Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support is available to help young people (a) develop skills and (b) access opportunities in South East Cornwall constituency.

As announced in the spending review, the department is making over £1.2 billion of additional investment per year in skills by 2028/29.

This will support and grow the wide range of technical routes and work-based training available for people of all ages, across the country, including South-East Cornwall. This includes:

• Widening the apprenticeships offer into a growth and skills offer, including new foundation apprenticeships, which will give more young people a foot in the door at the start of their working life.
• T Levels, a high quality technical education option for young people, including a valuable workplace industry placement which prepares them work.
• Higher Technical Qualifications, occupation-focused level 4-5 qualifications, approved and quality marked as providing the skills demanded in the workplace by employers.

There are ​a number of post-16 education and training providers in Cornwall ​delivering further education and skills provision. The largest of these is Cornwall College, ​judged as overall Outstanding in their latest Ofsted inspection, and which has campuses throughout Cornwall.

We have also strengthened legislation to ensure all secondary pupils have multiple opportunities for meaningful encounters with providers of technical education and apprenticeships.