Guidance

Additional 16 to 19 qualifications funding approvals update: equality impact assessment

Updated 27 May 2026

Applies to England

Introduction  

This page records the analysis undertaken by the Department for Education (DfE) to enable ministers to fulfil the requirements placed on them by the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) as set out in section 149 of the Equality Act 2010.

The PSED requires the minister to have due regard to the need to:

• eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other conduct prohibited by the act
• advance equality of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not
• foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not

These aims are also known as the 3 limbs of the PSED.

Brief outline of policy or service

The Post-16 education and skills white paper announced the introduction of V levels. These will be broad applied and vocational qualifications at level 3 that will be 360 guided learning hours (GLH), the same size as an A level.

Students will be able to take V levels alongside other V levels or A levels to form broad study programmes. It also announced new pathways at level 2 to provide students with a clear line of sight to employment or further study.

The Transition plan, published alongside the Government response to the post 16 level 3 and below pathways consultation, sets out the timeline from 2027 for the removal of 16 to 19 funding approvals from legacy vocational and technical level 2 and level 3 qualifications.

At the same time reformed alternative will be introduced:

• T levels and V levels at level 3
• occupational certifications and foundation certificates at level 2

In 2027, the first tranche of new V levels and reformed level 2 qualifications will be introduced in:

• digital systems and data (V level and foundation certificate)
• education (V level)
• education and early years (occupational certificate and foundation certificate)
• catering and hospitality (occupational certificate only)

This page sets out the equality impact assessment for the removal of 16 to 19 funding approval for legacy qualifications. This will happen at the same time as the introduction of reformed alternatives.

Analysis of impacts

Of the total 120 additional qualifications that will have removal of 16 to 19 funding approval in 2027, this impact assessment examines the potential impacts of removing public funding approval from 100 qualifications in the following routes:

• digital
• legal
• finance and accounting
• education and early years

This impact assessment does not cover qualifications that do not appear in the 2023 to 2024 enrolment data. It also does not cover the impact of qualifications becoming unavailable because of operational end date changes. This is because awarding bodies can make these changes independently and on an ongoing basis for commercial reasons.

Summary table

The table below shows the impact of the policy on students aged 16 to 19 by protected characteristics using an ‘X’. The impact assessment is based on information available to DfE through the individualised learner record (ILR) and school census.

Protected characteristic	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Unknown
Age	-	X	-	-
Disability	X	-	-
Gender reassignment	-	-	-	X
Marriage and civil partnership	-	-	-	X
Pregnancy and maternity	-	-	-	X
Race	X	-	-	-
Religion and faith	-	-	-	X
Sex	X	-	-	-
Sexual orientation	-	-	-	X

Other characteristics

Other characteristic	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Unknown
Economic disadvantage	X	-	-	-

16 to 19 learners

Digital

Of the total 47 qualifications, when comparing 16 to 19 enrolments on the 34 qualifications where we have enrolment data in 2023 to 2024 and to the whole 16 to 19 level 3 cohort in the same year, a greater proportion:

• were male (88% compared to 46%)
• were ethnic minorities^{[footnote 1]}. (59% compared to 36%),
• had special education needs and disabilities (SEND) (18% compared to 7%), and
• were from economically disadvantaged backgrounds (22% eligible for free school meals (FSM) at the age of 15 compared to 13%)

Finance and accounting

Of the total 8 qualifications, when comparing 16 to 19 enrolments on the 7 qualifications where we have enrolment data in 2023 to 2024 and to the whole 16 to 19 level 3 cohort in the same year, a greater proportion:

• were male (62% compared to 46%)
• were ethnic minorities ^{[footnote 2]}. (48% compared to 36%)
• had SEND (8% compared to 7%)
• were from economically disadvantaged backgrounds (17% eligible for FSM at the age of 15 compared to 13%)

Education and Early Years

Of the 28 qualifications, when comparing 16 to 19 enrolments on the 25 level 3 qualifications where we have enrolment data in 2023 to 2024 and to the whole 16 to 19 level 3 cohort in the same year, a greater proportion:

• were female (71% compared to 54%)
• were ethnic minorities ^{[footnote 3]}. (62% compared to 36%)
• had SEND (14% compared to 7%)
• were from economically disadvantaged backgrounds (19% eligible for FSM at the age of 15 compared to 13%)

Of the 37 qualifications, when comparing 16 to 19 enrolments on the 34 level 2 qualifications where we have enrolment data in 2023 to 2024 and to the whole 16 to 19 level 2 cohort in the same year::

• a greater proportion were female (96% compared to 47%)
• a greater proportion were White ^{[footnote 4]}. (72% compared to 64%)
• smaller proportion had SEND (26% compared to 28%)
• a greater proportion were from economically disadvantaged backgrounds (37% eligible for FSM at the age of 15 compared to 30%)

Summary of impacts on 16 to 19 learners

DfE has assessed that the removal of 16 to 19 funding approval for legacy qualifications alongside the introduction of reformed qualifications will overall have broadly positive impacts for learners.

At level 3, as legacy digital, education and early years, and finance and accounting qualifications will have 16 to 19 funding approval removed, V levels in digital systems and data, finance and accounting, and education, will be introduced.

These V levels will offer students a high quality vocational option that can be taken with other V levels or A levels that provide broad study programmes.

V levels will support students to either continue their studies through HE or to progress into apprenticeships.

Where students instead wish to specialise at level 3, there are T levels available in these areas that support students to achieve threshold occupational competence.

In digital, this includes T levels in:

• data analytics
• software development
• support and security

There is a T level in education and early years and in accounting. The T level in finance will be withdrawn after the final 2026 to 27 cohort. Uptake of this T level has been low, with providers and employers citing an overly narrow focus at level 3. The new V level in accounting and finance will offer students a broad high quality vocational option.

At level 2, occupational certificates and foundation certificates will provide greater clarity about the:

• purpose of the study programme students are taking
• former supporting students to enter the workforce when they complete their programme
• latter supporting progression to level 3 study

Outline national content development has and will continue to involve collaboration with Ofqual, Skills England, awarding organisations, providers, employers and higher education institutions (HEIs). This will ensure that V levels and new level 2 qualifications are high quality and will lead to positive outcomes for students.

V levels and new level 2 qualifications are being designed with the target cohort in mind, including:

• in the context of those learners’ wider study programme and progression pathways
• with accessibility included as a key design principle to ensure there are no unnecessary barriers preventing students accessing these qualifications

The content of each reformed qualification is subject to consultation, which asks a specific question in relation to the impact on students with protected characteristics, the responses of which are then considered when taking final decisions on national content.

The focus on quality, including work related content directly linked to occupational standards coupled with strong advice and guidance for students, will ensure that V levels and new level 2 qualifications support strong outcomes for students and overall provide a better offer than the previous system of qualifications that they replace.

Adult learners

Funding for these qualifications will only be removed for the 16 to 19 cohort. The DfE understands, however, that decisions for the 16 to 19 cohort can also impact adult cohorts.  We do not anticipate significant adverse impacts, as funding approval for these qualifications for adults will remain. We will continue to keep this under review, working with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) that has policy responsibility for 19 years and above, adult education and training.

Decision-making

Based on the findings of this equalities impact assessment (EIA), we propose that we proceed with removing 16 to 19 public funding approval from 1 August 2027 from the 100 qualifications that appear in the 2023 to 2024 enrolment data and an additional 20 qualifications that do not appear in the 2023 to 2024 enrolment data.  

Monitoring evaluation and action plan

We will continue to have due regard to our legal duties and update our equalities impact assessment to take any additional impacts into account as we further develop the policy. This commitment includes:

• ongoing monitoring: we will regularly review the impact of our policy decisions on all learners, with a particular focus on those with protected characteristics
• stakeholder engagement: we will continue to work closely with providers, awarding bodies and key stakeholders as reforms continue
• data analysis: analysing enrolment and outcome data to identify any disproportionate effects on specific groups
• policy adjustment: making necessary adjustments to our policies to ensure they are fair and equitable

Methodology

This section outlines the methodology behind the equalities impact assessment and provides the data underlying the figures shown in the document.

Qualifications

The Department for Education approves qualifications for government funding for learners aged 14 to 19 years and above. The equalities impact assessment is based on level 2 and level 3 qualifications approved for funding in the 2025 to 2026 academic year in the 16 to 19 offer, including access to higher education (HE) diplomas.

Learners

The equalities impact assessment uses enrolments funded under the 16 to 19 study programmes. Enrolments are identified through the ILR and school census. This includes enrolments for:

• 16 to 19 high needs learners
• 16 to 19 learners (excluding high needs learners)
• 19 to 24 learners with an education, health and care plan (EHCP)
• 14 to 16 direct funded learners

Learner characteristic information

Learner characteristics data are derived from the young persons matched administrative dataset (YPMAD).

The YPMAD is a longitudinal, semi‑comprehensive dataset that tracks attainment and participation among learners in England. It brings together information from a range of administrative sources, including, but not limited to, the:

• ILR
• Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA)
• school census

Some learner characteristics in YPMAD are defined at age 15, including free school meal eligibility, and SEND status. The dataset also includes information on prior attainment in GCSE (or equivalent) English and maths, where available.

Data on level of deprivation is based on the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI), part of the Indices of Multiple Deprivation (IMD). The index gives a score to each postcode area representing the proportion of children under 16 in each area who are income deprived. Scores for learners’ home postcode areas are grouped into bands 1 (most deprived) to 5 (least deprived).

Annex

There are several caveats and definitions to be aware of that apply to all tables in the annex:

• all enrolment figures have been rounded, and for qualifications with low enrolments or small characteristic groups, values have been suppressed and shown as ‘c’
• totals may not sum exactly to the stated totals or to 100% due to the rounding and suppression applied
• as the data is based on enrolments, learners enrolled on more than one course will be counted more than once
• IDACI data is derived from the 2011 census

Table 1a: 2023 to 2024 16 to 19 enrolment characteristics for the level 3 qualifications due to have 16 to 19 funding approval removed with whole level 3 cohort comparator.

Level 3: 16 to 19	Digital	Finance and accounting	Education and Early Years	All level 3
Number of qualifications where we have enrolment data	34	7	25	2,366
16 to 19 enrolments	3,120	520	410	2,262,890
…of which female	12%	38%	71%	54%
…of which Asian (including Chinese)	30%	25%	15%	15%
…of which Black	11%	4%	c	7%
…of which Mixed	5%	3%	1%	6%
…of which Other	4%	2%	1%	2%
…of which White	41%	52%	38%	64%
…of which Unknown	9%	14%	43%	7%
…of which SEN Support at age 15	13%	4%	10%	6%
…of which EHC at age 15	5%	4%	4%	1%
…of which FSM at age 15	22%	17%	19%	13%
…of which IDACI 1 (Most disadvantaged)	32%	27%	21%	18%
…of which IDACI 2	26%	26%	15%	19%
…of which IDACI 3	17%	16%	8%	18%
…of which IDACI 4	10%	13%	7%	19%
…of which IDACI 5 (Least disadvantaged)	9%	6%	8%	21%

Table 1b: 2023 to 2024 adult education budget (AEB) enrolment characteristics for the level 3 qualifications due to be defunded with whole level 3 cohort comparator.

Level 3: AEB	Digital	Finance and accounting	Education and Early Years	All level 3
Number of qualifications where we have enrolment data	34	7	25	2,366
19+ Enrolments	5,940	3,350	3,090	64,710
…of which female	30%	77%	84%	63%
…of which Asian (including Chinese)	20%	17%	21%	14%
…of which Black	25%	6%	9%	14%
…of which Mixed	7%	4%	5%	5%
…of which Other	5%	6%	5%	4%
…of which White	40%	66%	59%	61%
…of which Unknown	3%	2%	1%	2%
…of which LLDD	19%	15%	16%	20%

Table 1c: 2023 to 2024 16 to 19 Enrolment Characteristics for the level 2 Education and Early Years qualifications due to have 16 to 19 funding approval removed with whole level 2 cohort comparator.

Level 2: 16 to 19	Education and Early Years	All level 2
Number of qualifications where we have enrolment data	34	2,758
16 to 19 enrolments	3,630	634,220
…of which female	96%	47%
…of which Asian (including Chinese)	12%	9%
…of which Black	3%	7%
…of which Mixed	4%	6%
…of which Other	1%	2%
…of which White	72%	64%
…of which Unknown	7%	13%
…of which SEN support at age 15	21%	20%
…of which EHC at age 15	5%	8%
…of which FSM at age 15	37%	30%
…of which IDACI 1 (most disadvantaged)	39%	30%
…of which IDACI 2	24%	22%
…of which IDACI 3	15%	16%
…of which IDACI 4	10%	12%
…of which IDACI 5 (least disadvantaged)	7%	9%

Table 1d: 2023 to 24 AEB Enrolment Characteristics for the level 2 Education and Early Years qualifications due to have 16 to 19 funding approval removed with whole level 2 cohort comparator.

Level 2 AEB	Education and Early Years	All level 2
No. Quals where we have enrolment data	34	2,758
19 years and above enrolments	26,590	492,400
…of which female	86%	66%
…of which Asian (including Chinese)	18%	11%
…of which Black	7%	9%
…of which Mixed	4%	4%
…of which Other	5%	4%
…of which White	66%	70%
…of which Unknown	1%	2%
…of which LLDD	17%	19%

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1. This compares all ethnic backgrounds, including unknown backgrounds, with those from white ethnic backgrounds. ↩

2. This compares all ethnic backgrounds, including unknown backgrounds, with those from white ethnic backgrounds. ↩

3. This compares all ethnic backgrounds, including unknown backgrounds, with those from white ethnic backgrounds. ↩

4. This compares all ethnic backgrounds, including unknown backgrounds, with those from white ethnic backgrounds. ↩