Post-16 education reform - what the regions are saying
Post-16 education in England is at a crossroads. The recently published Skills for Jobs White Paper set out the proposed reforms to post-16 technical education and training. A lot of this work is already underway within Government, and we anticipate further measures to be introduced as part of the programme announced in this week’s Queen’s Speech.
To delve further into this, we have begun a series of regional roundtables in discussion with education, businesses, and political leaders, to understand how the proposed post-16 reforms can improve the prospects of young people, students, adults, and employers, post-pandemic.
Our focus is across three broad areas: the qualification reforms at level 3 and the choices students make at 16; the introduction of new Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQ); and the Lifetime Skills Guarantee – encompassing Adult Skills and the Lifelong Loan Entitlement.
We have already held (virtual) events in the South West and North East of England and have more scheduled throughout May and June across the rest of the England, to gain a well-rounded picture of current issues and emerging solutions. The conversations so far have probed what is working and what is not at present, the effect change might have, and how things could be improved.
The roundtables will be supported by public polling and a series of targeted interviews with local stakeholders, which we will bring together in a series of three policy reports this summer. Keep an eye out on this important project through our weekly Policy Watch briefing, or to find out more please get in touch with daniel.pedley@pearson.com.