Greetings! Welcome to another enlightening edition of our acclaimed UK Education and Career Newsletter. As the week draws to the middle, we invite you to embark on a captivating journey through the latest developments and trends shaping Britain's dynamic academic and professional landscapes.

As always, our dedicated team has meticulously curated the week's most significant news, trends, and thought-provoking perspectives, ensuring that you remain well-informed and equipped to make informed decisions about your future.

Embrace this opportunity to explore, learn, and grow alongside us. Together, we will unlock the boundless potential that lies within each of us, propelling our collective journey towards excellence in education and career aspirations. Thank you for your unwavering trust and for joining us on this exhilarating expedition of knowledge and discovery.

SCHOOLS

Beacon High's Remarkable Turnaround: Overcoming Violence Through Inclusion

From a tense, violent atmosphere, Beacon High transformed into a calm, inclusive space by embracing trauma-informed education, providing support systems, and adopting an inclusive approach that reduced suspensions while improving academic outcomes.

London's Secondary Schools Face Declining Applications

London secondary schools grapple with a 2.5% drop in applications for September entry, reflecting dwindling reception class sizes, potentially impacting budgets and resources while prompting collaboration between authorities and schools.

Cracking Down on Unauthorised Absences: Higher Fines for Parents in England

To boost attendance post-pandemic, England is implementing harsher fines for unauthorised pupil absences, with penalties up to £160, centralised attendance monitoring, and a national framework to address inconsistencies in issuing fines.

Mental Health Driving Rise in Homeschooling Numbers

Statistics reveal a 10,000 increase in homeschooled children in England, with mental health being the primary reason cited by parents, sparking concerns about unmet educational needs.

FURTHER EDUCATION

South West College's Winter Warmer: Free Meals for Struggling Students

South West College launched the Winter Warmer campaign, providing free hot meals and drinks across its campuses to support students grappling with increased living costs, promoting their well-being and academic engagement.

EEF Expands Mastering Maths Trial to Boost GCSE Resit Success

The Education Endowment Foundation has allocated £630,575 to scale up the Mastering Maths trial, enabling 160 more FE teachers to test new approaches for improving declining GCSE maths resit pass rates.

Job Cuts Halfway Through Year Rock Tyne Coast College

Nineteen jobs, including experienced staff, have been abruptly cut halfway through the academic year at Tyne Coast College due to budget constraints, sparking instability and demoralisation among remaining faculty and students.

UK Government Urged to Halt Streamlining Efforts Defunding Crucial Post-16 Qualifications

A report warns that the rapid streamlining of post-16 qualifications risks deterring special needs and disadvantaged students, reducing options, and spurring unemployment and inactivity unless a more inclusive review addressing insufficient local data is undertaken.

HIGHER EDUCATION

UK's Graduate Visa Fuels Rise in Indian Students at Birmingham

The University of Birmingham witnessed over 1,000 Indian student enrolments last year, with projections for even higher numbers this year, driven by the UK's attractive post-study graduate visa route that facilitates employment opportunities for international students.

Glasgow Uni's Anti-Cheating Pivot Sparks Student Outcry

Glasgow University's abrupt switch from online to handwritten exams for Life Sciences students, aimed at preventing AI-enabled cheating, has sparked an uproar, with students decrying inadequate preparation time and anxiety over recalling information.

SKILLS & TRAINING

DfE Returns £60M Apprenticeship Funds Amid Ongoing Spending Gap

The Department for Education is returning £60 million in unspent apprenticeship funding for 2023-24, marginally lower than the previous year's underspend, highlighting the persistent gap between allocated budgets and actual levy income.

Stockport's New Green Skills Hub Tackles UK's Sustainability Training Gap

Stockport College has launched a Green Skills Hub in partnership with Daikin UK and Quantum Group, providing hands-on training in renewable technologies to equip students with crucial green skills for future employment.

XLCC Opens Dedicated Apprentice Training Hub Near New £1.4bn Cable Plant

Subsea cable maker XLCC is establishing a 12,500 sq ft training facility in Irvine to upskill 60 apprentice cable jointers, boosting local job prospects and supporting its £1.4bn Hunterston manufacturing investment.

CAREER

UK Charity Sector Grapples with Escalating Skills Shortage Vacuum

Job vacancies in UK charities have soared due to skills gaps, with training spending down 25% since 2011, urgently requiring investment from grant-makers, longer contracts, and utilisation of low-cost resources to upskill the workforce.

M&S Leads UK Retailers with Double-Digit Pay Rise for Store Staff

Marks & Spencer is increasing pay for 40,000 store workers by 10.1% to £12/hour from April, outpacing the new £11.44 national living wage, as major UK retailers implement significant wage hikes amid inflation pressures.

POLITICAL OUTLOOK

Labour Unveils Bold Plan to Tackle Youth Unemployment Through Skills, Careers Support

Liz Kendall outlined Labour's vision to invest in career advisers, mental health services in schools, and skills hubs for vulnerable youth, signalling a shift towards equipping young Britons with training over benefits reliance.

UK Eliminates Sponsor License Renewals to Ease Hiring of Foreign Talent

In a move to simplify hiring skilled overseas workers, the UK has scrapped the requirement for businesses to renew sponsor licenses every four years, automatically extending existing licenses by a decade from April 2024.

EVENTS

Digital Universities UK 2024 Convenes Higher Education Leaders on Digital Transformation

The Digital Universities UK 2024 conference from April 16-18 in Exeter will bring together over 500 higher education, industry, and policy leaders across 50+ sessions to discuss strategies and innovations in digital learning, featuring keynotes, workshops, demos, networking, and a Start-up Competition to spur collaboration around the digital transformation of universities.

Telford Skills Show Showcases Apprenticeships and Job Opportunities

The Telford Skills Show on March 14 will bring together over 50 employers and education providers, offering hands-on activities, career advice, and a chance to explore apprenticeships and job vacancies for visitors from across the West Midlands region.

DATES & DEADLINES

London Business School MBA: Final Application Deadline Approaching

Prospective students eyeing the prestigious London Business School MBA programme should take note: the final application deadline for the upcoming intake is set for March 25, 2024. This critical date marks the last opportunity for aspiring candidates to submit their applications and secure a spot in the highly competitive programme.

HALL OF FAME THIS WEEK

Leeds Student Honoured for Uplifting Indigenous Communities at NISAU Awards

Vaibhav Sonone, an MSc student at the University of Leeds, has been named a Society and Policy finalist at the India UK Achievers Awards for his eight-year grassroots work empowering marginalised tribal villages through sustainable development initiatives focused on climate adaptation, livelihoods, and gender equality.