Press release

Online resource to help young people decide on their future

A central list of post-16 courses will provide up-to-date and reliable information for young people, schools and parents.

• From: Department for Education and Nick Boles
• Published: 24 March 2015

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

A central list of post-16 courses which will make it easier for young people to make choices about their future has moved a step closer to reality after a guide for providers was published today (24 March 2015).

From September 2015, the post-16 courses database will hold comprehensive details of education and training courses across the country. The operational guide published today sets out the information education and training providers must supply for the database.

The information will be up to date and reliable, and available as open data for any organisation to present to young people, schools and parents in user-friendly ways.

Skills Minister Nick Boles said:

This government is equipping all young people, whether they choose to take an academic or vocational path, with the skills they need to succeed.

This can only happen if they have access to the latest, most dependable information on the opportunities open to them, which is why the post-16 courses database is so important.

I am confident that once it is up and running this resource will become one of the main routes through which young people find out about their options and make key decisions about their future.

The government announced last year that all schools and colleges with pupils over 16 will, by the end of September, be expected to make information available on their education and training opportunities.

The operational guide for the database published today is aimed at providers, outlining the kind of information they must provide.

The post-16 courses database is the latest in a number of reforms carried out by government which benefit young people post-16, including:

• introducing a rigorous new curriculum and world-class qualifications focused on the subjects universities and employers value the most
• ensuring young people who have not achieved at least a C in GCSE English or maths must continue studying those subjects up to the age of 18
• removing low-quality vocational qualifications from league tables in favour of courses proven to deliver the skills employers demand
• establishing a careers and enterprise company which will encourage greater collaboration between schools and employers to deliver information and inspiration on careers

Notes to editors

1. The post-16 courses database: operational guide is available on GOV.UK.
2. It is our intention that the open database of post-16 courses will include a comprehensive list of 2016-to-2017 course information by the end of September 2015. Any organisation will be able to use the information hosted on the database and present the post-16 options available to young people on its website.
3. The government is spending £7.2 billion in 2014 to 2015 to fund a place in education or training for every 16- or 17-year-old who wants one.

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Published 24 March 2015