Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to extend the livestock production syllabus of the agriculture land management and production T-level to include (a) pigs and (b) sheep.

The Agriculture, Land Management and Production T Level is designed to equip students with the core knowledge and skills they need to enter a range of agriculture, land management and production occupations.

In their second year, students choose an occupational specialism to complete. The Livestock Production Occupational Specialism in the T Level provides students with a strong foundation knowledge relating to cattle, sheep/lambs, pigs and poultry production.

The assessed skill elements within the T Level currently relate to cattle and sheep/lambs. While the skills related to pig production was considered for inclusion, in addition to cattle and sheep, the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education had concerns that delivering and assessing pigs content would not be practical due to manageability and resourcing issues for providers and the need to ensure comparability of assessment.

T Levels are designed to provide high quality learning for students and deliver the knowledge and skills employers need. T Level content may evolve as the underpinning occupational standards are updated and as the department continues to regularly review the content through engagement with employers, providers and industry experts.