Select committee: Public Accounts Committee

Conclusion 15

35th Report - Introducing T Levels Published 27 Jun 2025 Addressed to HM Treasury
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The Department also described its work to address employers’ concerns and challenges in offering placements.40 For example, we received written evidence from Make UK and EngineeringUK describing the health and safety concerns associated with hosting students.41 The Department described reintroducing funding to support employers, available from 23 April 2025 to 31 March 2026, for small to medium employers offering placements or those offering health-related placements (for example to procure the necessary personal, protective equipment).42 It has also created more flexibilities for employers. For example, by allowing them to host T Level students remotely up to 20% of the time (50% for digital T Levels) from January 2025 and allowing some elements of placements to be done in simulated environments.43 We also questioned the Department about some employers having concerns that T Level students joining them didn’t have enough skills or experience. The Department recognised it needs to do more to clarify miscommunication around T Level students’ capabilities but is relying on local partnerships between colleges and employers to alleviate these concerns.44 It also described trialling placement coordinators in some NHS integrated care boards to generate more placements.45 Establishing T Levels within the wider skills landscape

From: Public Accounts Committee, 35th Report - Introducing T Levels (HC 822), 27 June 2025

Government response

Latest Treasury Minutes progress report to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Thirty-fifth Report of Session 2024-26

The government responded to the whole report on 4 June 2026 (deadline 27 August 2025).

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Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Thirty-fifth report from Session 2024-26

Published 15 October 2025.

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Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Thirty-sixth report from Session 2024-26

Published 15 October 2025.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government states that it agrees with each of the Committee's recommendations on T Levels and gives target implementation dates ranging from autumn 2025 to March 2026.

  • On raising student awareness and enrolments, it agrees and says it will build on this through the continuing 'Skills for Life' campaign and by improving careers guidance. Its plan will be "fully implemented by September 2029".
  • On industry placements, it agrees that it "can do more" to grow high-quality placements, and "will set out further plans by December 2025".
  • On how T Levels fit with other qualifications, it says a post-16 education and skills strategy, to be published in autumn 2025, will set out "clearly where T Levels will sit alongside other funded qualifications and their purpose".
  • On college funding pressures, it agrees and has introduced "an additional temporary 5% uplift" to the T Level funding rate for academic year 2025-26. It also says it will continue to work with providers to assess ongoing costs.

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