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providers
by Daniel on 19 Nov, 2008 in
It's been a few years since I helped on an inspection visit from the then-ALI. Since then, performance statistics have become far more important, with class and one-to-one observations taking more of a back seat. Given the forthcoming introduction of star ratings and recent criticisms of Ofsted's school inspections as pointless, what's the purpose of Ofsted inspections nowadays? Does anyone find them useful?
by Daniel on 13 Nov, 2008 in
I've just submitted an FoI request for the traffic light reports that the DWP put together each month. Wish me luck!
by Daniel on 3 Oct, 2008 in
SITE NEWS
We've just gone live with a database of providers and contracts across the UK. This contains all the contract awards notified on the DWP website, but feel free to add missing details and put some proper details about your provider on the site. Log in and add your provider and contract details!
This week's discussion: What effect will the economic downturn have on the welfare-to-work industry?
PROVIDER NEWS
by Daniel on 25 Sep, 2008 in
We've just launched a database of providers and contracts, covering all the contract information that the DWP have published on their website. However, that still leaves a fair bit of information that's missing or outdated. Contract values, their running dates, and any information whatever about Employment Zones and PSL contracts are all missing.
by Daniel on 19 Sep, 2008 in
Midlands-based PPDG has been bought by an Australian company.
by Daniel on 7 Aug, 2008 in
Ian Charlesworth of the Shaw Trust was put on immediate garden leave last week. No news as to why, but the obvious reasons would be either gross unfortunateness or poaching by a competitor. The use of garden leave might suggest the latter.
by Daniel on 3 Jul, 2008 in
Around the time of the flexible New Deal launch, rumours circulated throughout the industry of financial problems at A4e. Hot on the heels of the collapse of Instant Muscle and Carter & Carter, this didn't seem entirely implausible.
Although A4e is still very much there, the rumours weren't openly discussed or denied. After talking with a few people at the welfare-to-work conference, I spoke with a director at A4e this week to confirm some details. He gave a convincing explanation which included:
