As the new academic year begins, I’d like to thank teachers, leaders and support staff whose professionalism and commitment change young people’s lives every day. Our transformation of post-16 qualifications, including introducing new V Levels, is pivotal to our ambition for every young person to be able to study a course that works for them and leads to success. We’re making V Levels equivalent to a single A Level so young people can mix and match, building broad programmes that reflect their own strengths and ambitions. This is about giving young people more choice through qualifications with nationally set content and consistent grading that employers and universities can trust. And this week’s announcement from UCAS underlines this – V Level grades A*-E will be worth the same UCAS tariff points as they are for A Levels, meaning young people will be able to take V Levels with the confidence that no matter what path they choose after college, their qualification will be just as valuable. A challenging reform V Levels will teach crucial skills, leading to crucial careers, and we need more young people to feel confident choosing them. A Levels, T Levels and V Levels will serve different purposes and suit different strengths and ambitions. What matters is that each gives young people high-quality learning and a clear route towards their next step. But reform on this scale is challenging, and we will continue to listen to you as we roll this out to make sure it is going to work and no learner is left behind. Colleges and training providers want to make these reforms a success, with 70% of general FE colleges and 85% of sixth form colleges planning to deliver V Levels in the first year they are introduced. However, they have been clear that we need to carefully manage the transition to ensure every young person has a post-16 pathway available to them. So, for the 2027-28 academic year, we will continue to fund qualifications that are two A Levels in size in subject areas that overlap with V Levels. We took this decision because we are introducing only a small number of V Levels in 2027, but in 2028 we will introduce many more V Levels which will enable students to study a range of study programmes consisting of V Levels, A Levels, or a mix of both. Flexibility for colleges I can also confirm that we will not introduce rules of combination as part of our reforms. This means colleges will retain the flexibility to design coherent study programmes around the needs and ambitions of their learners as the new qualifications are introduced. For example, students will be able to take combinations that include two V Levels in the same subject area, like applied science. It is also vital that we continue to scale up T Levels, which will be the flagship 3-A Level size single technical qualification for students who know which sector they wish to focus on. We have heard the importance of securing industry placements – that’s why we published guidance earlier this year giving more scope for providers to design placements that work for the student and employer whilst supporting delivery at scale. 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. Our vision remains an education system that works for everyone, not just those who choose academic subjects. We will work with you to deliver this in the way that’s best for teachers, employers and – crucially – learners. Every young person deserves access to high-quality qualifications that reflect their talents and ambitions. And every provider delivering them deserves a system that supports success.