WHITEHILL and Bordon will be offering T-levels, the Government’s new qualification, as soon as they roll out nationally.

These new technical qualifications have been launched to simplify the process of vocational training in England.

The idea is to offer post-age-16 courses in sectors such as construction and childcare, with the final qualification being seen as equal to their academic counterparts - A-levels.

On Sunday, May 27, the Government announced the first 52 schools and colleges to provide pilot courses.

While Bordon’s Future Skills Centre is not one of them, Basingstoke College of Technology, which manages the facility, said they will be added to the curriculum in coming years.

“The new T-level qualifications look set to transform technical education in the UK,” Basingstoke College of Technology principal Anthony Bravo said.

“This can only be a good thing for young people as it presents a great opportunity for those looking to study a vocational qualification.

“We will be offering T-levels at the Basingstoke College of Technology and at our brand new Future Skills Centre in Bordon as soon as they are made fully available to the wider further education sector in 2023. Until then we will continue to offer our extensive range of technical-skills qualifications, apprenticeships and higher-education courses to ensure students’ progress to university or employment.”

The Government said this was the “biggest overhaul of post-school education in 70 years”. Speaking on the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme, East Hampshire MP and Education Secretary Damian Hinds agreed it was “a really big reform” - one that, although announced before he took up the cabinet role, could well prove a defining policy for his career.

But the scheme has not escaped criticism. Labour considers it political tinkering and “little more than meaningless spin”.

And fears from within the Department for Education have been raised about the risk of rushing the flagship policy. As such, the first courses will be in construction, digital, and education and childcare from 2020, but the timeline for a further 22 subjects - covering finance, hair and beauty, engineering, and the creative industries - is under review. They will be added into the picture between now and 2022.

Whitehill and Bordon has been singing from this vocational hymn sheet for a while now.

East Hampshire District Council said young people will be offered skilled jobs on local construction projects in “a unique deal” with developers, giving apprentices the skills they need to “help build their home town’s ambitious future”.

One of the UK’s largest residential developers, Taylor Wimpey, said it would work with the Future Skills Centre to find apprentices who will be trained and then potentially given full employment once their three-year programme is completed.

As a first step, Taylor Wimpey has committed to employing 10 bricklaying apprentices to work within the Dukes Quarter section of the redevelopment, consisting of 172 new homes at Prince Philip Park. Fellow developer ZeroC will also take on a number of carpentry apprentices within its housing project.

Ferris Cowper, the district council’s portfolio holder for Whitehill and Bordon, said: “The dream of ‘the town that builds itself’ is becoming a reality.

“We are delighted to be able to work with these developers, which have a national reputation in collaboration, and with the exceptional Future Skills Centre. I’d like to acknowledge the effort put into this by Charles Waggett, a director of Taylor Wimpey, who adopted my suggestion with enthusiasm and turned it into this very exciting project. The regeneration of Whitehill and Bordon is all about hope for the future. Through this project, our young people can have new hope of employment and prosperity in this amazing project that is setting national standards across the board.”

Taylor Wimpey and Dorchester Regeneration, which teamed up form the Whitehill and Bordon Regeneration Company, said they were ready to recruit and train students at the Future Skills Centre from September 2018.

Mr Waggett, director of major developments for Taylor Wimpey, added: “These are exciting apprenticeship opportunities in a state-of-the-art training facility at the Future Skills Centre, with inspirational leadership and mentorship delivered by manager Steve Gilder.

“We look forward to supporting Steve and helping to develop this valuable apprenticeship training.”

Mr Gilder felt it was “a fantastic opportunity for the Future Skills Centre to be working with such prominent employers”, something that “can only benefit the young people of Whitehill and Bordon”.

The model, said to be nationally unique, sees apprentices working in sectioned-off areas of a development, under the watchful eye of a master tradesperson, who offers specific guidance and on-the-job training.

By improving the skills base in the Whitehill and Bordon area, the district council hopes to attract businesses and create new employment opportunities while “mitigating the rising skills shortage in the construction industry”.

The Skills Centre was built by Hampshire County Council, which secured an award of almost £4million to fund the project. Opened in September 2017, it offers young people and adults technical, construction-focused courses. In coming years, if all goes to plan, these will be T-levels.