Welcome to FE Soundbite Edition 761, August 31st, 2024. Why is there a 47% drop out rate for Construction Apprentices?.. and why do more Construction Apprentices drop out compared to other competencies / sectors after two years?

This is the weekly e-newsletter and e-journal by FE News: ISSN 2732-4095. We know life is busy, so here is a snapshot of the latest announcements and epic thought leadership articles, from sector influencers and cool thinkers across FE and Skills this week on FE News

Gavin’s Reflective Perspective

I hope you had a good week (why do the shorter weeks, sometimes feel longer)?

Really interesting research from NOCN and the British Association of Construction Heads (BACH) this week that highlighted that there is a 47% drop out rate for Construction Apprentices. This meant that only 8,620 construction apprentices reached End Point Assessment (EPA) in 2022/23, against the industry need of over 96,000 new staff per year! The data also shows that significantly more Construction Apprentices drop out after 24 months compared to other Apprenticeships (17% compared to just 6% in other sectors).

Construction Skills must be a high priority, so the reasons for non completers should be looked into more

Delving into the data. When asked directly for their reasons for leaving their apprenticeship, construction non-completers were more likely than non-completers across all sectors on average to say their main reasons for leaving were being fired or made redundant. This echoes the results of the ILR Withdrawal data pilot. Eg 28% v 11% in other sectors. Seeing as previous and the current Government have massive construction (particularly house building targets), this is very interesting data. There were also other reasons for leaving such as, dissatisfaction with low salaries and problems reaching EPA standard was also mentioned.

We anticipate more announcements on meeting local skills needs and national priorities... but construction is a massive area of priority. So this is really interesting and should hopefully be looked into more for Government planning and for lessons learnt for other sectors.

I have also really enjoyed the mini series from Ann Limb and Katerina Kolyva, this week was part 2 on leading the way with inclusive leadership practices. Jonathan Bourne also wrote a really popular piece asking What does the New Government's Skills Agenda mean for Employers?

Exclusive Thought Leadership

Our Top 3 Thought Leadership Articles This Week

In First Place, Leading the Way: Inclusive Practices in Education Leadership By Dame Ann Limb, former Principal within Further Education (FE) colleges, current Pro Chancellor of the University of Surrey, Chair of the City & Guilds of London Institute, Chair of Governors of The Manchester College and Chair of the Lifelong Education Institute and Dr Katerina Kolyva, CEO of the Education and Training Foundation (ETF).

In Second Place, What does the new government’s skills agenda mean for employers? By Jonathan Bourne, MD and co-owner at Damar Limited

And Finally Beyond Academics: Universities’ New Approach To Student Welfare By Stephanie Conville, Higher Education Lead at Codec

This Week, We Have Also Had Some Other Epic Exclusives!

Bridging the Gaps: Cross-Sector Collaboration in Tertiary Education By Gary F. Fisher, Learning Design and Online Practice Manager, University of Derby and Zheng Ma, Senior Lecturer in Pubic Health, University of the West of England.

What’s New in the World of FE?

Research

New research tackles construction apprenticeship completion rate crisis By NOCN

Voices

Optimising IT Provision in Universities: The Key to Academic and Student Success By David Furby, CEO and founder of Novatech 

The Pros and Cons of Vocational Education Training: Is It Right for You? By Martin Green, Editorial Content Manager, Sommet Education

In The Know

Some really great articles in the schedule for next week... one from AoC and another from AELP that we would highly recommend checking out. We also have our Top 3 most popular thought leadership articles on FE News in August being announced next week.

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We hope you enjoy FE Soundbite this week. Stay curious, keep innovating, and let's shake up the world of FE together – catch you next week!

By Danny O’Meara, Digital Project Manager, FE News

By Gavin O'Meara, CEO and Founder, FE News and FE Careers