The Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE) has produced new guidance on the government’s new T Levels, designed to help attract new people into the construction and engineering sectors.

T Levels are new courses which follow GCSEs and are equivalent to three A levels. These two year courses, which launched in September 2020, have been developed in collaboration with employers and education providers so that the content meets the needs of industry while preparing students for work, further training, or further study.

Described as a key part of the government’s reforms to support skills and technical education, and encouraging the creation of a skilled workforce that businesses need for the future, T Levels also provide students with the experience to progress into well-paid roles, further study, or an apprenticeship. 80% of the courses take place in the classroom, with 20% in work placements.

A range of T Levels are available of interest to the construction sector, including onsite, building services engineering for construction, and the one most relevant to most ACE members, design, surveying and planning for construction.

Claire Clifford, director of people, skills and culture at ACE, said: “Employers benefit from T Levels in terms of tackling skills shortages, whilst supporting and developing the future local talent pools. T Level students bring imaginative new ideas and a fresh perspective to employers, whilst providing extra help for day-to-day projects. Our guidance will help members explore the opportunity around T Levels for their own companies and links to sources of official information, advice and support.”

ACE's HR forum on Friday 15 July will feature a presentation from Jeb (Abdus) Samad, T Level readiness manager at the Department of Education. More details are TBA soon, but you can book your place here.

ACE members can download the T Level guidance here.