EDUCATION
Letter from Ed Balls on the Vetting and Barring scheme
DCSF
14/09/2009
The children's secretary has announced that he has asked Sir Roger Singleton, Chairman of the new Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) which will be operating the vetting scheme, to check that the government has "drawn the line in the right place on this issue". The review on whether any adjustments need to be made is due by the beginning of December.
Spending cuts would jeopardise UK's education reputation, study warns
Guardian
08/09/2009
The UK risks losing its reputation for having some of the best education in the world if the government cuts spending on schools and universities in the recession, an OECD global study of education systems warns. The UK spends 5.5% of its GDP on education which is above average for schools but below average for universities.
Teachers campaign against code of conduct
Guardian
02/09/2009
A petition against the new General Teaching Council for England Code of Conduct which comes into force next month has collected more than 10,000 signatures over the summer holidays. It is claimed that the new code intrudes into teachers' private lives and strips them of human rights because it requires teachers to uphold "public trust and confidence" in their profession, even out of school and on weekends.
Teen appeals put teachers at risk of false claims
Times Educational Supplement
28/08/2009
Teachers could find themselves victims of "vexatious" legal action and false allegations if the Government goes ahead with plans to allow teenagers to appeal against exclusions, according to the civil servants who drew up the proposals.
The vetting and barring scheme - frequently asked questions
Independent Safeguarding Authority
11/09/2009
Guidance has been released by the Independent Safeguarding Authority and the Home Office.
Tory Lord Baker joins government on reviving technical schools
Guardian
30/09/2009
The government is working with the former Tory schools secretary Lord Baker to set up a new generation of technical schools to train teenagers to become builders, technicians and engineers. Universities are being encouraged to sponsor the development. The first "university technical college", for 14- to 19-year-olds, is to be in Birmingham and will be sponsored by Aston University. Eight other universities are in talks with the government about sponsoring more.
EDUCATION - FURTHER EDUCATION
157 Group pilot scheme takes UK diplomas to the Far East
Times Educational Supplement
11/09/2009
The 157 Group is piloting a scheme to deliver UK college-branded diplomas in China.
Bachelors gives way in bid for college degree funding
Times Educational Supplement
04/09/2009
The Association of Colleges is no longer pursuing plans to create a Bachelor of Vocational Studies degree in favour of lobbying for more direct funding of degree courses in colleges from Hefce.
Funding body blow
Times Higher Education
22/08/2009
Further education colleges have condemned Hefce's proposed cut in university funding for foundation degrees, which they fear will have a major effect on further education colleges delivering higher education.
Government guarantee on college places set to fail
Guardian
01/09/2009
Some colleges will struggle to fund the guaranteed places they must offer teenagers this term.
How to cope with a capital crisis that is shaking us to our foundations
Times Educational Supplement
04/09/2009
Comment article on the impact of the LSC capital funding crisis on the 13 colleges that received approval and the 191 colleges that did not.
Lecturers seek status equality
Times Educational Supplement
28/08/2009
The Institute for Learning has proposed a new fast-track system to allow FE lecturers to transfer their qualifications to schools, in an effort to fight the "unjust arrangement" that currently permits school-teachers to transfer to FE.
LSC gives 12 colleges go-ahead
Building
28/08/2009
The Learning and Skills Council has given final approval to fund 12 out of the 13 colleges they gave initial approval to in July. The remaining institution, Manchester College, is still finalising its revised plans. In addition to the 12 approved projects, the LSC said it would support the development of Skelmersdale and Ormskirk College in Lancashire, which will now go forward for approval.
Providers call for help in Train to Gain crisis
Times Educational Supplement
04/09/2009
Independent learning providers have asked the government to approve temporary measures to help them avoid redundancies and bankruptcy after the decision by the Learning and Skills Council to freeze Train to Gain numbers.
Small sixth forms get lower grades
Guardian
07/09/2009
A-level students in small school sixth forms achieve lower A-level scores than those at large centres, says the Association of Colleges.
Tories poised to dump diplomas
Times Educational Supplement
11/09/2009
The Conservative education team considers the diploma qualification so flawed that it is unlikely to continue in its current form if they win the next election.
EDUCATION - HIGHER EDUCATION
Beyond the here and now
Times Higher Education
27/08/2009
Dianne Berry, Chair of the 1994 Groups' Research and Enterprise Policy Group, says the HE framework must account for the future potential of universities, and not only their current work. The 1994 Group will shortly be publishing their recommendations to strengthen their research base.
Business could be just what we need to cut through the red tape
Times Higher Education
27/08/2009
Warwick University Registrar Jon Baldwin argues that incorporating universities into the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) may lead to a recognition of the real export value of the sector.
Corruption - Tuition fee bribes for foreign work
Times Higher Education
10/09/2009
The City of London Police has warned HEIs to conduct due diligence into students whose fees are paid in full or part by third parties, following evidence that British firms are paying foreign students' tuition fees to win international contracts.
Fewer grants means fight for prize is tougher
Times Higher Education
03/09/2009
The chances of securing a grant from the research councils have plummeted.
Foreign branches grow rapidly
Times Higher Education
10/09/2009
The number of universities operating 'branch campuses' overseas has increased by 43% in three years, according to a report by the Observatory on Borderless Higher Education.
John Denham to tighten house rules in student enclaves
Guardian
11/09/2009
Ministers are to act against student enclaves by pushing through new laws making it harder for neighbourhoods in university towns to be colonised by large student populations.
Lammy demands ‘further and faster’ progress towards economic impact
Times Higher Education
10/09/2009
David Lammy, the Higher Education Minister, has announced that the Government is working with Hefce on a review of the higher education funding system to ensure that universities make a greater contribution to the UK’s economic needs.
New policy to address unsatisfactory quality in institutions
Hefce
01/09/2009
HEFCE has set out its approach to institutions that are experiencing chronic and continuing problems in the quality of learning and teaching. Under the new policy two successive judgments of "no confidence" in a university by the QAA will trigger intervention by Hefce.
Quintessentially Britain, truly Asia
Times Higher Education
27/08/2009
UK institutions seeking to consolidate their position overseas are discovering Malaysia's potential.
RCUK Code of Good Research Conduct sets out clear guidelines
Research Councils UK
20/08/2009
The Research Councils UK Policy and Code of Conduct on the Governance of Good Research Conduct has been published. This sets out clear guidance on best practice for researchers.
Revised edition of the Handbook for institutional audit
QAA
01/09/2009
Following consultation, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education has published a new edition of the Handbook for institutional audit in England and Northern Ireland.
Scrap fees and bring in graduate tax, says university chief
Guardian
09/09/2009
Malcolm Grant, provost of University College London, is the first university boss to call publicly for the Government to scrap the student fees system and introduce a graduate tax.
Sector’s funding quangos under scrutiny
Times Higher Education
14/09/2009
Lord Mandelson has announced “a comprehensive review of the role played by national-level institutions such as the Higher Education Funding Council for England, the Skills Funding Agency, the research councils and the Technology Strategy Board, and their relationship to central Government”. The review will aim to cut “overlapping bureaucracy and duplicated programmes”.
Union fights for campus crèches
Times Higher Education
10/09/2009
More than 20 universities are set to close their nurseries in an attempt to cut costs, according to Unison which is set to launch a campaign to keep campus nurseries.
University marking to be reviewed over grade inflation fears
Guardian
10/09/2009
Steve Smith, Universities UK president has announced a UK-wide review of external examiner arrangements to ensure that it is a "robust system which delivers on expectations".
UUK's new president plans to tackle university funding
Guardian
08/09/2009
Steve Smith, the President of Universities UK and Vice-Chancellor of University of Exeter, outlines his plans to tackle the government over funding.
Wanted: new ways to dial down the temperature
Times Higher Education
10/09/2009
The research councils have promised £3 million in funding for preliminary studies into technological techniques designed to fight climate change.
Western dominance of education under threat
Times Higher Education
27/08/2009
The UK is retaining its share of the international student market, but for how long?
EDUCATION - SCHOOLS
200th Academy opens a year early as Ministers set out new plans to open up programme to new sponsors
DCSF
07/09/2009
Schools Minister Ed Balls has announced that there will no longer be a financial requirement for new Academy sponsors for schools opening from September 2011. New sponsors will be vetted by an accreditation system based on their educational record.
Assistants 'taking lessons alone'
BBC
10/09/2009
A study by London Metropolitan University has found that in 8 out of 10 schools teaching assistants are taking lessons alone, without being supervised by qualified teachers.
BNP may be barred from school governing bodies
Guardian
09/09/2009
The Nasuwt union is poised to spend up to £20,000 on a judicial review if BNP councillors are elected on to school governing bodies.
Copies and robbers
Times Educational Supplement
28/08/2009
An overview of the different copyright licences required by schools.
Costs building up
PPP Bulletin
11/09/2009
Investigates why councils are struggling to keep costs under control in the Building Schools for the Future programme.
Ed Balls calls for more co-op schools
DCSF
11/09/2009
With 25 co-op schools now up and running Ed Balls sets target for more than 200 co-op trusts over next year.
More parents pay for appeals help
BBC
28/08/2009
A growing number of parents in England and Wales are using legal advice to get children into their preferred state school.
Private schools reel as fee-paying firm goes bust
Guardian
09/09/2009
The Fees Company, a company that lets parents pay school fees in instalments, has gone into administration owing hundreds of thousands of pounds. It's understood that parents had already paid half of the first term's instalments – but the schools had not received a penny of it.
Schools must plug broadband funds gap
Times Educational Supplement
11/09/2009
Schools are facing serious funding gaps as they are expected to pay for their own broadband costs. Local authorities are blaming this on the DCSF changes to school funding outside the Dedicated Schools Grant.
Special schools may be forced to break law over 'rarely cover'
Times Educational Supplement
04/09/2009
The National Association of Head Teachers has warned the DCSF that the new regulations will be unworkable in special schools and pupil referral units because the pupils require continuity of care.
Was the government to blame for the Sats marking fiasco?
Guardian
15/09/2009
An inquiry into the 2008 Sats marking fiasco largely cleared ministers of blame. But memos seen by Education Guardian reveal officials were being kept informed in detail of the problems as they developed.
