Students at colleges, including in the West Midlands, to benefit
The government is investing £570m in expanding training facilities in local colleges, including many in the West Midlands, to equip the next generation with essential skills in high-demand sectors like construction, engineering and digital tech.
More than £283 million will directly support colleges in meeting the rising need for homegrown talent, enabling future builders, coders and engineers to access career-boosting opportunities.
Of this, around £100 million is earmarked for metro mayors and local leaders to increase capacity in construction courses, tackling waiting lists and supporting the ambition to train 60,000 additional construction workers to deliver the 1.5m new homes Labour has promised by the end of this parliament.
‘Learning a trade opens doors to a brilliant career’
Local leaders will have flexibility to allocate remaining funds to address an anticipated surge of 67,000 extra 16- and 17-year-olds entering post-16 education by 2028, fostering localised training aimed at widening pathways to good jobs.
Skills Minister Jacqui Smith said: “Learning a trade opens doors to a brilliant career and a secure future.
“We’re making sure every young person who wants to become a builder, engineer or technician can get that opportunity.”
Applications are now open for colleges to become one of 19 new Technical Excellence Colleges (TECs) in priority sectors, including advanced manufacturing, clean energy, defence and digital technologies. These build on 10 existing construction TECs, set to train 40,000 learners by 2029.
Additionally, T Level providers receive £8.8 million for industry-standard equipment. A recent Association of Colleges survey highlighted construction as the most affected by capacity constraints.
This follows a £1.5 billion pledge for opportunities for nearly one million young people and 50,000 new apprenticeships.
Broader reforms in the Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper include enhanced teacher development, more English and maths teaching, and new V Levels – vocational pathways alongside A Levels and T Levels for sectoral exploration.
