting their local flexibility, says national spending watchdog. 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 07/07/2026Andy Burnham's final move on adult skills as mayor of Greater Manchester was to give further education colleges more per-learner money for training than independent training providers (mostly for-profit businesses). feweek.co.uk/colleges-fav...feweek.co.ukColleges favoured as ITPs get less for adult skills in Greater ManchesterIndependent sector seeks answers after mayoral authority ignores them in funding uplift 000
Reposted by Josh MellorShane Chowen @ukshane.bsky.social · 18/06/2026Coming up in @feweek.bsky.social 0️⃣ Unions & colleges join warn DfE FE staff face possibility of 0% pay rise recommendation 🧑⚖️C&G bonuses: We examine the contradictory claims as another inquiry on the sale to PeopleCert is launched 🤝Unite drops dispute against PeopleCert after deal on redundancies 022
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 09/06/2026Proof that the buzzword "hub" has now got out of control. 18 months ago the CITB said it will open 20 purpose-built skills "hubs" for construction training. In fact those 20 hubs won't be new anything, they'll be existing training providers paid £33k grant to train apprentices quickly. 102
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 08/05/2026Great local election coverage from the @walthamforestecho.bsky.social at the town hall in Waltham Forest: walthamforestecho.co.uk/2026/05/08/e...walthamforestecho.co.ukElection live: 'Ecstatic' Greens win first ever councillorCounting has begun at Waltham Forest Assembly Hall, with results expected in the afternoon 022
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 24/04/2026The 'good governance' at charities and non-profits theme has been strong this month. This week FE Week looks at a training charity that plunged from healthy finances in 2022 to debts, dismissals and asset fire sales last year - & what happened when I called the boss? 📵 feweek.co.uk/regulator-pr...feweek.co.ukRegulator probes collapse of engineering trainerThe Charity Commission is assessing “governance and financial concerns” at a 60-year-old engineering training charity that closed abruptly last year. 100
Reposted by Josh MellorShane Chowen @ukshane.bsky.social · 15/04/2026🚨Members at City & Guilds Foundation have voted in favour of an independent inquiry into the sale of its commercial awarding and training arms Trustees will "consider" their next steps feweek.co.uk/city-guilds-...feweek.co.ukCity & Guilds members vote in favour of independent inquiryMembers of the City & Guilds Foundation have voted for an independent inquiry into the sale of its awarding business, following pressure from an action group 021
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 14/04/202619 new technical excellence colleges confirmed. Where will they be? What are they meant to do? Is the money capital or revenue? Answers in FE Week today: 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 31/03/2026Really interesting to work on this longer-form piece about the September Guarantee of a post-16 place for every 16 and 17 year old who doesn't have a plan for their next year of education. It looks at why councils can't say whether they organised a place for about 70-80k young people each year. 100
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 13/03/2026Ed sec responds to (very predictable) backlash about cuts to funding for college age students with promise that there’s ’more to come’ 000
Reposted by Josh MellorFE Week @feweek.bsky.social · 12/03/2026🏊♂️ A limited pool of awarding organisations will be eligible to deliver the first tranche of V Levels under rules tabled by Ofqual today feweek.co.uk/small-pool-of-awarding… feweek.co.uk'Small' pool of awarding bodies eligible for first V Levels - OfqualExams regulator launches quick turnaround consultation for developing new qualifications 011
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 02/03/2026Interesting to see the government’s response to Lincolnshire’s ESOL cutting policy. From @billycamden.bsky.social 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 01/03/2026Interesting that NCG’s board signed off the now-Lord Doherty’s resignation and payment in lieu, alongside NDAs for staff, rather than deal with what seem to be legitimate misconduct allegations. Would more junior college staff benefit from the same sort of settlement if facing similar allegations? 010
Reposted by Josh MellorShane Chowen @ukshane.bsky.social · 28/02/2026🚨 Breaking: Former NCG CEO Joe Docherty, now Lord Docherty, has been suspended as a Labour peer after it emerged he resigned from his college role after conducting sexual liaisons during working hours feweek.co.uk/joe-docherty...feweek.co.ukJoe Docherty: Labour peer quit college role over ‘inappropriate conduct’The former education executive has been suspended by the party weeks after being sent to the House of Lords by Sir Keir Starmer 055
Reposted by Josh MellorFE Week @feweek.bsky.social · 27/02/2026🎓 A £5 million degree level short course trial hit a fifth of its student recruitment target, an interim evaluation has found, raising further questions about demand for the upcoming lifelong learning entitlement feweek.co.uk/second-lle-short-cours…feweek.co.ukSecond LLE short course trial falls short on recruitmentA £5 million degree level short course trial hit a fifth of its student recruitment target, an interim evaluation has found. 001
Reposted by Josh MellorZoë Crowther @zoecrowther.bsky.social · 27/02/2026Keir Starmer has written to all Labour MPs attacking the Green Party for embracing "divisive" and "sectarian" politics I'm picking up concern among Labour MPs about how this letter will come across to people who have voted/are tempted to vote Green, as it could risk further alienating these voters 3421806349
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 27/02/2026TLDR trial of American style studying of separate bits of degree courses had low uptake 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 27/02/2026Jas Athwal leading the debate on value for money for students: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukLabour MPs call for urgent action on 'unfair' student loansMPs criticise 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 26/02/2026Given the high NEET rates among 21-24 year olds, it is very curious that the youth guarantee (subsidised jobs, targeted local employment initiatives) doesn't cover that age group. 000
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 26/02/2026In case you missed it yesterday, Greater Lincolnshire's Reform mayor (and her Reform/Conservative council leader supporters) have approved plans to cut off all funding for ESOL lessons from Aug 2027. Full story here: feweek.co.uk/fundamentall...feweek.co.uk‘Fundamentally wrong’: Greater Lincs approves ESOL cutsPlans to cut funding for English language lessons to avoid alleged “segregation” have been approved in Greater Lincolnshire, amid concerns harm to integration 110
Reposted by Josh MellorFE Week @feweek.bsky.social · 25/02/2026🗣️ Plans to cut funding for English language lessons to avoid alleged 'segregation' have been approved in Greater Lincolnshire, amid concerns about “serious harm” to local community integration. feweek.co.uk/fundamentally-wrong-gr…feweek.co.uk‘Fundamentally wrong’: Greater Lincs approves ESOL cutsPlans to cut funding for English language lessons to avoid alleged “segregation” have been approved in Greater Lincolnshire, amid concerns harm to integration 022
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 24/02/2026House of Lords oral questions on prison education today didn’t leave me hopeful the prisons crisis will be sorted any time soon. Peers were clearly engaged, but the scrutiny only brushed the surface of the structural problems: overcrowding, staffing shortages, education cuts, long periods in cells 110
Reposted by Josh MellorJim Waterson @jim.londoncentric.media · 19/02/2026The media management of this Andrew news… pre-shadowed by an unusually frank interview with the head of the CPS in the Sunday Times hinting there might be action… then BBC getting the story… 56713
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 19/02/20261/ Thread on questionable levels of transparency in the Department for Education’s financial policing of how the ~£10bn a year it distributes to colleges, training providers and others is monitored (and recovered when things go wrong). 100
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 19/02/2026Is this a taste of Reform UK education policies? Should the taxpayer pay for non-English speakers to learn the language of the country they live in? 122
Reposted by Josh MellorShane Chowen @ukshane.bsky.social · 18/02/2026"Responding to the consultation, GLCCA noted that around half of consultation responses were from people “directly involved” in the sector, or experts and specialists, who are “more motivated” to raise concerns" feweek.co.uk/greater-linc...feweek.co.ukGreater Lincolnshire to cut ESOL from 2027, mayor confirmsGreater Lincolnshire’s mayor will press ahead with plans to scrap publicly funded ESOL courses, despite consultation responses opposing the move. 011
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 18/02/2026NEW: All funding for ESOL courses in Greater Lincs to be cut from August 2027. Reform UK Mayor Jenkyns wants to redirect funding to more “inclusive” literacy courses for “native” Lincolnshire people, but some are concerned that cutting off the £1m in funding (out of a £15-18m budget) that 200
Reposted by Josh MellorStephen Evans @stephenevans.bsky.social · 17/02/2026Labour market stats not great. A worrying 1 in 7 18-24 year olds now unemployed. Retail & hospitality bearing the brunt, with 122k fewer people in payroll employment. Rising employer costs & flat economy taking a toll. But figures subject to revision. Last months 43k PAYE drop now revised to 2k. 122
Reposted by Josh MellorFE Week @feweek.bsky.social · 10/02/2026👋 Basingstoke College of Technology principal Anthony Bravo retired on Monday, leaving the college under interim leadership in the middle of the academic year feweek.co.uk/bcot-princip...feweek.co.ukBCoT principal Anthony Bravo suddenly retiresBasingstoke College of Technology (BCoT) principal Anthony Bravo retired on Monday (Febuary 9), leaving the college under interim leadership mid-year 001
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 08/02/2026ICYMI: my look into Mayor of London’s flagship adult education training scheme over the last five years. TLDR: offering £400 cash to training businesses if they get adult learners into jobs didn’t work very well because it wasn’t enough for the paperwork required. 000
Reposted by Josh MellorFE Week @feweek.bsky.social · 07/02/2026🆕 Ahead of National Apprenticeship Week, the government says it can slash the time it takes to update apprenticeship standards to as little as three months feweek.co.uk/ministers-to...feweek.co.ukMinisters to slash update approval times for some apprenticeshipsDWP said accelerated processes could cut approval times from 18 to three months 001
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 06/02/2026It's a shame that the London Mayor and GLA have been so secretive about the impact of their £16m "skills academies" programme that aimed to train adults for jobs in key sectors. Evaluations gathered dust for years and basic KPIs have never been published. 010
Reposted by Josh MellorShane Chowen @ukshane.bsky.social · 05/02/2026Oh dear. Last week DWP secretary of state McFadden claimed 60+ employers had "committed" to providing jobs for NEET young people through the flagship jobs guarantee scheme Today we learned there was no "commitment" ... just an "interest" feweek.co.uk/mcfadden-ove...feweek.co.ukMcFadden over-stated employer interest in jobs guaranteeWork and pensions secretary backtracks on claim 60+ employers already 'committed' jobs for NEET young people 043
Reposted by Josh MellorShane Chowen @ukshane.bsky.social · 05/02/2026Rough week for UCU's Jo Grady next week: Tuesday: Defending accusations of election rule breaches: feweek.co.uk/watchdog-to-... Thursday: Her own staff go on strike (again): feweek.co.uk/ucu-staff-to...feweek.co.ukWatchdog to hear claims Jo Grady broke UCU election rulesThe general secretary narrowly won the 2024 ballot by 182 votes 011
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 30/01/2026One of the more convoluted and bizarre FE stories I've covered, involving an insolvent training provider group, its owner (a full time wood scientist in the Argentine government), and his CEO brother's £20m+ collection of London properties. feweek.co.uk/jewellery-ac...feweek.co.ukJewellery academy returns to old owner in cut-price dealAn overseas businessman whose adult education provider went bust has bought a subsidiary jewellery academy back from administrators in a cut-price deal. 010
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 16/01/2026Further developments in the City & Guilds sale controversy: the awarding body’s new owner has launched an internal investigation into the CEO and finance director of the business it has just acquired. feweek.co.uk/peoplecert-o...feweek.co.ukPeopleCert opens investigation into 'conduct' of City & Guilds execsCity & Guilds’ new owner PeopleCert has launched its own investigation into the conduct of the awarding giant’s top executives, FE Week has learned. 120
Josh Mellor @joshmellor.bsky.social · 14/01/2026This LinkedIn post by West Yorkshire mayor Tracy Brabin is brilliant. Surely made by AI. 010