If T levels are to be a success, they must adapt to rapid changes in industry, a member of the T-level digital trailblazer panel has said.
Damian Corneal, the managing director at consultancy firm Accenture and a member of the data and business services panel for the digital T level route, said the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) needs to be quicker at adapting to changes in industry in order to make a success of T levels.
Speaking at a Westminster Education Forum in central London event on Thursday morning, Mr Corneal added that he was regularly calling for the IfATE to speed up the process of delivering new apprenticeship standards.
He said: “The pace of change is significant - it is fast. When we started off on this journey, the occupational map we were working with looked like the 1970s with the job roles that were on offer. The IfATE need to do better at being able to turn around things quickly and that is something that we are constantly talking about.”
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Mr Corneal added: “If I put my industry hat on, then that is especially the case with digital technology and consulting. What we see is happening now, we can’t wait three years down the line to make changes to those specifications.
“On the T-level front, I have moved from being sceptical on how that will impact to really believing that can be transformative, not just for UK Plc but for communities, for students and for folks moving from education into employment.
“I’ve had the privilege of drafting one of the data standards at level 3 for the T level and the level 3 apprenticeships for data. If we implement T levels correctly, if the right partnership between business, the government and the FE sector is in place, I think we will see a step change in the availability of skills across the UK over the next few years.”
