University technical college

Description

A university technical college is a non-selective free school funded directly by the Department for Education, free to attend, and outside the control of the local education authority.

Students study core academic subjects, as well as practical subjects which lead to technical qualifications. The curriculum is designed by the university and employers, who also provide work experience for students.

UTCs were conceived and supported by the Labour government and introduced in 2010 by the coalition government under the free schools programme. UTCs are collectively distinctive in that they offer technically oriented courses of study, combining National Curriculum requirements with technical and vocational elements. UTCs must specialise in subjects that require technical and modern equipment, but they also all teach business skills and the use of information and communications technology (ICT). UTCs are also supposed to offer clear routes into higher education or further learning in work.

When operating, UTCs receive the same per capita funding as other schools in the local authority, calculated by the same formula, and £87 extra to cover UTC-specific administration.

The university technical college programme as a whole is sponsored by the Baker Dearing Educational Trust, which promotes the setting up of UTCs. The trust was co-founded by Kenneth Baker, a Conservative politician and former Secretary of State for Education and Ron Dearing. Each UTC pays an annual licence fee (£10,000 in 2019) to the trust. Baker Dearing's promotion of UTCs is supported by a range of organisations, including the Gatsby Charitable Foundation, the Peter Cundill Foundation, and the Garfield Weston Foundation. Many large companies have pledged to co-sponsor UTCs including Arup, British Airways, Ford, Jaguar Land Rover and Sony.

List of UTCs

Planned UTCs

It was announced in August 2023 that two more UTCs would be established, in Doncaster and Southampton. In a review of the free school programmes in 2025 by the Department for Education, the Southampton UTC was listed as "minded to cancel", while the Doncaster UTC was listed as "continue in pre-opening".

Closed UTCs

Converted away from traditional UTC model

References

References

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