Other approval principles: 14 to 16
Criteria that qualifications in the 14 to 16 offer need to meet alongside the common funding approval criteria.
This section of the manual describes approval criteria that only apply to qualifications in the 14 to 16 offer.
We will only approve a qualification for funding in the 14 to 16 offer if the qualification meets all the common approval principles and these specific principles here.
Qualifications that were considered but not included in the key stage 4 performance tables will be considered for the 14 to 16 offer and will need to meet the common and specific principles.
We will not approve a qualification for funding in the 14 to 16 offer if it is linked to occupational regulation or serves as a ‘licence to practice’.
This includes qualifications in a sector or occupational area where:
- it is a legal requirement for all practitioners to obtain a licence from the relevant state recognised regulatory body and the qualification supports this
- practitioners are required to register and be recognised by a professional body and the qualification supports this
- there is a requirement to demonstrate competence against a code of practice and the qualification supports this
- there are mandatory requirements for an occupation (or for specific activities within that occupation) and the qualification supports this
We are doing this because we do not expect qualifications in the 14 to 16 to link to specific occupational roles.
We will not approve technical qualifications (TQs) for T Levels in the 14 to 16 offer if they are approved for a T Level programme by the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE). This is because T Levels are programme for students aged 16 and over.