Public urged to help save practical qualifications
A Black Country college is calling on the public to make their voices heard about a change in academic qualifications.
Sandwell College has asked residents across the borough to sign an online petition by Protect Student Choice around the proposed scrapping of BTEC qualifications.
The petition comes after a plan by the Department of Education to change Level 3 qualifications for young people in England aged 16 and over.
Currently, those looking at higher education can take academic qualification such as A Levels, a technical qualification like an apprenticeship or an applied general qualification such as a BTEC, which combines practical skills with academic learning.
The new plan would see a two-route model of A levels and T levels, a new suite of technical qualifications, and the scrapping of most BTECs.
Protect Student Choice and Sandwell College have said that 15,000 more signatures are needed by Sunday, January 23 to secure a debate in Parliament about the subject.
A spokesman for Protect Student Choice said: "Help us reverse the plan to withdraw funding for most applied general qualifications such as BTECs and guarantee they will continue to play a major role as a choice for your family members and all young people."
To find out more and to sign the petition, go to petition.parliament.uk/petitions/592642
