The government has opted to delay its planned reforms to education by a year, after plans to cut funding for BTEC qualifications were met with backlash.
The government planned to phase out BTEC funding between 2023 and 2025, in line with its rolling out of new T-Level qualifications, which were first introduced last year.
With plans to introduce more T-Level subjects over the next two years, it is intended that they will effectively replace BTECs in England by 2023, becoming the main options for students post-GCSE, alongside A-Levels and apprenticeships.
However, education sector leaders have suggested that scrapping BTECs could harm the prospects of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.
As a result, plans to cut funding for the BTEC and other applied general qualifications have now been pushed back to 2024, with education secretary Nadhim Zahawi [pictured] saying that the government did not want to “push too hard” on the planned implementation timetable.
Zahawi also confirmed that planned exit requirements in English and Mathematics for T-Levels will be scrapped to avoid providing a further obstacle to talented students.
He said: “We know that we would be wrong to push too hard and risk compromising quality.
“That is why I am announcing...that we have decided to allow an extra year before our reform timetable is implemented.
“I am a firm believer in T-levels - as I have said before, I want them to become as famous as A-levels - and I want to make sure we get them right.”
Zahawi added that the additional year of preparation would allow ministers to continue to “support the growth of T-levels and give more notice to providers, awarding organisations, employers, students and parents so that they can prepare for the changes”.
Photo taken from Wikimedia Commons
