Plans for Advanced British Standard scrapped

The government has announced that the Advanced British Standard will be scrapped, to make space for funding for other areas in the profession, such as the recently announced pay award.

Plans for the Advanced British Standard were first announced by the then Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in October. It was planned to bring together the best of A Levels and T Levels into a single new qualification.

But critics have descibed it as an "expensive repackaging of the current A levels and T levels".

Commenting, Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “The Advanced British Standard was announced by the former Prime Minister without any consultation with or input from the profession, and NAHT did not believe it would provide a qualification offer which met the needs of all students, The previous government’s proposals lacked ambition and were an expensive repackaging of the current A levels and T levels, creating blunt choices for 16-year-olds.

“School leaders also raised significant concerns about the proposals to reshape 16-19 qualifications in light of the much more pressing concerns in the education system. Recruitment and retention, supporting students with SEND, the crumbling school estate – these are just some of the crises facing education which our members believe should be prioritised above qualification reform.”