The government has pledged £101 million to give all 18 to 19 year olds who are struggling to find work in England the “opportunity” to study “targeted high value level 2 and 3 courses”.
And the Treasury has confirmed that it will expect the courses “to be taken at both colleges and schools”.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the “high value courses for school and college leavers” scheme during his summer statement this afternoon.
An accompanying Treasury document said: “Government will provide £101 million for the 2020-21 academic year to give all 18 to 19 year olds in England the opportunity to study targeted high value level 2 and 3 courses when there are not employment opportunities available to them.”
The Department for Education told sister title FE Week it will be offering school and college leavers this year that are at risk of becoming NEET an optional extra 12 months in education.
A full list of qualifications available for the fund will be published in due course, but it is expected to apply to A-levels in science, technology, English and maths, as well as qualifications in ICT and construction, for example.
A Treasury spokesperson said that “given the mixture of academic and vocational courses – on which the Government will set out more details shortly – we’d expect the courses we’re funding to be taken at both colleges and schools”.
Sunak also announced employer incentives for taking on new apprentices today, as well a £2 billion “kickstart” scheme and a £111 million boost to traineeships.
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