The Future of Technical Education

This book provides an evidence-informed vision of the future of technical education in England. Drawing on creative and innovative ideas, contributions analyse the current drivers to improve provision and the legacy of lessons learned from England’s historical systemic underperformance in developing accessible, high quality technical education. In addition to exploring the dynamics of the political and economic drivers for resetting the technical education agenda, the volume includes an important social justice perspective by exploring social mobility considerations linked to the government’s levelling up agenda, place-based interventions and differential access to skills training. Drawing on current and previous policy discourse and implementation, the book provides a forward-looking view, with recommendations of how high quality technical education could be developed to meet the needs of individuals, the economy and society. It will appeal to students, academics and practitioners with an interest in technical education in further and higher education settings. John Baldwin is now semi-retired, continuing with work in further education and in researching practice to support people to progress to higher education. He began his career in education as a business and law lecturer at Stamford College, UK, and progressed onto being the Head of the Business Studies Department. Subsequently, he became Director of Curriculum and over many years was responsible for most departments in the college. Neil Raven is an independent researcher and evaluation consultant with over 22 years of experience in the development, management and evaluation of educational projects and programmes. He is also Visiting Lecturer at the University of Bristol, UK, and has published widely on the subjects of educational equality and fair access. Robin Webber-Jones has worked in the further, higher and skills education sector for over 20 years, holding a number of senior leadership roles. He sits on a range of national sector bodies. His research is focused on education leadership, educational collaborations, and social mobility and education. He has a keen interest in politics.