Blue Davies to sit on working group for T level qualifications

Last week the Education Secretary, Justine Greening MP, announced further details on the new T level qualifications, one of the biggest changes to technical education designed to deliver a skills revolution for Britain.

British Marine is fully engaged with this work, with Training Manager Blue Davies having been selected to sit on one of the groups tasked with the development of these new courses.

The new T level qualifications will be developed with content from leading industry professionals from companies including Rolls Royce, Fuijitsu and EDF, and representative bodies like British Marine and EEF (The Manufacturing Association). They will be taught from 2020, with the full set of T levels introduced by 2022.

Each route groups together related occupations which require common knowledge, skills and behaviours. These routes are further broken down into a number of specialisms, clustered together in a straightforward way so that young people can see a clear path to the occupation of their choice. Importantly, all T level programmes will include a substantial, high quality work placement so that students can apply their learning in a real workplace environment.

British Marine’s Training Manager, Blue Davies, will sit on the panel responsible for the new Engineering and Manufacturing T level, which will be chaired by Peter Winebloom, Technical Training Director at EEF. Blue will be able to provide key insights from the marine industry, as well as a wealth of training experience, to ensure that these qualifications tackle some of the general skills issues facing marine businesses.

Blue commented: “I really believe that these new qualifications will deliver an excellent level of core skills, both technical and practical, and therefore produce a better prepared young person to employers.

“I am proud to have been selected to sit on the panel which will develop the new Engineering and Manufacturing T level and I am really looking forward to getting involved with representatives from other sectors to ensure that the new qualification meets the skills requirements of UK companies.”

The first meeting of the new panel will be held in November. British Marine will be providing further updates from Blue as the work progresses, so keep an eye on the website and Latest News for more information.

Remember, British Marine is a member led organisation, so Blue will be seeking feedback throughout the development process, which means member companies will be able to influence this work.

The Government has published its Action Plan for the new T levels, which can be viewed on the gov.uk website.

These new qualifications were first announced in 2016 and backed by £500 million every year in additional funding. A breakdown of the courses available and their target delivery dates is provided below:

2020 – Limited Pathways
• Digital
• Construction
• Education and Childcare

2021 – Full Routes
• Digital
• Construction
• Education and Childcare
• Legal, Finance and Accounting
• Engineering and Manufacturing
• Health and Science

2022 – Full Routes
• Hair and Beauty
• Agriculture, Environment and Animal Care
• Business and Administrative
• Catering and Hospitality
• Creative and Design

Apprenticeship Only
• Transport and Logistics
• Sales, Marketing and Procurement
• Social Care
• Protective Services