New Construction T Level launched with Balfour Beatty VINCI

A new qualification to help school leavers pursue a career in construction has been launched by Walsall College and the design & build joint venture, Balfour Beatty VINCI. The T Level in Construction, Design, Surveying and Planning is equivalent to three A Levels and available to study from September 2020.

The two-year programme involves students spending 80% of their time in the classroom and 20% on an industry placement of 315 hours, equivalent to 45 days. Students can then progress on to university level study or a higher-level apprenticeship.

Jatinder Sharma OBE, Principal and CEO at Walsall College said: “We encourage all Year 10 and 11 students aspiring to work in construction and the built environment to look at how the T Level will give them a promising career start.

He continued: “T Levels have been developed by education providers and employers, which means they are highly job-focussed. The Construction T Level has a particular emphasis on careers in architectural design, traditional and digital surveying and project management. Working with Balfour Beatty VINCI, we will be able to involve students in major local infrastructure projects so that they are more capable and confident about the world of work going forward.”

Shilpi Akbar, Skills Lead at Balfour Beatty VINCI added: “We’re passionate and committed to inspiring and informing young people about the range of careers across the construction industry. We now have the ability to deepen our engagement.
“Supporting the new T Level means we can directly help shape our future talent, ensuring that learners can experience our industry first-hand alongside members of our best-in-class workforce. People undertaking the T Level at Walsall College will therefore be well-placed to embrace the emerging apprenticeships and jobs being created through our projects and the wider construction and infrastructure sector.”

Andy Street, the Mayor of the West Midlands said: “High quality technical education across the West Midlands is an essential part of being able to achieve and sustain our record economic growth. With that in mind I am delighted that our region will be home to some of the first new T Levels, qualifications which are designed to deliver the technical education young people need to start their careers.

“One sector in particular that will benefit from T Levels is construction, with 50,000 more skilled workers needed by 2030. Walsall College will be amongst the first to offer the T Level in Construction, and I am delighted that Government has once again trusted our region to deliver.”

Find out more about the Construction T Level here.