Last Soundbite of 2025: Mayors, Milburn and Major Welfare Reform | FE Soundbite 828
Welcome to FE Soundbite Edition 828: 20th December 2025. Last Soundbite of 2025: Mayors, Milburn and Major Welfare Reform
This is the weekly e-newsletter and e-journal by FE News: ISSN 2732-4095. We know life is busy, so here’s a snapshot of the latest announcements and epic thought leadership articles from sector influencers and thought leaders across FE and Skills this week on FE News.
Gavin’s Reflective Perspective
Last Soundbite of 2025
So this is the last Soundbite of 2025 and where I was thinking I was just going to say, Merry Christmas… it has been a busy week!… so here we go:
Mayors, Milburn: Major Welfare Reform and Developments to the Spoke and Wheel TEC model?
So a really interesting development was the announcement about £283 million going to metro mayors and local leaders, supporting delivery of 60,000 additional construction workers. … and that Mayors Control Capacity Plans as 67,000 Extra Learners Expected by 2028.
Is This a Subtle Development on the TEC Hub and Spoke Model?
So I think this is a major development on the Technical Excellence College Hub and Spoke delivery model… as basically, a big chunk of funding is going to local mayors, as there is a capacity issue with the current set up. Like waiting lists for Construction TECs… (and they only recently launched and have a massive priority skills need) … and a capacity issue coming down the track with an increase in 16-18 year old learners. Which is really interesting, then diverting monies to local mayors. Will this then be directed to ITPs, or elsewhere? Interesting to see how that shakes out? I thought the original plan on the ‘Hub and Spoke delivery model’ for TECs was to be directed by the local college lead at the specialist Technical Excellence College, so this is an interesting development, as I thought this was for specialist delivery from specialist ITPs… but Technical Excellence Colleges are new and if we want innovative thinking, we need an agile system that can adapt and change at pace. So let’s see how this develops in 2026.
Milburn Review Kicked off
The Milburn Review on NEETs has kicked off.. and has a quite short shelf life of the end of Jan 2026 (30th Jan 2026). Seeing as a lot of people are now on the Christmas break until the 5th Jan… so realistically, less than a month for people to get involved when they are back from the Christmas and New Year break!
I have really high hopes with the Milburn Review, particularly as Charlie Mayfield (who is heading up the Keep Britain Working review on economic inactivity due to ill health) is also a part of this. It needs a proper holistic look to the challenge and NEET puzzle… but with the end of Jan 2026, doesn’t give long for a wide angled view from stakeholders to get involved!
ONS – Labour Market Info shows Unemployment Rate is now at 5.1%, The Highest Level For Almost Five Years
The latest (and last ONS Labour market data for 2025) was launched this week. Within this, Work Foundation highlighted that 546,000 young people aged 18-24 who are unemployed, the highest number since 2015 and up by 85,000 on quarter. The ONS and Milburn review were both launched on the same day! Which is really interesting.
The wider UK Employment Rate at 74.9%, against a Government target of 80% employment rate. So you can understand why Milburn and Mayfield are getting together on the Milburn Review and also Keep Britain Working. As something needs sorting!
The Bewildering Amount of Reviews and Names Associated With Welfare Reform… Surely This Flags It Needs Simplification?
Then on Thursday, we had DWP announce some more Welfare Reform Announcements… in addition to the Timms Review (on PIP)… with Reforms to Welfare System set to Save £1.9bn by the end of 2030/31. Welfare Reform is high, high on the Government’s agenda, especially when you remember that Keep Britain Working highlighted that economic inactivity due to ill health costs the UK £212 Billion per year, or 7% of GDP or 70% of all income tax. You can understand why!?
Also, it highlights how complex the system is? It doesn’t help that Charlie Mayfield… is leading the Mayfield Review (Keep Britain Working), Milburn is looking at NEETs (how similar are the names of these very similar reviews looking at Welfare reform)…. and the latest announcement was in addition to the Timms Review on PIP.
Milburn, Mayfield and Timms… and now more on Welfare Reform!
If it helps, I wrote about Milburn, Mayfield and Timms reviews and why this is so important for the FE, Skills and Employability sector in Soundbite about a month ago… here is the link if it is helpful!
The £212 Billion Per Year Prize… First Saving £1.9 Billion?
Now the latest Welfare Reform work (the £1.9Billion) announcement is looking at the backlog of people waiting to have Work Capability Assessment to be tackled as part of a package of measures to deliver £1.9bn of savings in the UK by the end of 2030/31. Which is in response to the Pathways to Work Green Paper. The proportion of face-to-face assessments will be increased, with those for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) increasing from 6% in 2024 (57,000) to 30% of all assessments, and the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) from 13% in 2024 (74,000) to 30%.
The changes will take effect from April 2026 – alongside changes to Universal Credit that narrow the gap between what people receive for being unemployed compared to long-term sickness.
These operational changes are separate from the Timms Review, which will look at the role of PIP, its assessment and the criteria in supporting disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater independence.
Confused!?
I’m not surprised. Surely this highlights, we need a more simplified system. Joining skills to employability, joined up thinking on economic inactivity due to ill health, support for Access to Work and overcoming barriers (the backlog on Access To Work is huge from personal experience), to careers advice and guidance, if we need to pivot, if individuals need to pivot, we need an all life and all age careers advice and guidance service to support this.
I think maybe cutting the jargon, the names, the pure volume of reviews (and the repeat of people on each review.. Mayfield is a part of the Milburn review)?! I mean that is confusing, or is it just good joined up working?… but surely making this streamlined will mean we cut through the noise and can tackle the £212 Billion per year challenge! Maybe it means linking up the different reviews… to highlight, yep this is proper complex, let’s streamline this.
The challenge then is to ensure people needing support do not fall between the cracks. It is a massive challenge, but essential to tackle!
Erasmus+ Is back
Erasmus+ is back… from 2027, and the Government expects at least 100,000 people will benefit… which is cool. The UK contribution for 2027 will be approximately £570 million. This covers the 2027/28 academic year. So this is really interesting.
Who were the Top 10 influencers and Thought leaders on FE News in 2025?
So we unwrapped who were the top 10 thought leaders and influencers on FE News in 2025. Congrats to everyone in the top 10.. and every thought leader who has taken time out to share their ideas, vision and perspective on the future of the sector.. or how to navigate the many, many changes.
Critical Thinking and Content…. and What Are the SENDbetweeners?
My fav articles this week were by Elizabeth Anderson from the Digital Poverty Alliance on Preparing Learners with safeguarding and critical content… especially the research on small screens, which I didn’t think of and found interesting. As the Digital Poverty Alliance research found that many learners who rely primarily on smartphones face reduced opportunities to check sources or compare information. Small screens compress context. Origin cues become harder to see… and more on critical thinking and safeguarding for learners on content and news (particularly Deep Fakes)…. and Neil Wolstenholme’s The Rise Of The ‘SENDbetweeners’ was brilliant.
Skills Santa
Also…I loved catching up with Skills England Chair, Phil Smith for the BIG interview. If you missed it… check it out here!
Merry Christmas
After 2660 + articles so far this year on FE News… a tsunami of reports, research and a period of massive change in FE, Skills and Employability (probably the biggest I have experienced in 22 years of running FE News)… I am shattered, and I am really looking forward to the Christmas break.
This is the last FE Soundbite of 2025… but I wanted to say a massive thank you for your help, your support and encouragement throughout 2025… and 2026… is going to be interesting!… but I really believe this is the time for the FE, Skills and Employability sector to step up and take the massive opportunity on offer!
I hope you enjoy Soundbite this week… and I wish you, your team a very Merry Christmas and for you and your family a healthy, happy and Blessed 2026! Thanks for choosing FE News, we really appreciate it!
Epic Exclusives Thought Leadership Articles
Our Top 3 Thought Leadership Articles This Week
The Rise Of The ‘Sendbetweeners’: Why The Mainstream Model Is Failing Our Most Vulnerable Students By Neil Wolstenholme, Kloodle Chairman
Preparing Learners For A World Where Truth Is Harder To See By Elizabeth Anderson, CEO of the Digital Poverty Alliance
This week, we also had some other Epic Exclusives!
Beyond Essays and Exams: Redesigning Assessment for Real-World Skills in the AI Era By Dr. Lisa A. Clark is the Associate Vice President of Academic Transformation at Anthology
The Dual Mandate of Possibilities & Expectations for Academic Staff at British TNE Campuses By Richard Mann, Academic Director at London Global Education (LGE)
The Autumn Budget was a turning point on child poverty. Now it has to close the digital gap in education By Nic Riemer, CEO of Invigilator
What’s New in the World of FE?
The Top 10 Thought Leadership Articles of 2025 on FE News
Interviews
The Big Interview with Skills England Chair Phil Smith
Turning 3 Months Into 3 Hours: AI-Driven Education Data with Paul Atfield, Education Outcomes Fund
Announcements
Erasmus+ 2027: Game-Changer for FE Students and Apprentices as 100k UK Participants Expected By Cabinet Office
Alan Milburn’s Investigation Into NEETs is launched By Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
£283 Million Devolved to Mayors to Tackle College Capacity Crisis and Construction Skills Waiting Lists By Department for Education (DfE)
ONS Labour Market: December 2025 – Unemployment At 5.1%, The Highest Level For Almost Five Years By ONS
Reforms to Welfare System set to Save £1.9bn by the end of 2030/31 By Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
England footballer Ella Toone and civil engineering trailblazer Santina Bunting inducted into FE Hall of Fame By Association of Colleges (AoC)
Voices
Attending the AI summit was a game-changer for our T Level students By Philip Milor, Deputy Head of School, Digital Academy, at The City of Liverpool College
In The Know
Join us on 2nd June in London for our NEETs collective intelligence event. Where you’ll co-create strategies and policy recommendations alongside sector leaders. This isn’t lectures, it’s rolling up sleeves and making real change. This is a massively important Collective, so help shape the report!
We hope you enjoy FE Soundbite this week. Stay curious, keep innovating, and let’s shake up the world of FE together, and catch you next year!
By Danny O’Meara, Operations Manager, FE News and