Jacqui Smith's speech at 2026 Universities UK conference

Skills Minister Jacqui Smith delivers a speech at the Universities UK conference, 9 September 2026

Good morning.

It's great to be here, addressing UK universities again.

I want to start by saying how pleased I am to have been reappointed as the Skills Minister.

And I return to this work with a renewed energy to support you to serve students, communities and the economy.

Universities hold a special place in the life of this country, and this government wants to amplify your unique, positive impact.

There are lots of things that I'm pleased to be able to continue working on your financial stability; ensuring that all who can benefit from a university education get the chance to access one; driving up quality and driving out practices that put the reputation of your sector at risk and waste public money. But today I want to focus on your ability to anchor our economy and your communities.

UK universities have a lot to celebrate in 2026. Four of your institutions are in the global top 10, with 16 in the top 100. Higher Education is one of the country's strongest exports, generating over £26 billion in 2024.

This month I am travelling to Saudi Arabia, China and Vietnam I know that in each of those visits I'll meet Ministers keen to tell me about their experience of UK Higher Education and in each I'll hear about strong links and partnerships with UK universities.

Of course, it's one of our greatest domestic assets too. Universities contribute £265 billion to the economy each year through teaching, research and innovation.

You are anchor institutions with a remarkable local impact, too, supporting growth in your communities through employment, employer partnerships, innovation, public service delivery, and skills development.

Your courses deliver the high-quality skills employers need. You drive innovation and growth through world-class teaching, research and commercialisation, which in turn attracts investment across the country. And you strengthen the social and civic fabric of places, bringing together employers, local leaders and communities to improve lives and expand opportunity.

The Prime Minister has a strong interest in higher education. He championed Manchester's universities while he was Mayor, and now wants to empower the sector to succeed across the UK. He has emphasised the place-based approach of his new government bringing growth to every postcode, and making sure policies are tailored to local economic needs and circumstances. Universities must be, and I know want to be, part of that.

Because there's no point building the growth this country desperately needs, if it just embellishes the places that are already prosperous.

Growth should spread opportunity and prosperity widely, leaving no area behind.

This vision for widespread growth makes universities' local connections and contributions just as important as their national and international renown. Your institutions are a network of economic engines throughout the country. We want to build on those strengths and successes to distribute opportunity and drive national renewal.

We've set a target for two thirds of young people to participate in higher level learning by the age of 25. This includes degrees, higher technical qualifications and apprenticeships.

Universities have a role in facilitating all three of these, in partnership with FE colleges and employers. And I hope you've heard in recent weeks, but under this government, further education and technical pathways will no longer be associated with low standards.  

To be clear that does not mean that I want to put people off going to university. I want more young people to go to university, and I want more young people to do apprenticeships.

It cannot be a case of either/or, when we have nearly a million young people not in education, training or employment and whilst a quarter of job vacancies are due to skills shortages.

Having set out our vision for post-16 education in last year's White Paper, we're now building a more flexible, accessible system that offers multiple routes to good work and higher-level learning.

We know that universities deliver skills as well as academic education; about 1 in 3 full-time undergrads are already doing technical and vocational courses, from nursing to engineering.

Now we want to raise that number, and expand the levels of learning available at university.

Most of our future skills requirements will be at Level 4 and above; that's why our reforms must drive uptake of Level 4 and 5 qualifications.

New technical education pathways for 14-year-olds were announced last month; they will combine core academic subjects with technical education linked to local industries.

The new V Levels announced in the White Paper will allow students to combine vocational study with A Levels or other Level 3 courses. Crucially, they offer an additional vocational route for 16 to 19-year-olds to progress to Levels 4 and 5.

And Lifelong Learning Entitlement courses will start in January, enabling people to learn, upskill and retrain across their working lives. Flexible study will allow learners to adapt to the shifting demands of the labour market by progressing or specialising in their industry, or entering another at a highly-skilled level.

And crucially, the LLE provides the flexibility to fit learning around modern lives whether that's balancing childcare or existing work commitments.

We are already seeing Higher and Further education institutions embrace the opportunities of the LLE, with 130 providers approved for modular provision from launch.

A further round of expressions of interest will open in October.

We know there's a lot of interest in how the shape of degrees might change in the coming years, and we're planning to consult on how to enable flexible degree reform.

This means developing arrangements that support students to fully consider their options, even while they study. Any changes would have to support partnerships between higher and further education, meet employer needs, and deliver positive economic returns.

As I mentioned earlier, the Prime Minister has championed place-based policies that closely consider communities' circumstances.

That means universities, colleges, local leaders and employers working together to understand the opportunities in their area, and giving local people the skills and experience needed to take those opportunities.

I'm talking about employers helping to shape courses, students gaining meaningful work experience, and workers being able to develop new skills as industries change.

Government has given you the toolkit: modular student funding, higher technical qualifications, and flexible degree reform.

I want to see universities working locally in partnership to put that toolkit to work.

We can already see what this looks like in many brilliant, effective projects across the country.

Look north to West Yorkshire, where Leeds Beckett University and FinTech North are connecting graduates with local FinTech employers through workplace visits, business projects and mentoring.

Alongside Graduates West Yorkshire, the programme also helps smaller businesses to access new graduate talent.

Keele and Staffordshire universities are collaborating with the Newcastle-under-Lyme and Stafford Colleges Group on degree programmes, higher technical qualifications and apprenticeships.

These include biomedical science and engineering courses, which are broadening progression routes throughout the region, drawing people into education, training and employment.

And in the West, UWE Bristol and University Centre Weston are working with employers such as Airbus, Rolls-Royce and GKN Aerospace to dliver engineering degree apprenticeships. Learners do paid work alongside degree-level study, while employers shape their training to build the skills needed for aerospace and advanced manufacturing.

Different places will make different choices, based on their strengths and ambitions.

But the principle is the same: universities should be at the heart of local partnerships that turn economic opportunity into courses, student workplace experience, and good jobs for local people.

And that's why I'm really glad to see that strong focus on outcomes and employability in your Future Jobs Roadmap published today, including the commitment that all undergraduates have the opportunity to access to work based learning by 2035. Every student in higher level learning is investing in their future earnings. The roadmap is an important step towards universal recognition of this fundamental outcome.

With so many valuable, enriching projects underway, how to determine what should be done next?

Universities need to be able to measure their local impact in order to maximise it.

That's why the Office for Students have been working closely with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, along with Skills England and others, to develop a new market monitoring tool.

This will provide a clear picture of higher education supply and demand, drawing together data on both local teaching provision and research strengths.

Universities and local decision-makers will be able to see all the subjects delivered in their area at higher level: a panoramic view to highlight gaps in supply and demand empowering your decisions to deliver skills, innovation and growth.

The Office for Students will reach out shortly to trial the tool and gather feedback, so it can eventually add real value to local decision-making.

I know that higher education faces challenges. Economic uncertainty, demographic changes, rapid technological development and financial pressures have forced some institutions to make difficult choices in recent years.

And it has been hard for universities to take a long-term strategic view of their business model.

You asked us to provide clarity on future income. And we've done that by increasing tuition fee caps in line with inflation. This could provide an extra £6 billion to the sector over the next five years, giving you long term financial certainty for this revenue.

I hope I've been able to illustrate today the enormous opportunities the coming years hold. The ways that degrees will change to allow more people to enter higher level learning.

And the partnerships and incentives that will enable every university to maximise their contribution to their local community and economy.

We need you to work with your neighbours local government, employers, and other providers to get the best out of your institutions and this world-leading sector.

To deliver the skills local economies need.

And support the pathways and opportunities that local people need.

To deliver on the promise that I think is what gets us up every morning that education offers everybody the opportunity to improve their lives.

Together, we can make sure that no-one is left behind.