SCHOOLS and colleges will get £400 million windfall to spend on boosting the life chances of over-16s.
Chancellor Sajid Javid will announce the biggest cash boost for higher education in a decade as part of his spending round this week.
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It will be used to fund the launch of the new T-level technical qualification which will train and teach young people skills for the modern workplace.
Teachers often complain that 16 to 19-year-olds are often neglected by the system as money is poured into primary schools, GCSE courses and universities.
But Mr Javid last night vowed to treat sixth-form and FE colleges “with the seriousness they deserve”.
He said: “Further education is a lifeline of opportunity for our young people. I want this investment to start to end the snobbishness in some quarters about the quality and importance of a vocational education.
“It was an FE college that equipped me with the qualifications needed to pursue my ambitions. We’ll make a strong statement in backing it at next week’s spending round and I’ll continue to look at what more we can do to help, just as my FE college opened my horizons and set me on my way.”
‘END THE SNOBBISHNESS’
T-levels are a new two-year qualification being introduced in England next September. They will give 16 to 19-year-olds a mix of classroom learning and “on the job” experience.
Details emerged yesterday after the government announced billions of pounds in extra funding for schools in England.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said the funding would help cover costs, including pensions, and would help young people “get the skills to get the right jobs”.
The qualifications, in subjects including accountancy and catering, have been developed in collaboration with industry. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, welcomed Mr Javid’s funding boost pledge.
He said: “We hear a lot about schools. We hear a lot about universities but it’s actually the further education sector which has had the biggest cuts since 2010.”
Schools aid vow
TOUGH new measures to tackle under-performing and coasting schools will be revealed by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson this week.
Outstanding schools will no longer be exempt from routine Ofsted inspections.
And spot checks will ensure parents have up-to-date information about the quality of their kids’ education.
Mr Williamson will unveil more support for struggling schools and funding for a trust to turn around those with long-term problems.
Teachers, nurses and police officers will be “looked after” in a Spending Round described by one Treasury official as “a page-turner”.
A source said: “In the first days in office, the PM outlined his clear priority areas – the NHS, education and fighting crime.
“This spending round will put the money behind those priorities, allowing local areas to get on with delivering services for people in the way they know best.”
