Posted: June 21, 2019
Education Secretary Damian Hinds has confirmed that new T Level qualifications will become a reality from September 2020, as a second wave of further education providers are announced to deliver courses from 2021.
The move signals a major step forward in Mr. Hinds’ 10-year ambition to overhaul technical education, and is further demonstration of the Government’s commitment to give more young people access to high-quality training opportunities so they can secure rewarding careers.
T Levels will be high-quality technical alternatives to A Levels, combining classroom theory, practical learning and an industry placement – of at least 315 hours, or approximately 45 days – where students will build the knowledge and skills they need in a workplace environment.
Kathryn Brentnall, Principal of Doncaster College, said: “DNCG is delighted and proud to have been selected to deliver T levels from 2021 which will further enhance our ability to offer high quality technical and vocational alternatives to traditional A levels. This is good news for students and for staff and particularly for employers with whom we will work very closely to ensure that that young people are provided with the skills and knowledge they need to meet the needs of a current and future jobs.
Our vision is to deliver outstanding education and training that enables students to develop their full potential ; meeting social , economic and community needs.Having the opportunity to be at the forefront of the introduction of T level qualifications ensures that our students are amongst the first to benefit from this hugely important development.”
As the first T Level providers start gearing up to roll-out the courses from September 2020, the Government has also announced a further £3.75 million for 2019/20 to cover costs such as producing high-quality materials to help them recruit young people, and published the details of how the new courses will be funded.
Education Secretary, Damian Hinds, said: “Everyone agrees that a radical shake-up of technical and vocational education in this country is long overdue. T Levels are our chance to do that – offering young people high-quality alternatives to our world-class A Levels from September 2020.
The second wave of post-16 providers we have announced today demonstrates our commitment to making this happen. They will play an important role in ensuring more young people across the country can access these courses and help develop the skilled workforce the country needs for the future.
I’m also pleased to confirm today the details of how we will fund providers to deliver T Levels, and that we are making an additional £3.75 million available to the first T Level providers to support them to develop and offer high-quality courses for every student from 2020.”
The first three T Levels for Digital, Education and Construction will be taught from September 2020. A further seven will to be taught from 2021, including three in Health and Science, with a further 15 coming on stream from 2022 onwards in sectors such as legal, financial and accounting, engineering and manufacturing, and creative & design.
The additional further education providers announced today – bringing the total number of providers to more than 100 – will offer up to ten T Level courses from 2021 as part of the Government’s major upgrade to technical and vocational education.