My Lords, there are currently no plans to invite proposals for further UTCs. New technical education routes will provide young people from the age of 14 with access to technical skills, work experience and connections with employers, regardless of the institution they attend, whether this be a school, college or UTC. Routes will be developed in partnership with mayoral and strategic authorities so that the skills of young people align to local economies and labour markets.

My Lords, there are currently no plans to invite proposals for further UTCs. New technical education routes will provide young people from the age of 14 with access to technical skills, work experience and connections with employers, regardless of the institution they attend, whether this be a school, college or UTC. Routes will be developed in partnership with mayoral and strategic authorities so that the skills of young people align to local economies and labour markets.

I thank my noble friend for that Answer, albeit it is rather disappointing. When the Prime Minister launched the new technical education pathways, he said that he was determined that young people should have the chance to combine core academic subjects with skills, technical education and work experience so that they can be ready for well paid, quality jobs where they live. This is exactly what the 45 UTCs already achieve. Employer engagement is

central to their ethos. It is no accident that, because of this, UTC leavers outperform their peers when it comes to progression, particularly in apprenticeships, where there are three times as many of them. The UTCs will play a key role in delivering the new pathways. I invite my noble friend and her colleagues to reconsider the position so that UTCs can maximise this role in a very important process.

I thank my noble friend for that Answer, albeit it is rather disappointing. When the Prime Minister launched the new technical education pathways, he said that he was determined that young people should have the chance to combine core academic subjects with skills, technical education and work experience so that they can be ready for well paid, quality jobs where they live. This is exactly what the 45 UTCs already achieve. Employer engagement is

central to their ethos. It is no accident that, because of this, UTC leavers outperform their peers when it comes to progression, particularly in apprenticeships, where there are three times as many of them. The UTCs will play a key role in delivering the new pathways. I invite my noble friend and her colleagues to reconsider the position so that UTCs can maximise this role in a very important process.

We value the contribution of UTCs. They create technical pathways and links with employers. We are learning from this model, alongside others which are not just institution-based, as we develop the new policy on technical education in schools. I should also mention that there is one further UTC in the free schools pipeline which is planned to open in Doncaster.

We value the contribution of UTCs. They create technical pathways and links with employers. We are learning from this model, alongside others which are not just institution-based, as we develop the new policy on technical education in schools. I should also mention that there is one further UTC in the free schools pipeline which is planned to open in Doncaster.

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Watson, for supporting UTCs. It is most welcome. The Minister will know the level of youth unemployment; she announced it this morning. For 16 to 24 year-olds, it is 15%. That is a disgrace in the fifth-richest country in the world. It is totally and utterly unacceptable. The level of youth unemployment in UTC leavers is less than 3%. Last year, half of our colleges—some 22—had no NEETs at all. No other schools in the country can match that. If the Minister really wants to reduce youth unemployment, she must join me in promoting the UTC sleeve and for every bog-standard comprehensive to have a sleeve from 14 to 18 of higher technical education. Two schools did this last week, one in Barrow-in-Furness and one in north Lancashire. They will have leavers in 2028-29 before the election. I guarantee that there will be no NEETs from either school. Will the Minister campaign with me for more UTC sleeves?

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Watson, for supporting UTCs. It is most welcome. The Minister will know the level of youth unemployment; she announced it this morning. For 16 to 24 year-olds, it is 15%. That is a disgrace in the fifth-richest country in the world. It is totally and utterly unacceptable. The level of youth unemployment in UTC leavers is less than 3%. Last year, half of our colleges—some 22—had no NEETs at all. No other schools in the country can match that. If the Minister really wants to reduce youth unemployment, she must join me in promoting the UTC sleeve and for every bog-standard comprehensive to have a sleeve from 14 to 18 of higher technical education. Two schools did this last week, one in Barrow-in-Furness and one in north Lancashire. They will have leavers in 2028-29 before the election. I guarantee that there will be no NEETs from either school. Will the Minister campaign with me for more UTC sleeves?

I am well aware that the noble Lord, Lord Baker, has extensive and deep expertise in this area. I also understand that he has asked the department to fund a pilot of 10 UTC sleeves. These would introduce pathways from 14 to 19 in secondary schools focused on specialisms such as engineering, digital and health, alongside the core academic curriculum at key stage 4, on models similar to UTCs. Employers would be closely involved in the curriculum design and delivery of project-based learning, as well as supporting pupils with workplace experience and career support. I understand that a 14-16 sleeve has recently been established in Barrow, Cumbria, with funding from MHCLG.

I am well aware that the noble Lord, Lord Baker, has extensive and deep expertise in this area. I also understand that he has asked the department to fund a pilot of 10 UTC sleeves. These would introduce pathways from 14 to 19 in secondary schools focused on specialisms such as engineering, digital and health, alongside the core academic curriculum at key stage 4, on models similar to UTCs. Employers would be closely involved in the curriculum design and delivery of project-based learning, as well as supporting pupils with workplace experience and career support. I understand that a 14-16 sleeve has recently been established in Barrow, Cumbria, with funding from MHCLG.

My Lords, I join the calls from across the Chamber for the expansion of UTCs. I simply cannot see how this Government can expand 14-plus technical education without expanding UTCs. I welcome the announcement of the UTC in Doncaster. We have one in Sheffield. We have a proud history of industry and technical skills in that city. It was basically torn apart in the 1980s by the steel and coal deindustrialisation. If we are to grow economies such as the one in South Yorkshire, UTCs will play a huge part. I urge the Minister to reconsider and, if possible, meet the cross-party group of Peers who are speaking today to press the case harder than in the 10 minutes we have here.

My Lords, I join the calls from across the Chamber for the expansion of UTCs. I simply cannot see how this Government can expand 14-plus technical education without expanding UTCs. I welcome the announcement of the UTC in Doncaster. We have one in Sheffield. We have a proud history of industry and technical skills in that city. It was basically torn apart in the 1980s by the steel and coal deindustrialisation. If we are to grow economies such as the one in South Yorkshire, UTCs will play a huge part. I urge the Minister to reconsider and, if possible, meet the cross-party group of Peers who are speaking today to press the case harder than in the 10 minutes we have here.

I am sure we are happy to meet with any noble Lord who wishes to do so on this subject. More generally on post-14 education, we aim to make this country a technical education superpower, creating technical routes of equal esteem and ambition to academic routes and which connect young people to the careers of the future. This is why, during the summer, the Prime Minister and Secretary of State announced plans to transform technical education and work experience from the age of 14, not just in one particular type of institution. It will build on the revolution that is already happening for post-16s, where there are clear pathways into high-quality post-16 vocational and technical education.

I am sure we are happy to meet with any noble Lord who wishes to do so on this subject. More generally on post-14 education, we aim to make this country a technical education superpower, creating technical routes of equal esteem and ambition to academic routes and which connect young people to the careers of the future. This is why, during the summer, the Prime Minister and Secretary of State announced plans to transform technical education and work experience from the age of 14, not just in one particular type of institution. It will build on the revolution that is already happening for post-16s, where there are clear pathways into high-quality post-16 vocational and technical education.

Following on from what the Minister just said, is it not time to give technical colleges a similar status to universities?

Following on from what the Minister just said, is it not time to give technical colleges a similar status to universities?

Noble Lords should know that there was an announcement, which we were very proud of, on 16-plus and technical excellence colleges, which are high-performing FE colleges with proven expertise in specialist provision. They are working with providers and employers to improve the quality of construction skills and, by the end of this Parliament, more than 100,000 learners from across 29 technical excellence colleges—backed by £295 million of investment —will have benefited from high-quality skills provision in construction, advanced manufacturing, defence, clean energy, and digital and technologies.

Noble Lords should know that there was an announcement, which we were very proud of, on 16-plus and technical excellence colleges, which are high-performing FE colleges with proven expertise in specialist provision. They are working with providers and employers to improve the quality of construction skills and, by the end of this Parliament, more than 100,000 learners from across 29 technical excellence colleges—backed by £295 million of investment —will have benefited from high-quality skills provision in construction, advanced manufacturing, defence, clean energy, and digital and technologies.

My Lords, today we mark the 60th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster. I was at primary school in the neighbouring Rhondda Valley when news of the tragedy reached us, so being able to ask a question about education in this Chamber today seems entirely appropriate. Cofio Aberfan. My question is: while I recognise that education is a devolved matter, what discussions have the UK Government had with the Welsh Government about the absence of UTCs in Wales, and whether this places Welsh students at a disadvantage compared with their peers elsewhere in the United Kingdom?

My Lords, today we mark the 60th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster. I was at primary school in the neighbouring Rhondda Valley when news of the tragedy reached us, so being able to ask a question about education in this Chamber today seems entirely appropriate. Cofio Aberfan. My question is: while I recognise that education is a devolved matter, what discussions have the UK Government had with the Welsh Government about the absence of UTCs in Wales, and whether this places Welsh students at a disadvantage compared with their peers elsewhere in the United Kingdom?

In respect of the terrible tragedy in Aberfan—I was also a small child at school then, but I remember my parents talking about it with disbelief and horror—I repeat what the Prime Minister said earlier today in the other place:

“I am sure that the thoughts of the whole House will be with that community today and with the people of Wales”.

I am sure that this House will want to join me in associating our remarks with his. On Wales, I am afraid that I must say to my noble friend—although I know she knows it well—that Wales does not have a direct equivalent to UTCs and, as education is entirely devolved, funding for UTCs in Wales is a matter for the Welsh Government.

In respect of the terrible tragedy in Aberfan—I was also a small child at school then, but I remember my parents talking about it with disbelief and horror—I repeat what the Prime Minister said earlier today in the other place:

“I am sure that the thoughts of the whole House will be with that community today and with the people of Wales”.

I am sure that this House will want to join me in associating our remarks with his. On Wales, I am afraid that I must say to my noble friend—although I know she knows it well—that Wales does not have a direct equivalent to UTCs and, as education is entirely devolved, funding for UTCs in Wales is a matter for the Welsh Government.

My Lords, ours is a services-based economy: legal services, financial services, call centres. We are uniquely exposed to the changes coming as a result of AI. Is there not a particular urgency in teaching the kinds of skills in which UTCs excel, such as advanced circuitry, logistics, electronics and so on? Should there not be a presumption that, where there is demand—the noble Baroness mentioned Doncaster; it is already oversubscribed—people should be allowed to create these excellent schools with their excellent records? To declare my interest, I once spent a day at the JCB Academy. I have a paperweight, a sagging lump of metal, which I keep on my desk as a reminder to never again think of welders as semi-skilled. They are artists behind those scarred visors, flicking their flames as Vermeer flicked his paintbrush.

My Lords, ours is a services-based economy: legal services, financial services, call centres. We are uniquely exposed to the changes coming as a result of AI. Is there not a particular urgency in teaching the kinds of skills in which UTCs excel, such as advanced circuitry, logistics, electronics and so on? Should there not be a presumption that, where there is demand—the noble Baroness mentioned Doncaster; it is already oversubscribed—people should be allowed to create these excellent schools with their excellent records? To declare my interest, I once spent a day at the JCB Academy. I have a paperweight, a sagging lump of metal, which I keep on my desk as a reminder to never again think of welders as semi-skilled. They are artists behind those scarred visors, flicking their flames as Vermeer flicked his paintbrush.

I think that the noble Lord may have heard me mention technical excellence colleges, which are working with providers and employers to improve the quality of skills training. In April, we launched our second wave of those colleges in a further four priority areas, which include digital and technologies.

I think that the noble Lord may have heard me mention technical excellence colleges, which are working with providers and employers to improve the quality of skills training. In April, we launched our second wave of those colleges in a further four priority areas, which include digital and technologies.

To ask His Majesty’s Government whether the new technical education pathways from age 14 announced by the Prime Minister on 28 July will involve an expansion of university technical colleges.

To ask His Majesty’s Government whether the new technical education pathways from age 14 announced by the Prime Minister on 28 July will involve an expansion of university technical colleges.

My Lords, what assurance can the noble Baroness give the House that universities will recognise the new V-levels—or vocational levels—to the same extent that they recognise BTECs, given how many young people from disadvantaged areas enter university through the BTEC route?

My Lords, what assurance can the noble Baroness give the House that universities will recognise the new V-levels—or vocational levels—to the same extent that they recognise BTECs, given how many young people from disadvantaged areas enter university through the BTEC route?

The process for agreeing, implementing and delivering these proposals is under discussion, including the kind of question that she has asked. There is an indicative timeline to launch the Government’s public consultation and we will do so before the end of the year. Her question, along with others, will be looked at in codesign with all stakeholders, no doubt including universities.

The process for agreeing, implementing and delivering these proposals is under discussion, including the kind of question that she has asked. There is an indicative timeline to launch the Government’s public consultation and we will do so before the end of the year. Her question, along with others, will be looked at in codesign with all stakeholders, no doubt including universities.

My hon. Friend raises an important matter. We recently announced 19 new technical excellence colleges in England, on top of the 10 confirmed for the construction sector last year. We are expanding the youth guarantee to create further opportunities for young people. However, as she points out, we need to...

My hon. Friend raises an important matter. We recently announced 19 new technical excellence colleges in England, on top of the 10 confirmed for the construction sector last year. We are expanding the youth guarantee to create further opportunities for young people. However, as she points out, we need to...

The 14 to 18-year-olds who study at university technical colleges are three or four times more likely than the national average to secure an apprenticeship. The UTC in Derby is oversubscribed—it got 450 applications for just 100 places —and demand outstrips the number of places in other UTCs too. Many...

The 14 to 18-year-olds who study at university technical colleges are three or four times more likely than the national average to secure an apprenticeship. The UTC in Derby is oversubscribed—it got 450 applications for just 100 places —and demand outstrips the number of places in other UTCs too. Many...