Ian Nash's Blog

As further huge cuts in state spending on key areas of adult education begin to bite could the new Mayor of London Boris Johnson emerge as an unlikely saviour?

After a one-year reprieve from severe cuts in such funding, the capital faces a massive shortfall in central Government support needed to meet expected demands in particular for English for speakers of other languages. read more...

David Cameron tells us a Conservative government would fund public services more efficiently than Labour and use growth in the economy to cut the percentage of GDP needed to pay for them. Putting the Tories firmly back in the tax-cutting camp, he said: “We believe low taxes are both morally right and economically efficient.” read more...

Further action over the lecturers’ pay crisis looms in colleges. Hard-fought gains in adult learning over ten years have been wiped out by government policy in just over one year. Top-up fees in higher education are leading to open student revolt. And the Government’s much-vaunted priority housing programme has brought negligible gains to urban college staff recruitment. read more...

The 15-nation conference on progressive government hosted by the UK this week seems at first glance to have little if anything to do with such trivial things as the sale of the collapsed training giant Carter & Carter to Newcastle College. read more...

The Centre for Excellence in Leadership had its farewell bash on the terraces at the House of Lords this week. Many of the great and good in FE gathered to hear eulogies to the magnificent achievements of an organisation which, in its four-year life, had transformed the face of management and leadership in colleges. read more...