• The Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) is to launch a practical guide later this year, developed with charities BITC, Nacro and Unlock, to help agencies with the recruitment of people with criminal records. The guide will outline steps they can take to ensure their processes are compliant, fair and inclusive.

The move follows the recruitment trade body signing up to the Ban the Box campaign, committing to fair recruitment for people with criminal records. As a result, the REC will not ask questions about criminal records at the application stage of the recruitment process, but will ask the questions at a later stage.

• Skills minister Anne Milton has given final approval for the funding band for the new Master’s degree apprenticeship in leadership and management, meaning it is now ready for delivery.

The Senior Leader Master’s Degree Apprenticeship was first approved in August 2017 by the Institute for Apprenticeships (IfA) but both employers and their providers had been waiting for the levy funding band – now agreed at £18k for the two-year programme – to be approved before funded-delivery could start.

The minister’s approval now means more than 900 executive-level apprentices will be able now to start their Master’s degree apprenticeships, while employers can now use the Apprenticeship Levy to pay for executive skills development.