Have your say! City & Guilds Welcomes Employer Input on new Land-based T
Levels

In response to persistent national skills shortages in agriculture and across multiple other key industries, the government committed to introducing a variety of new technical qualifications. These reformed qualifications are now in development with first teaching planned for as soon as September 2026. The new Labour government has also confirmed that T Levels will remain at the heart of this reform to technical education now and in the future.

Launched in September 2020, T Levels are the starting point and a critical part of the post-16 qualification reforms which are set to be continued through the forthcoming changes to Level 2 and 3 technical qualifications.

The goal of these reforms is to raise technical education in England to the level of academic education, and the first step is to simplify the complex technical education landscape. By rationalising hundreds of qualifications, these reforms will help clarify the decision-making process for learners making choices about their pathways and progression.

Employers have directly fed into these qualifications, some of which have now been approved for delivery from September 2025, meaning learners and businesses can expect higher standards of learning and more robust pathways into the UK’s technical workforce.

“Employers are the ultimate beneficiaries so we need to ensure the content is relevant and challenging, so the learners not only get the best experience but can use their technical qualification as underpinning knowledge for any future career or higher apprenticeship.”

–Mary O’Shaughnessy, Learning Delivery Initiatives Specialist, Cadent

How are employers involved?

Aptly described as “designed with employers, for employers” the reformed Level 2 and Level 3 qualifications and the development of T Level technical qualifications (TQs) require the direct involvement of experts from industry-leading organisations of all sizes. This involvement ensures that these qualifications produce competent, work-ready learners who are equipped with the skills and behaviours that industries need.

During the development phase of the new or replacement qualifications, awarding organisations will continue to reach out and engage with employers to gather data to show what the future skills needs are, and to show where there is employer demand for a qualification.

In addition to their role in the development of technical qualifications, employers can collaborate further with awarding organisations as employer validation partners. Validation activities involve using your up-to-date knowledge of trends within the industry to review the content that forms the basis of the technical qualification and assessing the real-world validity of projects and assignments to ensure that, in the ever-evolving technical landscape, these qualifications remain robust and fit-for-purpose.

Why should organisations get involved?

According to research conducted by the Department of Education (DfE), overall employer response to T Levels has been positive. Employers have welcomed the notion that learners will have undertaken some preparation and training prior to their 45-day industry placement and will complete their programme with a greater understanding of how to apply their skills in their chosen careers.

This has been particularly important for the land sector which is suffering from critical skills and personnel shortages while also being under many other practical and economic pressures. By engaging with awarding organisations throughout the qualification development stage for level 2 and 3 reforms, employers can take a giant leap forward in contributing to the development of talent needed for an even wider range of roles and stand first in line to reap the benefits afforded by these powerful technical qualifications.

• Play a significant role in closing skills gaps and increasing industry performance by giving specialist advice to awarding organisations responsible for developing technical qualifications

• Nurture cost-effective recruitment by bringing talented, enthusiastic people into their fields
• Access young talent for junior positions and apprenticeship opportunities
• Contribute to introducing the fresh ideas and creative thinking of younger generations into the industry
• Participate in improving social mobility and equality, diversity and inclusion, while boosting the reputation of the organisation

“I feel it's absolutely essential that employers are aware of what students are learning, and the only way that education will be fit for purpose going forward is if the employers work with the awarding organisations to ensure that the content of what is being delivered is as fit for purpose as it can be.”

• Belinda Hurd, John Hurd’s Organic Watercress

City & Guilds welcomes employer contributors

As level 2 and 3 reforms roll out, and at a time when so many qualifications are being defunded, we welcome industry members to join us as we prepare the next generation to enter careers in technical roles – many of which fall within short-staffed, but essential sectors.

City & Guilds already offer land-based T Levels across a range of sub-sectors in both the Agriculture, Land Management and Production and Animal Care and Management pathways. Learners can cover specialised content focusing on everything from crop production to animal management and behaviour, while also developing a breadth of skills and knowledge in key core areas.

With 11 new reformed qualifications across key sectors set to launch in 2025 and more to follow, the future is bright for technical education – providing employers and training providers commit to working together.

As education has always been, and remains, central to City & Guilds, we have established Employer Industry Boards (EIB), comprising a group of trusted representatives from a variety of sectors. By doing so, we hope to give employers a voice in what skills need to be developed, and how to best do so.

We need technical experts and senior decision-makers from a range of sectors to help with validation activities and to develop new technical qualifications. To find out more about becoming a validation partner or how you can use your industry expertise to contribute to the development of new qualifications with City & Guilds, please visit Employer Engagement | City & Guilds.