New opportunities for young people

T Levels offer hope and opportunity for a career in local government beyond the pandemic. 

The Government has launched a new technical qualification called the T Level, to provide young people with vocational pathways to higher education and future employment.

These post-GCSE, two-year, skills-based qualifications, aimed at 16- to 19-year-olds, focus on developing the technical skills employers look for when hiring staff. They include a mandatory 45-day industry placement in the second year of study.  

As Chair of the LGA’s Resources Board, I know that councils are keen to support local young people in gaining vital work experience and to enable them to find meaningful employment. 

Councils also face future recruitment challenges and skill shortages, and need to attract new, talented individuals. This new technical qualification offers a positive opportunity for councils to do both. 

Councils can be a varied and positive career destination for young people. Providing quality work experience for young people will encourage them to look seriously at councils as future career options.  

The LGA is asking councils in England to work with us to consider the value of T Levels by providing one young person with the opportunity of an industry placement from September 2021.  

This campaign by the LGA, supported by the Department for Education, is focused on the long-term skill shortages councils face, and is about filling future vacancies.  

It is also about mobilising experienced council teams to share expertise and to shine a light on skills-based career paths that can link to other government or employer-based schemes, such as apprenticeships, traineeships, or career-graded jobs.  

T Levels are a stepping-stone to higher education in skill-shortage professions in local government, such as social work, planning, IT and legal.     

With increasing unemployment and limited opportunities for young people because of the pandemic, there has never been a better time to encourage potential future staff to consider a council career, and to promote local government as a rewarding future career option.

T Levels are just the beginning, so now is the time to consider promoting your council as an employer of choice for the 2021 intake.  

If you feel your council could offer one young person an opportunity – and thereby join a much bigger campaign promoting councils – then please get in touch to find out how to support and attract young people to your council using T Level industry placements. Councils have until the end of March 2021 to express an interest in offering a T Level placement from September 2021.