A SELECTION OF THE ESSENTIALS IN THE KNOW T Level delayed until ‘at least 2024’

The roll out of the T Level quali cation in Hairdressing, Barbering and Beauty Therapy has been postponed until “at least 2024”. The implementation of the new vocational quali cation aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds was due to launch this September, having already been delayed by two years.

“We have taken this decision to protect the quality of T Levels and to ensure that they continue to lead to great outcomes for all students,” said Sue Lovelock, the civil servant tasked with delivery of the programme at the Department of Education (DfE), in a letter to T Level providers affected by the delay. She stated there was “more work for awarding organisations to do”, before the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) and regulator Ofqual would be clear that the T Level would be “capable of meeting the high-quality bar required by both organisations to enable them to be taken into delivery, and that will not be possible in time for launch this September.”

Jo Barker, co-founder of YOKE The Salon and part of the T Level Action Group for Hairdressing, Barbering and Beauty, said of the delay: “I’m disappointed. It seemed clear from our rst virtual meeting that the DfE hadn’t really considered how T Levels would allow students to slot into an actual career within our industry.”

She added: “Hopefully they will use the time wisely to consult the industry properly, to create something that feels cohesive and less like workplaces are just being delivered ‘work experience’ students.”

Ian Harrold, founder of Attitude Men’s Hair in Liverpool and a member of the IfATE route panel for hair and beauty, said skills levels were a big issue behind the delay.

He said: “Eighty per cent theoretical-based training is never going to work for a hairdresser. And they [the DfE] don’t seem to want to shift that.”

It all falls down at the 45 days of practical placement, Ian said, as he believed participating salons would not be properly assessed. “Unless the salons are vetted, students will end up at places where they’ll just sweep the oor. That’s one of my biggest fears,” he added.

The DfE has told education providers developing T Level Transition Programmes (TLTP) for hair and beauty routes they can go on and deliver their TLTP this year as planned, on the proviso that they commit to “deliver the T Level” in 2024.