“We’re in an economic emergency”, the Chancellor declared as he unveiled his latest one-year spending review on 25th November. The message was a stark one and indeed, with an economic recession looming, and unemployment set to surge to 2.6 million people when furlough ends, we’re yet to see the full extent of the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on the economy.

The @FawcettSociety recently announced that #EqualPay Day 2020 (the day in the year when women effectively, on average, stop earning relative to men in the UK) will fall today, on the 20th November.

 Pretty much every part of people’s lives has been affected by the Coronavirus pandemic this year, with the job market as no exception. Indeed, with the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecasting 3.4 million people to be out of work this year, an increase of 260% on the start of the year, it’s clear that unemployment is skyrocketing. Despite latest figures showing we’re no longer in recession, the economy is still 8.2% smaller than its pre-Covid level and with further economic uncertainty looming on the horizon, it is likely the worst may be yet to come.

Following the Government "Lifetime Skills Guarantee" announcement that adults in England without an A-level or equivalent will be offered a fully funded college course, Kirstie Donnelly MBE, CEO at City & Guilds Group, responds:

At a recent House of Commons Education Select Committee roundtable event I attended, the discussion turned to the benefits of adopting a ‘German style’ FE system here in the UK. While now is absolutely the time to be looking at the vital changes we need to make to futureproof our FE and skills system, I have never believed in trying to import another country’s education system wholesale, in particular because it has been developed to tackle different skills needs and operate in an entirely different ecosystem.