Three digital level 3 qualifications due to be defunded next summer because of overlaps with V Levels will continue for another year, the government has announced. In an update to its post-16 implementation plan, first published in May, the Department for Education also confirmed there would be no restrictions on combinations of qualifications, including between V Levels, A Levels and applied generals. Meanwhile, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) announced that V Level tariff points, at grades A* to E, would be equal to those of A Levels. Skills minister Jacqui Smith said this means young people can take V Levels “with the confidence that no matter what path they choose after college, their qualification will be just as valuable”. The first three V Levels, in accounting and finance, digital systems and data, and education, are due to be rolled out next year alongside seven level 2 occupational and foundation certificates. V Levels will have 360 guided learning hours (GLH) each – the same size as an A Level. Writing in FE Week, Smith said she took the decision to extend the lifespan of overlapping existing level 3 qualifications – equivalent to the size of two A Levels (720 GLHs) – in digital because “only a small number” of V Levels will be introduced in 2027. The following year, “many more” V Levels will be introduced to give students “a range of study programmes” including A Levels, V Levels or a mix of both, she added. The qualifications to be retained for another year are: OCR’s Cambridge Technical Diploma in IT, Pearson’s BTEC National Diploma in Information Technology and Pearson’s BTEC National Diploma in Computing. According to Ofqual statistics, about 1,200 students enrolled on the three subjects in 2025-26, with most aged 16 to 19. Departmental U-turn The extension marks a minor U-turn for the DfE, which had planned to defund 151 level 2 and 3 qualifications at the end of this academic year, with about two thirds covering accounting and finance, business management, child development and wellbeing, and digital technology. Confirming the change, Smith said: “I hope this provides reassurance that we are determined to work with you to get these reforms right. “We are committed to V Levels, and funding for overlapping qualifications will still be removed once V Levels are established in a sector. “That is how we protect the value and credibility of the qualifications students work hard to achieve. But we have listened to concerns about the transition and acted on them.” The DfE previously said it would consider whether a V Level could be partnered with another V Level in the same subject area, as with maths and further maths in A Levels, in a “very limited number of exceptional cases”. But none of the subjects due to be rolled out next year, or in 2028, are expected to be permitted to partner following “initial scoping”, officials have now confirmed. Criteria for allowing partnering in the future include significantly improving students’ ability to progress on to further study, continuing to offer “breadth”, providing a “distinct choice” for students in terms of destination, and offering the same level of demand as two V Levels in different subjects which are not partnered. DfE also confirmed it does not plan to implement rules of combination on which qualifications can be combined to “form the qualification element of a study programme”. This will allow providers to combine new V Levels in education, accounting and finance, and digital systems and data with existing funded qualifications, such as A Levels, alternative academic qualifications, applied generals, tech levels, extended project qualifications, and English and maths courses. Eleven V Level subjects are due to be rolled out in 2028, including construction design, health, and sport and exercise science – although this list will not be confirmed until early 2027. Implementation ‘rushed’ James Kewin, deputy chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association, said the organisation’s members would be “concerned about the impact” of today’s announcement on young people. He said: “There is a shared view that V Levels should be available in larger sizes and their implementation is being rushed. However, it is now clear that, despite our best efforts, the government will press ahead with its existing plan to roll out V levels from next year and limit them to one size (equivalent to 1 A level). “The long-term commitment not to implement rules of combination is welcome, but the limited number of V Levels in some areas will restrict options for students who want to study a subject in greater depth, but cannot access a T Level. “Colleges will do everything they can to make the new qualification system work for students, and we will do everything we can to support them in that process.”