One in 10' UK graduates unemployed

Unemployment rate for UK college leavers by subject
Lowest	Highest
Source HESA: Percentage of full-time first degree graduates (2008-9) unemployed after six months
Medicine 0%	Computer science 17%
Education 5%	Communications 14%
Law 6%	Architecture 13% 13%
Biological science 9%	Engineering 13%
Languages 9%	Creative arts 13%
Maths 10%	Business studies 11%

Universities Minister David Willetts said the overall figures showed that employers were continuing to recruit graduates in large numbers, "even though these are students who graduated at the height of the recession".

The National Union of Students (NUS) said it was "a particularly tough time for graduates looking to get themselves on the career ladder".

"University leavers will be the engines of economic recovery in the UK and the government must ensure that it invests in the creation of suitable jobs and secures access to employment opportunities to best utilise the vast pool of skills and knowledge emerging from our colleges and universities," said NUS president Aaron Porter.

The government wants colleges to give greater information about students' chances of finding work after graduation so they make better choices before they embark on a college courses. 

"I have asked universities to provide employability statements to help people make the right choice about which course to take," Mr Willetts said.

NEWS BY:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news

The Friends of Dulwich College - Grand Festive Fair 2011

Our ‘Deck the Halls’ annual festive event run by the Friends of Dulwich College, is in the final stages of planning and promises to be bigger and better than ever. With over 120 fabulous stalls, selling high quality gifts for all ages and tastes, it is an unmissable seasonal event. Many describe it as a one stop Christmas shopping day. We have been inundated with applications for stalls this year and have vendors travelling from as far away as Wales, Dorset & Norfolk to sell their wares. (do remember that we have no credit card facilities!)

Our hugely popular Food Hall will again have mouth-watering fare that rivals that in Knightsbridge , and this year we are extending our catering courtyard to a traffic free zone in the car park. Hot food, mulled wine and lots of other warming treats will be available. Our popular café run by the Junior School, will as ever, be a place to take a break over hot drinks and lovely home made baked goodies. There is festive musical entertainment planned alongside the café and this year the Art Department are staging an exhibition of their work, which can be purchased as unusual gifts for family and friends.

As always, we carefully choose a charity to which we donate a large proportion of our overall proceeds .This year we have decided to support Hassan White a Dulwich College pupil who was sadly involved in a road accident last year and is only just learning to take his first steps again after months of recuperation. We hope to support his recovery by the purchase of a special piece of equipment for him. We do not usually charge an entrance fee for the fair but this year we will have buckets at the doors for donations of change for this worthy cause.  Please dig deep into your pockets for him.

Staff members are again donning their boots for sporting entertainment, so do take time out to watch their endeavours! They will also be raising money for Hassan. Our U15 footballers will be raising money to help towards their tour costs and will be organising Beat the Goalie competitions. They are also planning to wash cars while you shop (weather permitting).

Our raffle promises to be another star attraction and all proceeds will go this year to Childline.

Last year we introduced a Fun Zone, run by our Lower School Boys. By popular demand we are repeating this as it was not only huge fun for our younger visitors but also allowed the boys to raise money for charities close to their own hearts.

Our smallest guests will be charmed by the elves in our Santa’s workshop and all visitors receive a fabulous Christmas Gift from the man himself.

We hope to see you at this fabulous event ….wrap up warm and do bring good weather if you can….

NEWS BY:http://www.dulwich.org.uk/college/news-events/events/college-events/2011/10/06/the-friends-of-dulwich-college---grand-festive-fair-2011

Latest parliamentary news on education

Schools, access to higher education and support for students has been debated on several occasions in Parliament recently. Find all the latest information on the Education Bill and other parliamentary material.

Education Bill

The Government's Education Bill was introduced into the House of Commons on 26 January 2011.The Bill seeks to implement the legislative proposals in the Department for Education’s schools White Paper, 'The Importance of Teaching' and measures from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills relating to skills and the reform of higher education funding.

The Bill had its second reading on 8 February 2011 and is currently being considered by a Public Bill Committee.

    Commons news: Second reading of Education Bill
    Department for Education: Schools White Paper 'The importance of teaching'

Keep up to date with all the proceedings and documents on the Education Bill. Also find out how a Bill becomes an of Parliament.

    Bills before Parliament 2010-12: Education Bill
    About Parliament: Passage of a Bill

Academies Bill [HL]

The Government's Academies Bill was introduced into the House of Lords on 26 May 2010. The Bill completed all its stages in the House of Lords and was then sent to the House of Commons for consideration.

The Bill received Royal Assent on 27 July 2010. The Academies Act 2010 enables more schools in England to become Academies.

    Bills before Parliament 2010-12: Academies Bill [HL]
    Lords news: Academies Bill receives second reading (7 June 2010)
    Lords news: Academies Bill committee stage: day one (21 June 2010)
    Lords news: Academies Bill committee stage: day two and three (23 and 28 June 2010)
    Lords news: Academies Bill report stage (6 and 8 July 2010)
    Lords news: Academies Bill receives third reading (13 July 2010)
    Commons news: Second reading of Academies Bill (16 July 2010)
    Commons news: Committee stage and third reading of the Academies Bill (21, 22 and 26 July 2010)

House of Commons Library analysis

The House of Commons Library regularly produce briefing papers which inform MPs about key issues. The Library has published a number of briefing papers on the Education Bill and higher education.

    Commons Library Research Paper: Education Bill (PDF 837 KB)
    Commons Library Research Paper: Academies Bill [HL] (PDF 563KB)
    Commons Library briefing paper: Changes to higher education funding and student support from 2012/13 (PDF 347KB)
    Commons Library briefing paper: Entrants to higher education (PDF 249KB)
    Commons Library briefing paper: Higher education finance statistics (PDF 146KB)

NEWS BY:http://www.parliament.uk/business/news/2011/april/latest-parliamentary-news-on-education/

Merger to create new university for Scotland

Scotland is a step nearer having a new university following ministerial approval to merge an existing higher education institution and further education college.

Unless any Scottish MPs lodge an official objection to the plan in the next 21 days, which is thought unlikely, then the proposal to join Paisley University with Bell College to create a new university will go ahead on August 1.

The merger will for the first time bring a university to Lanarkshire in the west of Scotland and create the largest school of health, nursing and midwifery in Scotland. A name for the new higher education institution has yet to be decided but there is already a proposal on the table to call it the University of the West of Scotland.

Alex MacLennan, the principal of Bell College and vice-principal designate of the merged institution, said: "Having a university presence in Lanarkshire is hugely important for the area and this announcement brings us one step closer to making this a reality.

"[The] merger will reap tremendous benefits for us, opening up higher education opportunities for many more thousands of people across the west of Scotland. It will give us the opportunity to offer a wide choice of high quality, career-focused programmes from a new and distinctive regional university with strong international links."

His enthusiasm for the new university was shared by the principal designate of the merged institution, Seamus McDaid, currently principal and vice-chancellor of the University of Paisley.

He said: "We aim to have a transformational influence on the economic, social and cultural development of the west of Scotland through the provision of high quality, inclusive higher education and innovative applied research.

"The merger is good news for both the University of Paisley and Bell College as it will permit us to engage in developments of a scale that we could not have done as independent organisations."

UK university applications in 'steepest fall for 30 years'

The proportion of UK students applying to start degrees in the autumn will drop by 10% this year, a university leader has predicted – the steepest fall for 30 years.

Professor David Green, vice-chancellor of the University of Worcester, based his forecast on more than 25 years' involvement in university applications, nine of them as the head of an institution.

His prediction comes ahead of the publication on Monday morning of figures that will show how many students have applied to start university this autumn – when fees rise to up to £9,000 a year.

The figures, published by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas), will give the number of applications institutions received by 15 January – the official deadline.

The final application figures will be announced in the autumn because some students apply for courses between now and the end of June, outside the official route.

Professor Green predicts that, by this summer, there will be an estimated 70,000 fewer applications from UK-born students than there were last summer – a 10% drop. He said this would be the biggest fall in the proportion of UK students since the 1970s.

However, he said about 140,000 students would still be rejected by universities this summer because institutions were restricted by the number of places they could offer. Last year, almost 210,000 – one in three applicants – failed to get a place.

Professor Green said the reasons for the expected drop in applications were multifold and include the fact that the maximum fee has almost trebled to £9,000.

He said teenagers may have been deterred from applying by mistakenly thinking they may have to pay for their fees when they register at university. Students pay their fees with a student loan, which they start repaying when they graduate and earn more than £21,000.

Some young people now wrongly thought their employment prospects would be enhanced by skipping university and starting paid work on leaving school, Green said.

"There has been much talking up of apprenticeships and learning a trade when opportunities for both of these are limited," he said. "In the short term, some young people who would have gone to university will end up on benefits, in the long term, we will have a workforce that is less skilled."

Earlier this month, the latest statistics from Ucas showed UK applications for this autumn had slumped by almost 8%.

Some 283,680 people had applied from within the UK, compared with 306,908 at the same point last year.

The fall has been partly blamed on the fee hike, but is also thought to be due to a glut of applications in 2010 in anticipation of the fees rise. Demographic factors could also be behind the slump. The number of 18-year-olds in the UK is projected to decline over the rest of the decade by 11%.

The figures on Monday will show whether 18-year-olds from low-income families have been particularly deterred. Ucas has classified parts of the UK into five groups according to their level of participation in higher education.

NEWS BY:http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/jan/30/uk-univeristy-applications-fall?newsfeed=true

UK: £11m distributed to cut university emissions

Nearly £11 million (US$17 million) in interest-free loans has been distributed to fund projects that will reduce universities' carbon emissions, writes David Matthews for Times Higher Education.

Four major projects and 24 smaller schemes will receive money in the second round of the Revolving Green Fund, distributed by the Higher Education Funding Council for England. The fund is 'revolving' because money saved by the institutions in energy bills is then recycled into new projects. The University of Exeter is one of four institutions to receive money to carry out major work, while a further two dozen institutions will be funded for smaller projects.

Full report on the Times Higher Education site

NEWS BY:http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20120113194341333

The Friends of Dulwich College - Grand Festive Fair 2011

Our ‘Deck the Halls’ annual festive event run by the Friends of Dulwich College, is in the final stages of planning and promises to be bigger and better than ever. With over 120 fabulous stalls, selling high quality gifts for all ages and tastes, it is an unmissable seasonal event. Many describe it as a one stop Christmas shopping day. We have been inundated with applications for stalls this year and have vendors travelling from as far away as Wales, Dorset & Norfolk to sell their wares. (do remember that we have no credit card facilities!)

Our hugely popular Food Hall will again have mouth-watering fare that rivals that in Knightsbridge , and this year we are extending our catering courtyard to a traffic free zone in the car park. Hot food, mulled wine and lots of other warming treats will be available. Our popular café run by the Junior School, will as ever, be a place to take a break over hot drinks and lovely home made baked goodies. There is festive musical entertainment planned alongside the café and this year the Art Department are staging an exhibition of their work, which can be purchased as unusual gifts for family and friends.

As always, we carefully choose a charity to which we donate a large proportion of our overall proceeds .This year we have decided to support Hassan White a Dulwich College pupil who was sadly involved in a road accident last year and is only just learning to take his first steps again after months of recuperation. We hope to support his recovery by the purchase of a special piece of equipment for him. We do not usually charge an entrance fee for the fair but this year we will have buckets at the doors for donations of change for this worthy cause.  Please dig deep into your pockets for him.

Staff members are again donning their boots for sporting entertainment, so do take time out to watch their endeavours! They will also be raising money for Hassan. Our U15 footballers will be raising money to help towards their tour costs and will be organising Beat the Goalie competitions. They are also planning to wash cars while you shop (weather permitting).

Our raffle promises to be another star attraction and all proceeds will go this year to Childline.

NEWS BY:http://www.dulwich.org.uk/college/news-events/events/college-events/2011/10/06/the-friends-of-dulwich-college---grand-festive-fair-2011

Brighton Hill Community College Is 'Satisfactory'

BASINGSTOKE’S largest secondary school has made progress since it was graded as “inadequate” by Ofsted in March – and there has been praise for the man who has now taken over as the permanent headteacher.

Charlie Currie has been leading Brighton Hill Community College as the interim headteacher after former head David Eyre retired months after the inspection result, which he publicly challenged Ofsted over.

Following the critical Ofsted report, Hampshire County Council, as local education authority, applied to the Education Secretary to replace the governing body with an interim executive board (IEB), which came into effect on September 1.

An Ofsted inspector, who visited the school in Brighton Way, in November, said the school is now making “satisfactory” progress in raising students’ achievement and addressing the issues for improvement.

Her Majesty’s Inspector John Daniell said in his report, published this month, that although attainment at the end of Key Stage 4 rose slightly in 2011, with 60 per cent of students gaining five or more A* to C grades at GCSE, including English and maths, this remains below the school’s target.

He said better progress has been made in music, drama and German, but the quality of teaching is variable, with some still inadequate.

The report said: “Where teaching is better, there is a correlation with good behaviour because students are challenged and therefore engaged in their learning.

“In some lessons, students’ good behaviour accelerated their rate of progress because they are enthused and motivated to succeed, whereas in others, inappropriate behaviour acts as a barrier to progress, which students say they find frustrating.”

Mr Daniell said the IEB had “set about making clear its high expectations in its mission to drive up standards.”

He added: “The interim headteacher and his team have accurately analysed the school’s existing strengths and areas for development, and have galvanised staff’s enthusiasm in tackling key issues head-on.”

Mr Currie said: “We were delighted with the outcome because it indicates that the school is making significant progress.

“We have been able to make outstanding headway in a very short time to put the school in the right place to progress. It (the grading) would never have been ‘good’. We were expecting, and hoping, it would be ‘satisfactory’. I was very pleased with it.

“It means we have been able to come a long way in a short time and that when we have our full inspection, which is scheduled to take place between March and the summer term, that we would expect by that time to have our ‘notice to improve’ removed.”

Basingstoke MP Maria Miller visited the school in November to find out how things were going.

She said: “I am delighted to hear about the progress that has been made at Brighton Hill Community College over a very short amount of time, and it is fantastic news that things are really getting back on track here.”


Source:

basingstokegazette.co.uk