A report from think-tank Policy Exchange calls on the government to redirect funds from universities to boost higher level professional and technical education.

The report Higher, Further, Faster, More, claims that there is a “systematic imbalance” between the 2 halves of our tertiary education system, and the forthcoming government spending review (scheduled for 25 November) must safeguard the FE sector as much as possible.

The report concludes:

1. Leaving the system as it is will not lead to an increase in the types of technical and professional skills that are increasingly important in the labour market
2. Further action needs to be taken to avoid the risk of further deterioration of the FE sector
3. A focus is needed on achieving a competitively neutral system of post-secondary education with a unified funding system.
   

• Freeing up Level 4 and 5 qualifications for wider use - the current restriction on the funding for different organisations to offer higher national certificates/diplomas or equivalents (such as Cambridge Nationals and Cambridge Technicals) should be lifted.
• Government commitment to move towards a single student loan system for all post-19 training whether in FE or HE, and extend maintenance support for some FE learners.
• Accelerating the development of National Colleges and Institutes of Technology as flagships for developing higher level technical and professional skills. This would include allowing them to award their own vocational qualifications.
• Government support for Industrial Partnerships – groups of employers in specific sectors - as the main route for employer engagement with qualifications.