‘Manchester is more attractive for business students than London’ – Gary Neville’s UA92 February 25, 2025 Manchester has become a more attractive destination for business students than London, according to the boss of Gary Neville’s University Academy 92 (UA92). Chief executive Sara Prowse pointed to the city’s recent growth as well as the relatively lower costs of living and of doing business and added that Manchester is “the new, more vibrant [...]
Apprenticeships: Relaxing maths and English rules welcomed by firms February 11, 2025 Firms have welcomed the government’s plans to relax rules around maths and English requirements for apprentices as improving “flexibility and inclusivity”. Apprentices aged 19 and above will no longer be forced to complete English and maths functional skills qualifications in order to qualify, which the Department for Education (DfE) said would allow some 10,000 more [...]
Lloyds partners with ‘Duolingo of money’ to target Gen Z February 10, 2025 Lloyds Bank has partnered with fintech platform Doshi to improve young people’s financial literacy through “gamified learning”. The Big Four bank is launching a six month pilot, targeting 18 to 24 year-olds to make financial education “fun and accessible”. Doshi’s founder Daniel Rose told City AM high street banks do not have “much time left” [...]
A school reform that could actually help the economy? Teaching financial literacy January 31, 2025 It's not just students who would benefit from school reforms to teach financial literacy, but the UK economy, writes Quentin Nason.
VAT on private school fees to hammer ‘crisis-hit’ special needs provision January 23, 2025 Rachel Reeves’s controversial Budget decision to impose VAT on private school fees will hit the most vulnerable special educational needs students hardest, an expert has warned. The Chancellor confirmed at the Autumn Budget that fees are set to be taxed 20 per cent, which the government claims will benefit the Treasury to the tune of [...]
Disastrous school reform agenda is a solution in search of a problem January 9, 2025 A long time ago I got involved in a battle to help a school leave council control and become an academy. This was shortly after Michael Gove, as education secretary, continued the reforming efforts of his Labour predecessors to inject more choice and freedom into the state education sector. The local council, faced with losing [...]
Freedom and parental choice are under threat from school reforms January 8, 2025 The government’s schools bill will undo all the progress that’s been made in English education and had power over our children’s futures to unions and activists, rather than the people who know best, says Mark Lehain English schools really are better now than 35 years ago, by any number of measures. Things improved by design, [...]
The world’s first AI university January 1, 2025 Over the past year, AI has taken the world by storm. It is no surprise that there is the world’s first University focused exclusively on AI
Private school fees VAT hike to take effect on New Year’s Day December 29, 2024 Private school fees are to become subject to VAT from New Year’s Day as ministers reportedly draw up plans to handle a potential wave of school closures. The government’s policy to end the charitable status of fee-paying schools which exempts them from paying 20 per cent value added tax (VAT) to the Treasury as of [...]
Youth unemployment is at a decade-high. Ignoring it will breed division November 23, 2024 Being left behind while others prosper creates fertile ground for extremism. So we can't afford to ignore youth unemployment, writes Russell Hobby.