Further education colleges with a track record of high-quality construction training have just three weeks to apply to become a technical excellence college.
Applications to obtain “technical excellence college status” and gain access to a share of £100 million in funding for construction training opened today.
There will be ten construction technical excellence colleges, known as CTECs, one in each of the nine English regions, plus a bonus one in one region.
In addition to accessing £80 million in capital and £20 million in revenue funding over the next four years, the CTECs will be expected to partner with neighbouring colleges and training providers to improve access and quality of construction training in their areas.
Prime minister Keir Starmer first announced he would introduce technical excellence colleges in his final party conference speech as leader of the opposition in October 2023. On entering government, £100 million was set aside in the spring statement specifically to establish the first ten technical education colleges specialising in construction skills “crucial to delivering the government’s plans to build 1.5 million homes and progress vital infrastructure projects”.
The funding is part of the £1.2 billion in headline skills investment re-announced by the chancellor in yesterday’s spending review.
But becoming a CTEC does not guarantee capital funding, and revenue cash will come with “specific terms and conditions” according to guidance.
Construction credentials
Eligibility criteria to become a CTEC was released by the government for the first time today.
General FE colleges must hold a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ Ofsted overall effectiveness grade, or have a ‘significant progress’ monitoring report if they are graded ‘requires improvement’. Financial health must also be rated ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ for the 2023-24 financial year and the college must not be subject to a notice to improve, current or recent investigations or have any ‘significant concerns’ raised in recent audits.
Colleges will also need to prove their construction credentials.
Minimum volume thresholds are in place based on data from academic year 2023-24. Colleges will need to have trained “an above average proportion” of construction learners at any level, which DfE said is 5.8 per cent or above of their overall cohort, or at least 525 construction learners that year.
They will need an above average achievement rate, 84 per cent or above, for their construction courses or have had at least 440 achieving learners in academic year 2023-24.
To be in with a chance of becoming a CTEC, colleges will also have to show they have contributed their construction expertise through one or more skills initiatives.
Those listed include delivering construction training through an Institute of Technology, being a construction lead on a local skills improvement plan (LSIP), being a WorldSkills UK Centre of Excellence or putting forward learners in WorldSkills UK or CITB skills construction-related skills competitions.
London colleges can also tick this box in they hold the mayor’s quality mark for green or construction skills, or are involved in the Mayor’s green skills academies.
Five objectives
If a college meets the criteria, they will then have to evidence how they meet five objectives: increase construction provision to meet local and national employer needs, deliver high-quality teaching, leverage employer investment, collaborate with other providers and show learners progress to construction jobs or higher-level training.
Applications should also include “endorsements” from construction employers, employer representative bodies and other education and training organisations.
Decisions to award the CTEC status will be made by the education secretary, in consultation with local mayors.
Once awarded, CTECs will be held to account against the five objectives. Failure to meet those objectives could result in the status and funding being stripped and the CTEC being readvertised.
Applications close on July 4.
Your thoughts