Yesterday’s announcement on the reform of Level 3 qualifications has brought the sector some much-needed good news.
One of the Protect Student Choice campaign’s three recommendations for the Level 3 review was to scrap the plan to introduce constraints on combining different types and sizes of qualification.
That recommendation was accepted in full, and colleges will retain responsibility for deciding the combination of qualifications that can be included in study programmes. There was a welcome acknowledgement from ministers that colleges and schools are best placed to “devise the best mix for individuals”.
It was also good to see that 13 of the 21 applied general qualifications (AGQs) prioritised by the campaign will not be scrapped next year. That means, for example, one more year of enrolling students on the diploma and extended diploma in health and social care, applied science and IT.
That’s one more year than would have been possible under the previous government and colleges and schools will be pleased that these Cycle 1 courses will continue to be available.
Although the campaign had pressed for these qualifications to be retained for two more years, we understand that the small and medium-sized AGQs that have been approved will in most cases continue to be available as reformed versions – typically alternative academic qualifications – in the future.
There is also a collective sigh of relief about qualifications in Cycle 2. There are 79 AGQs in Cycle 2 with around a quarter of a million enrolments (three times as many as Cycle 1) and hundreds of other Level 3 courses.
Decisions on these qualifications will be made as part of the curriculum and assessment review, but it is good to have the reassurance that they will not be defunded until 2027 at the earliest.
That brings some much-needed certainty for AGQs in business, law and criminology in the short to medium term, alongside other Level 3 qualifications such as uniformed protective services.
We still have to make the case for a true three-route model
The situation we find ourselves in today feels very different to the situation at the start of term. A review without a pause meant colleges and schools were holding open evenings and finalising prospectuses without knowing which qualifications they were able to offer in 2025.
We now have a greater degree of certainty and the reassurance that we will have a much longer lead time to plan for potential changes to qualifications in Cycle 2.
It is clear that we still have to make the case for a genuine three-route model, in which applied qualifications play a role that is equally important to that of A and T Levels. The Protect Student Choice campaign partners will reconvene in the new year to decide how best to drive home that message.
But for now, we must acknowledge and welcome the changes that ministers and officials have made in this vital area.
We must also reflect on the enormous impact that the education sector can have when it speaks with one voice. The Protect Student Choice coalition is almost unprecedentedly broad: students, schools, colleges, universities, trade unions, employer groups and, of course, FE Week. But it has a common purpose: to ensure that every young person can access a high-quality pathway to higher education or skilled employment.
This week we collectively took a big step towards that objective, in no small part because of the contribution to the campaign made by college staff and students.
The Protect Student Choice coalition is pleased to end the year with some welcome and positive news that positions us well for our campaigning work in the new year.
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