Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the main routes through which horticultural qualifications may be obtained.

Qualifications in horticulture can be obtained through apprenticeships, vocational and technical qualifications, and through higher education (HE), including at degree level. T Levels in Agriculture, Land Management and Production, designed by relevant employers, will be available from September 2023. New higher technical qualifications in horticulture are also expected to be available from September 2025.

Employers in the horticultural sector have developed high-quality apprenticeship standards ranging from level 2 Horticulture or Landscape Operative, level 4 Arboriculturist, up to level 6 Professional Arboriculturist.

The government’s free courses for jobs offer at level 3 includes several qualifications in horticulture.

As autonomous institutions, HE providers are free to decide which courses they provide, depending on a number of factors including student demand.