Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to facilitate and encourage education in the areas of (1) cybersecurity, and (2) AI-driven skills.

The government’s ambition is for a curriculum that delivers excellent foundations in reading, writing and maths, and ensures every young person gets the opportunity to develop creative, digital, and speaking and listening skills. To achieve this, the government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE, who is an expert in education policy, which will take on board the views of experts, parents, teachers and leaders in making recommendations. The review will consider how children will acquire the key digital skills needed for future life, throughout their educational journey.

This government also provides a range of academic and technical qualifications relevant to cybersecurity and AI skills.

To provide a basis for further study and careers in digital, including in AI and cybersecurity, the computing curriculum ensures that pupils are taught the principles of information and computation, how digital systems work and how to put this knowledge to use through programming. The department has invested significantly in the National Centre for Computing Education to improve the teaching of computing and increase participation in computer science at GCSE and A level.

Developed in partnership with employers, there are currently 33 apprenticeship standards spanning Levels 3 to 7 in digital occupations, including at degree level and in areas like cyber and AI. The department’s reformed growth and skills levy will deliver greater flexibility for learners and employers and is aligned with its industrial strategy to create routes into good, skilled jobs in growing industries, including in digital.

Learners can study three Digital T Levels which include cyber and AI content, and there are 77 Higher Technical Qualifications approved and quality marked as providing the skills demanded in the workplace by employers, including cyber and AI skills. Furthermore, the majority of Skills Bootcamps are in the digital sector, with 61% of starts in 2022/23 being in digital.

Across government, the new Industrial Strategy will channel support to eight growth-driving sectors in which the UK excels today and will propel it forwards tomorrow. Digital technologies have been identified as one of the eight growth-driving sectors and the department is currently consulting on the barriers to growth, including skills, in this sector. Furthermore, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology has commissioned an AI Opportunities Action Plan which will set out the essential role that equipping the UK’s workforce with the right skills and attracting top talent will play in supporting the growth of the AI sector.

The government also supports young people to build their tech skills through extracurricular initiatives. For example, the CyberFirst programme delivered by Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the National Cyber Security Centre is designed to help students aged 11 to 25 build their cyber and tech skills through a range of initiatives including competitions, an online gamified learning platform and undergraduate bursaries. The programme is supported by over 250 industry, academia and government partners and has reached over 360,000 students so far.