Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he will take to ensure that BTEC qualifications are (a) accessible to students and (b) recognised as legitimate qualifications.

We will continue to fund some BTECs and other Applied General qualifications (AGQs) in future where there is a clear need for skills and knowledge that A levels and T Levels cannot provide and where they meet new quality standards. Qualifications such as BTECs will continue to play an important role for 16 to 19 year olds and adults. This includes for students combining BTECs and other AGQs as part of mixed programmes alongside A levels, and those taking qualifications such as BTECs as their full programme of study where there is no A level or T Level.