Welcome to FE Soundbite Edition 873: 14th November 2026. The Elephant in the Room Before Milburn.

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.

So we have the final countdown to Milburn. It’s now the worst-kept secret that it’s “dropping” on Tuesday! I think David Hughes told everyone about three times in five minutes in his opening speech at the AoC conference this week, ha ha. The conference was rammed, so there you go! It’s unfortunate timing for the Milburn report release, as Tuesday is also a big day of remembrance and celebrating David Gallagher, who would have been all over the Milburn review and youth engagement.

Stand out article for me this week, was by Josh Hillman from Nuffield: Can AI help young people into education and work? … and when read side by side with Jenny Garrett’s article on the impact of AI on entry level jobs and the Barrel-Shaped Workforce , it makes really interesting reading, especially just before the Milburn review is launched.

Will Milburn actually create stimulus for job creation?

I’m excited about next week, but unless the Milburn review has a big chunk of something to actively create and stimulate jobs, I’m not sure it will move the dial. The giant herd of elephants in the room is the fact that there are 691,000 vacancies, but 891,000 NEETs… (and 2.5 unemployed per each vacancy, 2.7 Million economically inactive and those vacancies are for the entire labour market), the big obvious gap here is supply… particularly jobs for people to step into! Employers need help to create those roles! So let’s see what shakes out!?

If Milburn’s report doesn’t include action and, let’s face it, money, or a way to physically create jobs for NEETs to step into, then it will be a real let-down. No pressure then?! I have heard sooo many theories on how this could happen… it looks like Tuesday is the day we’ll find out the plan.

I hope you enjoy FE Soundbite this week!

Epic Exclusives Thought Leadership Articles

Firstly, The Barrel-Shaped Workforce: What Employers told us about AI and Young People By Jenny Garrett OBE, Founder and CEO of Jenny Garrett Global

Secondly, Can AI help young people into education and work? By Josh Hillman, Director of Education, The Nuffield Foundation

Finally, FE Leaders must be Proactive in Securing their Institution Against Cyber Threats By Mark Tysom, Senior Product Manager in the Core Security Services Team at Jisc

This week, we also had some other Epic Exclusives!

A Northern Prime Minister has a Chance to close England’s Numeracy Divide By Sam Sims, Chief Executive of National Numeracy

The Chimera of an Inclusive 14+ Pathways Curriculum? By Meena Wood, Author and former HMI (National Lead for Equalities), Principal in Further Education, Senior Local Authority Education Adviser and Headteacher

Breaking Down Barriers: Socioeconomic Mobility and Creating Inclusive Career Pathways By Mat Parker, Head of Careers and Inclusion at the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB); Charlie Stainforth, CEO & Co-Founder of Circl; Rachel Boani, STEM Programme Manager of upReach, and Erica Chamberlain, Head of Strategic Business Partnerships at The Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC)

For Once, Vocational Education is Great! But what About the Employers? By Dr Neil Sambrook, Assistant Principal – Quality and Standards at Dudley College

What’s New in the World of FE?

Education Secretary Pledges to Remove College Funding Barriers at AoC 2026

Key Stage 3 Overhaul Aims to Tackle Rising Absence before more Young People end up NEET By the Department for Education (DfE)

Open Your Door Campaign Calls on Small Businesses to Help Deliver 200,000 Work Experience Places

AoC Student of Year Award winners 2026/27 announced By the Association of Colleges (AoC)

The Data Retention Challenge for Online Exam Platforms By Dr. James Gupta, CEO Of Synap

Leadership Versus Authority: Having a Title Doesn’t Mean People Trust You By Mitzi Danielson-Kaslik MICA CG, Risk, Governance & Compliance

By Danny O’Meara, Operations Manager, FE News and