And it was going so well… Andy Street

If anyone makes me do ‘Secret Santa’ this year - this is what they’re getting (should be under any cost limit by then).

Liz Truss ‘felt like a prisoner in flea-infested Downing Street flat’. thetimes.co.uk/article/588927…

Got to go away. Can’t stay another day…

5.8 million people have *started* an apprenticeship but nowhere near that actually finished it

Drop-out rates on apprenticeships have hovered around 50% in the last few years

No one starts 1/10 standards

Also - in 2010 42% of apprentices were under 19. In 2023 it was just 23%

The United Kingdom has the shortest lifespan of fiscal rules across 35 countries:

🥯🥒😢

'Does every single criterion have to be covered and a mountain of evidence must be produced by staff and students for quality to be assured?” - Darren Hankey, Darren Hankey, for this week’s #ThinkFurther blog in partnership with NCFE. Read more: aoc.co.uk/news-campaigns…

This is a very perceptive article about Shildon as an example of a place which feels ‘left behind’. It accords with the findings of our Economic and Social Research Council Beyond "Left Behind Places" study in which we’ve interviewed dozens of households. Aditya nails what is old and what is new the situation in Shildon.

This from my colleague Rob Ford on the West Midlands Mayoral Election is well worth your time. Possibly the biggest election in May… (also some great AI).

swingometer.substack.com/?utm_source=na…

thetimes.co.uk/article/00d549…

The US is adopting an industrial strategy to enhance the fortune of left-behind places. But policies must adopt more explicitly redistributive approaches where social inclusion—through bottom-up, place-based development—is a goal, writes Grete Gansauer

bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/blog/cautionar…

Grateful for the opportunity to go on The Rest Is Politics to discuss the issues facing #Gibraltar , the vibrancy and openness of our democracy, and how we are driving for a deal to solve the border issues facing many Gibraltarians daily and addressing untrue allegations about us!

🗞️ College body Association of Colleges (AoC) has called for a 'social partnership' to set post-16 education strategy - and wants colleges to award their own higher quals and apprenticeship EPAs

feweek.co.uk/aoc-calls-for-…

It’s time!!! We are recruiting for our next cohort of 6 research interns to start in September 2024 - it’s going to be a fascinating year to have a ringside view of Westminster - do apply (or forward to anyone who might like to…) instituteforgovernment.org.uk/about-us/caree…

Good coverage of our new report out tomorrow in Financial Times Peter Foster Association of Colleges (AoC) Looming rise in student numbers sparks calls for skills reform in England ft.com/content/8b4238… via @ft

UK shadow chancellor’s regional productivity agenda could be driven by devolving parts of R&D funding or creating new kinds of institutions, experts tell John Morgan
timeshighereducation.com/news/labour-ti…

Pleased to have featured in this excellent Jill Treanor piece in the Sunday Times on the collapse of apprenticeship numbers in recent years.

Plenty for Bridget Phillipson and Seema Malhotra MP💙 to ponder as they think about their own plans.

thetimes.co.uk/article/d42b05…

Lots of content in my timeline re the pressure the nation's universities are under. This is not good & neither is the state of investment in FE over the last decade or so.

In an election year, remember these are political choices.

Whereas just 2% of young graduates from Richmond in North Yorkshire study nearby, 38% from South Shields do—and never break the link to home. Why the disparity? econ.st/3vGxSLm 👇

The rollout of English devolution could be undermined – perhaps irreversibly – if local actors themselves do not get a grip on accountability. Jack Newman, Sam Warner, Michael Kenny and Andy Westwood write about rebuilding local democracy in this blog. productivity.ac.uk/news/the-accou…