Peter Aldous campaigns for more funding for Sixth Forms and Colleges and is a Vice Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Sixth Form Education.
The APPG has written to the Chancellor setting out our recommendations.
The recommendations are:
Peter Aldous raises concerns at the drop in level 2 apprenticeship starts in recent years and asks the Education Minister what the Government is doing to reverse this decline as this is so vital in promoting social mobility and levelling up.
Peter Aldous leads a debate on Colleges Week to celebrate the great work that colleges do, highlight where Government policy and support are working and examine the areas where more work and attention are required so that colleges can realise their full potential for the benefit of the people and the communities they serve.
Peter Aldous calls on the Government to develop a national coastal strategy to make the most of coastal communities’ significant potential for job creation in the renewable energy, tourism, fishing and maritime sectors. Specifically, locally, he calls on the Government to adjust the Lowestoft enterprise zone boundaries, invest in education and skills and very importantly at the current time coastal defences.
Peter Aldous outlines the impact of the crisis in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) education in Suffolk and backs calls for a national review of funding and how we provide this vulnerable group of children and young people with the education that they need and deserve.
Peter Aldous highlights the success, after a challenging start, of the apprenticeship levy in creating higher-level apprenticeships in larger firms, but, he says, there is a need to provide more opportunities for younger people and new entrants to the labour market. He proposes a number of changes to the levy, including extending the expiration period for levy funds, making the minimum duration requirements for apprenticeships more flexible, and increasing the apprenticeship minimum wage to improve retention rates.
Peter Aldous calls on the Department for Education to back a campaign for more significant investment in SEN and to look at how we can reduce the reliance on education, health and care plans, which are a barrier to so many young people getting the education they need.
Peter Aldous speaks in a debate on the impact of increases in the cost of living on further and higher education students and calls on the Chancellor to allocate £400 million additional revenue funding to the further education sector to both address the problems facing the sector and also alleviate the particular challenges facing FE students.
Peter Aldous highlights the challenges facing the FE sector; such as the rising number of 16 and 17-year-olds, rising costs, and the workforce crisis and calls on the Government to ensure that the 2023-24 funding rate keeps up with inflation, allow colleges to reclaim VAT and ensure that 50% of the apprenticeship levy is spent on apprentices at levels 2 and 3, below the age of 25.
Peter Aldous calls on the Treasury to work with other Government Departments to ensure that the Lifelong Learning Bill gets rid of barriers preventing people on lower incomes from acquiring the new skills necessary for them to get better-paid jobs.