Technical Qualifications Reform

Thursday 25th July 2024 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Education (Bridget Phillipson)]

I am today announcing a short review of post-16 qualification reforms at level 3 and below, alongside the re-contracting of T-level qualifications to ensure these high-quality qualifications continue to be available to learners.

This Government believe all young people and adults should have access to high-quality training that meets their needs and provides them with opportunities to thrive. We know that the current post-16 skills system in England is confusing for young people, adults and employers. The qualifications system remains complex, and there are many overlapping qualifications, including those that overlap with T-levels. Too many young people leave education without the qualifications they need to get into high-quality apprenticeships, higher level education and good jobs. This is not good for our young people or our nation’s prosperity.

Our qualifications must deliver on our two central missions for this Government of enhancing and spreading opportunity for everyone and growing our economy. Young people and adults should have a choice of a simpler suite of high-quality qualifications that provide them with the skills they need, and which deliver on our missions.

We will undertake a focused review of the post-16 qualification reforms at level 3 and below to assess how best to improve the quality of the overall qualifications landscape, support the growth of T-levels, and ensure that all young people and adults have high-quality options that meet their needs. This review will begin immediately and will examine the current planned reforms and look at how we can ensure leading technical qualifications like T-levels are open to as many people as possible, while ensuring high-quality alternatives.

T-levels are high-quality qualifications which provide young people with a firm foundation for their future. This coming year will see further developments, including rolling out new T-levels in animal care and management, media, broadcast and production, and craft and design in September 2024, and marketing in September 2025, to ensure that young people continue to benefit from these respected qualifications which include direct experience of the workplace. To ensure T-levels continue to be available in the years ahead, we will proceed with re-contracting T-levels where contracts are due to expire.

To allow space for a short review of the current planned reforms, we will place a pause on the planned removal, on 31 July 2024, of 16 to 19 funding from qualifications in construction and the built environment, digital, education and early years, and health and science. This will mean that, subject to any commercial decisions made by awarding organisations on these qualifications, they can be funded for 16 to 19-year-old new students in the 2024-25 academic year.

We understand that the sector needs certainty so that it can plan its future delivery. We will conclude and communicate the outcomes of this review into qualification reforms at level 3 and below before the turn of the year. Defunding decisions will be taken after the short review, and the curriculum and assessment review will reflect these decisions. The expert-led curriculum and assessment review will be chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE, announced on 19 July 2024. This review will consider the existing national curriculum and statutory assessment system, and pathways for learners in 16 to 19 education and recommend changes where necessary.

We will also publish, as soon as possible, a list of reformed level 2 qualifications in construction and the built environment, education and early years, engineering and manufacturing, and health and science that will be funded from August 2025. These qualifications, alongside those already announced at level 3, will provide the next step to ensuring we deliver the skilled training needed to support key areas of our economy.

[HCWS22]