Theresa May calls for an end to ‘outdated’ belief that young people have to go to university to succeed
The PM is calling for technical higher education qualifications to be seen as equal to university degrees as part of a new Government review.
Theresa May is pleading for the “outdated” belief young people have to go to university to succeed in life to be abandoned and snobby attitudes about vocational training to be surrendered.
In a speech in Derbyshire on Monday , the PM will call for technical higher education qualifications to be equal to university degrees as part of a new Government review.
And she will signal the possible return for scrapped maintenance grants for the poorest pupils - potentially a major Government U-turn.
Former education secretary Justine Greening has urged the Government to reintroduce maintenance grants for the most disadvantaged students.
Announcing a major review of the way post-18 education is paid for - she will admit the current flawed system is leaving the worst-off pupils with the highest debts.
Revealing Britain now has one of the most expensive systems in the world, she will say the sweeping review “will examine how we can give people from disadvantaged backgrounds an equal chance to succeed”.
It will investigate “how disadvantaged students and learners receive maintenance support, both from Government and universities and colleges.”
The PM will also commit to ensuring “that people from all backgrounds share the benefit of university study.”
She will say many graduates are now left questioning the return they get for their investment.
And she will confirm the review will probe the whole system of student funding and value for money, both for students and taxpayers, and how students and graduates contribute to the cost of their studies.
Describing how the current system is failing, she will say: “The competitive market between universities which the system of variable tuition fees envisaged has simply not emerged.
“All but a handful of universities charge the maximum possible fees for undergraduate courses.
“Three year courses remain the norm.
"And the level of fees charged do not relate to the cost or quality of the course.
"We now have one of the most expensive systems of university tuition in the world.”
She will go on: “For those young people who do not go on to academic study, the routes into further technical and vocational training today are hard to navigate, the standards across the sector are too varied and the funding available to support them is patchy.
“So now is the time to take action to create a system that is flexible enough to ensure that everyone gets the education that suits them.”
One in three 18-year-olds were placed on degree courses in England last year.
But university application numbers in England overall fell by five per cent.
The entry rate for students from disadvantaged areas in 2016 was at the highest on record - 19.5 per cent.
The latest Ucas figures show there were 437,860 applications from students in England - down 5 per cent from the previous year.
Ahead of the unveiling of the PM’s review, Sir Peter Lampl, Founder and chairman of the Sutton Trust educational charity, welcomed the review.
He said: “Disadvantaged students now leave university with the highest levels of debt which is grossly unfair.
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"It is essential that maintenance grants be restored.
“Additionally fees should be cut for most students and means tested so those from disadvantaged backgrounds pay little or no fees.
“Reducing and means testing fees, restoring maintenance grants and continuing to grow outreach work are vital to increasing social mobility.”