The government has tabled a Technical and Further Education Bill, education secretary Justine Greening has announced.

The Bill will allow for the remit of the Institute for Apprenticeships to be expanded in line with the Post-16 Skills Plan, which will give the body a greater role in overseeing the development of a new post-16 structure for technical education. It will also be renamed the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education.

The Bill will provide a new insolvency regime for colleges, and ensure that colleges and local authorities share data, following the devolution of adult skills funding.

In a written statement, Ms Greening said her ambition was to “drive long-needed improvements in the quality of technical education in this country - mirroring the impact of this government’s reforms to the quality of academic education”.

‘Creating a level playing field’

The measures in the Bill will build on the expansion of the apprenticeship programme and will “deliver against the commitments” made in skills plan, she added.

The reforms, Ms Greening said, are vital to “ensuring that all people, irrespective of their background, have a level playing field to fulfil their potential and have high-quality routes to secure not only their own futures but also the skills that British business needs”.

The Bill will focus on the “important principle of student protection” through an “effective insolvency regime for further education and sixth-form colleges”.

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