This year’s budget has been very kind to the construction industry – and we are ready to start welcoming the new generation of the construction world starting 2019!
Back in 2016, Lord Sainsbury created a report that suggested that the UK introduced a standardised way of teaching and assessing technical courses. Thus, the T-Levels were born. This gives young people wanting to learn technical skills the opportunity to do this through a classroom-learning method instead of having to secure it through employment. Currently, there are 13,000 forms of technical qualifications… T-Levels will limit this to just 15 standardised qualifications.
Previously, the UK has been guilty of placing too much focus on academic learning and those wanting to learn a trade we left behind with unorganised, overcrowded assessment routes. All education is crucial to the UK’s economy and it is a giant leap forward to see that non-academic education is getting the formalisation it requires. Of all 20 developed nations, the UK is 16th in terms of citizens with technical training.
Phillip Hammond has pledged to spend £500m on technical education routes to start in 2019/2020. T-Levels will ensure that teaching time with students is extended 50% and the panel has recommended that the content will be led by industry professionals in order to cover as much technical content as possible.
The budget also plans to dedicate £690m for local transport projects and £220m to improve congestion points on national roads. It also promised £270 to the creation of an Industry Strategy Challenge Fund to kick-start the development of technologies that will potentially transform the UK economy.
The future is looking bright for the UK construction industry and prospective T-Level students.
