Andy Burnham's plans for technical education build on coalition's UTC roots

A $60B Vote of Confidence in Technical Education

Andy Burnham's plans for technical education in England have been welcomed by many, including former Conservative minister Kenneth Baker. The plans aim to put academic and technical education routes on an equal footing, with a focus on developing technical and vocational skills in schools. This is a significant shift in approach, as the current system has been criticized for prioritizing academic qualifications over technical skills.

The plans are based in part on the Greater Manchester baccalaureate introduced by Burnham as the region's mayor in 2023, which was inspired by Kenneth Baker's vision for high-quality vocational and technical education delivered via university technical colleges (UTCs). UTCs are state schools for 14- to 19-year-olds, funded by government, which work with local employers and universities to deliver a specialist technical education alongside core curriculum subjects.

Critically, Burnham has identified that the key to success is starting a technical route at 14, said Baker. "It's too late to do it at 16." This is a crucial point, as many young people are not exposed to technical education until they are 16 or older, which can limit their opportunities and make it harder for them to succeed in the modern economy.

In order to make this happen on a national scale, classrooms will have to be converted into workshops. In one UTC with a health specialism, some of the rooms have been converted into a hospital ward and a pharmacy. The costs could be high, and school leaders and teaching unions are worried about the lack of detail and whether the funding will be there to deliver such wide-scale changes.

Budgets are already tight and school leaders are grappling with an avalanche of policy reforms to curriculum, inspection and special needs, among others. "Currently, schools are under significant and increasing financial pressure," said Matt Wrack, general secretary of the NASUWT teachers' union. "They are being asked to do even more with even less. No successful and sustainable package of change is deliverable in such circumstances and the prime minister must take action to invest in education if the aims of this announcement are to become a reality."

Others are worried it could have a negative impact on disadvantaged children. The shadow education secretary, Laura Trott, posted on X: "Labour is repeating the mistakes of the past. They previously tried this approach of more 'vocational' courses at GCSE. What happened? The poorest children got funnelled down them, standards dropped and outcomes did not improve."

Tom Richmond, an education policy analyst and former Department for Education adviser, echoed her concerns. He posted on LinkedIn: "One of the biggest challenges will be making sure these new 'technical pathways' do not become a dumping ground for 'those who can't'. "Who will choose whether a pupil pursues a technical rather than an academic pathway? The pupil? Parents? Schools ? We've seen enough from dodgy practices around admissions at age 11 to know that some schools have developed a knack of, shall we say, encouraging some pupils to attend other schools."

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) raised concerns about the challenge of getting employers involved. Imran Tahir, senior research economist at the IFS, said: "Getting employers to engage with designing – and perhaps helping to fund – these new technical pathways will be a significant challenge."

Overall, Burnham's plans for technical education in England have the potential to make a significant difference to the lives of millions of young people, but they will require careful planning and implementation to ensure that they are successful and do not have a negative impact on disadvantaged children.