Concerns were raised about the removal of funding last week as students' BTEC results were released.
Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), said, ‘Scrapping these qualifications would massively impact disadvantaged students who for many years have used these qualifications to progress to higher education and into employment.
‘Pinning a qualification system on a binary choice of only A-Levels or the untried and untested T-Levels, without that third route of AGQs, is ill thought out and will result in thousands of students missing out on opportunities to progress, and potentially the closure of FE colleges.’
In July, the Department for Education said it planned to 'shake up' the post-16 education system to remove low-quality qualifications that lack job prospects'. The new system will be phased in between 2023 and 2025.
There are currently over 4,000 qualifications at Level 3 approved for Government funding, including BTECs in childcare.
Toby Perkins, Labour’s shadow minister for further education, has also criticised the plans.
‘Despite the high value placed on BTECs by employers and universities, the Government plans to scrap most of these qualifications putting young people’s life chances at risk,’ he said.
‘The Government’s alternative T-Level qualifications are currently unproven and a hasty charge to abolish Level 3 BTECs would be hugely irresponsible.’
However, the Department for Education (DfE) said disadvantaged students stood to gain from the new T-Level qualifications, which have been developed in conjunction with over 250 employers including Fujitsu, AstraZeneca, Amazon UK, and many small businesses.
A spokesperson for the DfE commented, ‘Great qualifications are essential in helping everyone reach their career goals and get good jobs, regardless of their age or background.
‘Our reforms will simplify and streamline the current system, ensuring that all qualifications are fit for purpose, are high-quality and lead to good outcomes.
‘We are putting employers at the heart of the skills system and boosting the quality of qualifications on offer so that all students, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds, leave education with the skills employers need.’
The DfE also pledged to phase reforms in a ‘manageable’ way.
