Backing for new T-levels

EAST Runcorn MP Graham Evans has been briefed on the upcoming T-level qualification which was announced in the 2017 Budget.

Mr Evans, whose Weaver Vale constituency encompasses much of east Runcorn, Frodsham, Helsby, Daresbury and Northwich, asked Education Secretary whether it will be ‘significantly stronger’ than existing technical education achievements.

Ms Greening said T-levels will be better because it will be employer-led, have more hours and more time spent in class and on a ‘quality’ work placement.

She said that once a student completes the course, they will begin their career ‘with a high-quality qualification that employers truly value’.

T-levels were unveiled in the Budget and are predicted to cost £500m a year.

They will replace 13,000 tech- ● Education Secretary Justine Greening nical qualifications on offer at present.

Students will spend 50% more time learning than they do now, equalling an extra 900 hours a year.

Ms Greening said: “Building such a world-class technical education system will not just generate the skills and productivity that are the foundations of a strong economy, it will also spread opportunity and increase social mobility, helping to break the link between a person’s background and where they get to in life.

“It will be no surprise that many young people from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to be on technical courses, yet such an education has not been at the level that they deserve or that our economy deserves. “A report by the Boston Consulting Group and the Sutton Trust suggests that greater social mobility could boost our economy by a staggering £140bn every year.

“Young people have different talents, and if we can successfully put technical education on a par with academic routes, it will not just be good for those young people, but exactly what our economy needs.”