Local leaders have say on reforms to prepare youngsters for work

Local leaders are to have their say on how to drive excellence across the education system and better prepare young people for work during a summit hosted by the Education Secretary.

Regional mayors, business leaders, headteachers and college principals will convene today (Thursday(10 10th)September 2026) at No10No.10 North in Manchester to shape plans to make England a technical education superpower, and ensure technical and academic education are on an equal footing. 

It comes following the PISAProgramme for International Student Assessment (PISA) international education rankings earlier in the week – which showed England improved or remained stable against an international backdrop of declining scores and continues to perform significantly above the OECD averages in all three3 subjects. Meanwhile, Estonia shows academic and technical excellence can coexist. 

Discussions will focus on the delivery of vocational education reforms from aged 14, work experience opportunities, and making the most of the devolution of billions of pounds of funding for 16 to 19-year-olds. 

The meeting will be the first of regular gatherings that will bring together industry, politicians and educators to drive forward reforms. It comes ahead of the publication of the Devolution Whitewhite Paperpaper which will set out plans to give local leaders a greater role in shaping economic growth and opportunity in their areas. 

Education Secretary Lucy Powell is set to say in her opening remarks:  

I want a new way of working in education. I want change to come not from Whitehall alone, but to be co-designed with those who will deliver it, those who know local strengths and challenges best – you and your colleagues.  

That’s what we’re here today, and that’s how I want us to see devolution. I want it to be at the heart of a different way of doing things: a partnership between national government and local areas, so that we can bring the change that children, young people and families need, up and down the country.

The reforms build on the government introducing V Levelslevels from aged 16 and expanding T Levelslevels from next September to help to tackle the nearly 1 million young people who are not in education, employment or training. 

On the same day, Minister Smith will use her first address to the higher education sector at the start of the new term to call on universities to see themselves at the heart of this reform agenda, helping bring growth to every postcode. 

Speaking at University UK’s annual conference, she will urge the sector to work with local leaders, colleges, and employers to identify opportunities locally to shape courses and create work experience.  

In her speech to university heads, Minister Smith is set to say:

There’s no point building the growth this country desperately needs, if it just embellishes the places that are already prosperous. Growth should spread opportunity and prosperity widely, leaving no area behind.

This vision for widespread growth makes universities’ local connections and contributions just as important as their national and international renown.  

Your institutions are a network of economic engines throughout the country. We want to build on your established strengths and successes to distribute opportunity and drive national renewal.  

Universities should be at the heart of local partnerships that turn economic opportunity into courses, student workplace experience and good jobs for local people.

This is already happening in areas such as the Humber where the University of Hull works with major local employers including wind turbine manufacturer Siemens Gamesa and renewable energy developer Ørsted. Students can access placements and graduate opportunities, while a master’s degree apprenticeship developed with Siemens Gamesa is training the next generation of offshore wind engineers.  

Meanwhile, in the West of England, UWE Bristol and University Centre Weston work with employers including Airbus, Rolls-Royce and GKN Aerospace to deliver engineering degree apprenticeships. Learners combine paid work with degree-level study, while employers help shape training around the skills needed in aerospace and advanced manufacturing.    

Chief Executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association, Bill Watkin, said: 

Today’s summit is a very welcome opportunity to discuss how to implement the ambitious reforms set out by the new Prime Minister and Secretary of State.  

We share the government’s ambition to reduce the number of young people not in education, employment and training - this is an important national priority that we must all come together to address. 

Today could mark the beginning of a new chapter in collaboration between education, industry and government to ensure that every young person can access a high quality pathway to skilled employment or further study.

Chief Executive of the Association of Colleges, David Hughes, said:  

The Prime Minister’s has set out a clear and exciting vision of positive pathways for young people through technical education into good jobs from age 14. Those pathways need to go all the way to the highest levels of learning and to open up great careers.   

Colleges already contribute so much in this area, and the roundtable is a great opportunity to build the local partnerships needed to scale that work up, with elected mayor’s leading. I’m pleased that the Education Secretary is bringing us all together, there’s a lot to win and a lot to plan for.

Chief Executive of the Confederation of School Trusts, Leora Cruddas CBE said: 

I am pleased to be attending this important summit. Public institutions should be understood not simply as mechanisms for delivering services, but as enduring civic assets that generate belonging, trust, and democratic legitimacy.  

The strength of a nation depends on the vitality of its local institutions and the relationships between and among them. School trusts in England are civic institutions alongside further education colleges, universities, and NHS trusts, with the capacity to support civic leadership in place.

Amazon UK Country Manager, John Boumphrey, said:  

Talent is evenly distributed across this country, but opportunity is not.  

At Amazon, around half the people who join our operations teams come either from unemployment or straight from education - including from communities where opportunity is hardest to find.  

When you give young people the right support, they thrive.  It’s as simple as that.  We’re proud to be helping every young person see a real route into a career.