What are T-levels and what are the grades worth?

New T-level courses have been introduced in England every academic year since 2020, when they first began.

A new report is urging the government to halt plans to pull funding from other vocational courses until T-levels are full ready to replace them.

So what are T-levels, who are they meant for, and why were they introduced?

A T-level course takes two years to complete and is roughly equivalent to three A-levels.

The qualification, which is aimed at 16 to 19-year-olds, focuses on practical subjects rather than academic ones.

Each course includes a mixture of classroom learning and on-the-job experience, with a work placement of at least 315 hours - or about nine weeks.

The idea is that T-levels cater for students who want an alternative to A-levels but do not wish to take an apprenticeship, which usually requires as much as 80% of a student's time to be spent with an employer.

T-level students have a range of subjects to choose from, including accountancy, digital business, finance, healthcare and manufacturing.

Courses have been gradually rolled out each September since 2020 - a full list is available here.

A further six courses were due to roll out in September 2023 but three have been delayed until 2024:

A fourth, in catering, is being pushed back until at least 2025.

Instead, just two new T-levels will be introduced as planned - legal services, and agriculture, land management and production.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said new courses "will only be approved for delivery where we are sure they are good enough and can be delivered to a high standard".

In 2020 there were more than 12,000 vocational qualifications at all levels, offered by more than 150 awarding bodies, according to Ofqual, which oversees qualifications.

The Department for Education says T-levels were introduced to "streamline" post-16 education and make things less confusing for students and employers.

As T-levels are introduced, funding is being withdrawn for some other vocational qualifications in England.

When the recent delays were announced, Gillian Keegan said there would be "at least one year" between the introduction of a T-level and the removal of funding for similar qualifications. Under previous plans there would have been a two-year overlap.

Vocational courses available in the UK aside from T-levels include:

Students who successfully complete a T-level have a qualification which is equivalent to three A-levels.

They will get one of four grades, ranging from a distinction* to a pass. They receive a nationally-recognised certificate showing their overall grade and listing their experiences on the course.

A distinction* is worth 168 Ucas points - the same as three A*s at A-level - and a merit is equivalent to three Bs at A-level.

For those wanting to go on to higher education, qualifications are accepted by 134 universities and colleges.

In August last year, results were given out to the 1,029 first T-level students in England - with a 92% pass rate.