Ensuring learners in Wales are not disadvantaged by policy changes in England

As a regulator, we have a responsibility to ensure that an appropriate range of qualifications is available to learners in Wales.

The UK Government’s Department for Education has today published a list of qualifications that overlap with waves 1 and 2 of T levels and will therefore be defunded in England from August 2024.

Qualifications Wales recognises that many will be concerned about how this announcement impacts on the availability of some level 3 qualifications in Wales.

It’s important to note that the list of qualifications that will be defunded in England will not be defunded – nor cease to be available - in Wales.

As a regulator, we have a responsibility to ensure that an appropriate range of qualifications is available to learners in Wales. 

Ahead of this announcement, we’ve been working extensively with awarding bodies to ensure that there is continuity of provision in Wales and gaps do not emerge in the post-16 qualification offer. For example, Pearson and City & Guilds have committed to extending qualifications where needed, while we determine what the next iterations of the qualifications should be. 

In most sectors, there are alternative qualifications available that have not been identified for defunding in England. Additionally. in some key sectors, such as health and social care and construction and the built environment, we have developed new made-for-Wales qualifications that will not be impacted by the policy changes in England, as part of our series of sector reviews of qualifications.

We will continue to explore options to extend, adopt or adapt qualifications to meet the needs of Wales or, where necessary, commission new qualifications to fill the gaps. In this work we will bring together further education colleges and work-based learning providers with awarding bodies to ensure that fit for purpose qualifications continue to be available to Welsh learners. 

For more information about how we’re mitigating the risks and future actions, you can read our recent correspondence to all schools, colleges and workplace learning providers in Wales.