Found: I am a governor of a secondary school that does T-levels and has done BTECs, and those young people

Found: I am a governor of a secondary school that does T-levels and has done BTECs, and those young people

Found: There are already more than 10 T-Levels and 200-plus apprenticeship standards relevant to net zero

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what fiscal steps she is taking to support (a) training programmes, (b) apprenticeships and (c) other efforts to promote (i) job creation and (ii) skills development in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.

Answered by Robert Halfon

Funding allocations are not available broken down to the level of individual constituencies.

The government is committed to creating a world-leading skills system that is employer-focused, high quality and fit for the future. The department’s reforms are strengthening higher and further education to help more people get good jobs and upskill and retrain throughout their lives; and to improve national productivity and economic growth. The department’s reforms are backed with an additional investment of £3.8 billion over the course of this parliament to strengthen higher and further education.

In the 2023/24 academic year, the department is investing nearly £7 billion for education and training places for 16 to 19 year olds, and up to 25 for those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). This funding is allocated to education providers to deliver study programmes and T Levels to young people.

The department is continuing to invest in education and skills training for adults through the Adult Education Budget (AEB), which totalled £1.34 billion in the 2023/24 Funding Year. The AEB fully funds or co-funds skills provision for eligible adults aged 19 and above from pre-entry to Level 3, to support adults to gain the skills they need for work, an apprenticeship or further learning. This includes funding going to Boston College, which includes the Spalding Campus in the South Holland and the Deepings Constituency.

The Free Courses for Jobs offer gives eligible adults the chance to access high value Level 3 qualification for free, which can support them to gain higher wages or a better job. Around 400 qualifications are available on the offer, chosen specifically as they offer good wage outcomes and address skills needs in the economy. There have been over 61,000 enrolments since April 2021.

Skills Bootcamps are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks in priority skills areas, with a guaranteed interview upon completion. The department is expanding Skills Bootcamps through increased national procurement and grant funding to 30 Mayoral Combined Authorities and local areas to meet national and local skills needs in the 2024/25 financial year. The department granted Great Lincolnshire LEP, in partnership with Lincolnshire County Council, £2 million for Skills Bootcamps across Greater Lincolnshire and Rutland in 2023, and a further £3 million for courses starting after April 2024.

The department is increasing investment in the apprenticeships system in England to over £2.7 billion by the 2024/25 financial year to support more high quality apprenticeship opportunities across the country, including in South Holland and the Deepings. There have been over 11,000 apprenticeship starts in South Holland and the Deepings since 2010.

The department has introduced employer-designed T levels, which are equipping thousands of young people with the skills, knowledge, and experience to access employment or further study in some of the most in-demand skills areas. 18 T Levels are now available, being delivered through over 250 providers across all regions of the country. University Academy Holbeach in South Holland and the Deepings currently offers seven T Levels and is planning to offer three more from September 2024.

Multiply is the government’s programme for improving adult numeracy. Multiply is funded through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, which is the government’s flagship fund for supporting people and places across the UK. Up to £270 million is directly available for local areas in England to deliver innovative interventions to improve adult numeracy. Lincolnshire County Council has been allocated £4.02 million of Multiply funding from the 2022/23 to 2024/25 financial years to improve adult numeracy in their area.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) young people and (b) adults have access to a range of high quality training pathways.

Answered by Robert Halfon

The government is committed to creating a world-leading skills system which is employer-focused, high-quality and fit for the future. The department’s reforms are strengthening higher and further education to help more people get good jobs and upskill and retrain throughout their lives. The department’s reforms are backed with an additional investment of £3.8 billion over the course of this Parliament to strengthen higher and further education. These reforms will help equip people with the education, training and skills that employers demand both in the public and private sector.

Apprenticeships are for people of any age and are crucial in driving growth and social mobility. To support growth, the department is increasing investment in apprenticeships to £2.7 billion by 2024/25, encouraging more employers across the country to recruit new apprentices.

The department has introduced employer-designed T Levels which are equipping thousands of young people with the skills, knowledge, and experience to access employment or further study in some of the most in-demand skills areas. 18 T Levels are now available, which are being delivered through over 250 providers across all regions of the country.

The department has invested £300 million to establish 21 Institutes of Technology across England to significantly increase the number of learners with higher level technical skills, offering an alternative route to high paid jobs. They bring education and industry together to deliver world class technical education and training in key STEM subjects aligned to the skills needs of the local economy they serve.

The department is delivering reforms to increase the profile, prestige, and uptake of higher technical education. Central to these reforms is the introduction of Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs), which are Level 4/5 qualifications approved against employer-developed standard and quality marked by the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education. This means students and employers can have the confidence that HTQs provide skills employers need. To date, 172 qualifications have been approved as HTQs across seven occupational routes and over 140 providers are approved to deliver HTQs.

The Adult Education Budget (AEB) of £1.34 billion this year funds skills provision for adults to help them gain the skills they need for work, an apprenticeship or further learning. This includes entitlements to free first qualifications at Level 2 and 3 and English, mathematics and digital qualifications for those adults who do not have them. Community Learning plays a vital role within AEB provision by supporting those furthest from the workplace. It is an important stepping stone for learners who are not ready for formal accredited learning, or who would benefit from learning in a more informal way.

In addition, the department has introduced the Free Courses for Jobs scheme, which enables eligible adults to gain a high value qualification for free and Skills Bootcamps. These Bootcamps are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, giving people the opportunity to build up sector-specific skills and fast-track to an interview with an employer.

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Found: As T Levels are 2 year programmes, the value should cover the whole programme, and will, in all but

Found: The aim of these employer-led local plans is to ensure that all provision – be that apprenticeships, T

Found: Technical Qualification in Management and Administration (Level 3) 610/0111/5 All other T levels Results

Found: Levels - Engineering and Manufacturing End date Event 28 March 2024 Employer-Set Project (ESP)

Found: in Onsite Construction (Level 3) (delivered by City and Guilds) 603/6917/6 All other T levels Employer-Set

Found: Ltd T Level Technical Qualification in Digital Production, Design and Development 603/5832/4 T Levels

Found: with the quality of lower -level apprenticeships, we are not convinced that other routes, in cluding T