Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Skills, Further and
Higher Education (): Today, as part of phase 2
of the Post-16 Qualifications Review of English qualifications,
we have published an update to the final list of qualifications
that overlap with wave 1 and 2 T Levels, to include
qualifications that overlap with Health and Science T Levels.
These qualifications were included in the provisional list
published in May 2022 but confirmation was not included in the
final list published in October 2022, due to the Institute for
Apprenticeships and Technical Education’s review of the outline
content of the Health and Science T Levels. This review has now
concluded. Today’s update adds 28 qualifications to the list and
as previously stated these will have 16-19 funding removed from 1
August 2024.
The removal of funding from these qualifications follows rigorous
assessment by independent assessors and an opportunity for
awarding organisations to appeal their decisions. The awarding
organisations who will have funding removed from these 28
qualifications have been notified, as have the Federation of
Awarding Bodies and Joint Council for Qualifications. My
department will also engage with Further Education providers on
this matter.
T Levels are rigorous qualifications that provide a great
progression route into a range of occupations in the Health and
Science sector. They are based on the same standards as
apprenticeships and have their content set by employers. Students
that take a Health and Science T Level are well placed to
progress into careers in the sector, including as health
professionals, technicians and researchers.
We have backed providers with significant additional revenue and
capital funding so they are well prepared and have the resources
to deliver T Levels to a high standard. We have made around £400m
available to improve buildings and buy state of the art
equipment. We recently announced a short term 10% uplift in T
Level revenue funding to help providers as they transition from
study programmes and scale up and a new £12m Employer Support
Fund to help providers deliver quality industry placements. This
comes alongside a range of practical support measures we have put
in place to support providers to implement T Levels, including
investing over £31m in the T Level Professional Development
programme (TLPD) to provide free training and support to FE
providers, teachers and leaders to successfully plan and deliver
T Levels.
The changes to post-16 qualifications at level 3 and below are
designed to ensure that our qualifications system provides a
ladder of opportunity for young people from all backgrounds. T
Levels are a key part of that ladder of opportunity, helping
young people climb rung by rung toward a fulfilling career. The T
Level Transition Programme provides a high-quality pathway onto T
Levels.
In addition to T Levels, students will also benefit from a range
of choice in order to access careers in the health and social
care and science sectors. This will include high quality reformed
qualifications at level 2 designed to support progression to
apprenticeships, further study, and employment. At level 3,
students will also be able to choose to study a health and social
care-related qualification as part of a mixed study programme.
I am pleased that we have taken this next step in ensuring our
post-16 qualifications system provides young people with the
skills employers need and which are fit for the future.
