Thank you for attending the T Levels Employer Support Conference! This page contains all the details from the conference as well as the presentation slides for you to download.
T Levels are the government’s flagship technical education programme, combining in-classroom learning and a substantial industry placement. Hosting industry placements will help employers fill skills gaps, bring young talent to their business, help them meet recruitment needs and support social mobility in your region.
The employer conference marked the first of two face-to-face events to be held as part of the Department of Education’s work in supporting employers interested in hosting T Level industry placements. The primary objectives of the Employer Support Conference were to facilitate the expansion of the network of employers interested in hosting an industry placement, and to provide employers with best practices, templates, and tools for implementing and managing a successful placement.
We covered:
- T Levels and the business benefits of hosting industry placements.
- Employer experiences with and how they worked in practice.
- Insights on how to plan and prepare for placements.
- Resources and tools to help you deliver beneficial industry placements.
- What government support is available to you.
Meet the team
Colin Bentwood
Managing Director, SDN
From 1991-2006 Colin previously held a progression of senior research, strategy, and evaluation roles in London School of Commerce (LSC) and Technology Executive Committee (TEC). Over the years, Colin has established close working relationships with national and local educational government departments, and workforce development organisations.
Simon Peek
Policy Lead, Department for Education
Simon is currently working as part of the T Level Delivery Team and has overarching responsibility for their employer engagement strategy, designed to ensure sufficient employers engage with the T Level programme and offer high quality industry placements. He has also worked in Apprenticeships supporting large levy paying employers to understand how to invest in their workforce development.
Lou Doyle
Session Chair, SDN Strategic Associate
As a Strategic Associate with SDN, Louise has facilitated online T Level employer events and has applied the knowledge she has gained in these sessions to her Newcastle-based business Mesma, which recently recruited its first T Level industry placement students. Louise is a member of the Chartered Institute for IT (BCS) T Level employer steering group and is a T Level Ambassador for the DfE.
Simon Shaw
Session Chair, SDN Senior Associate
Simon has been helping organisations build capability through developing their people for many years. As an SDN Senior Associate, Simon focuses on apprenticeships, T Levels and other development programmes. He’s produced guidance for employers on industry placements and has talked to many students, mentors and leaders about how to how to set up and run them successfully.
Speakers
Kim Smith
Regional Lead: Education & Enterprise
North East LEP
Kevin Marston
Assistant Principal Curriculum and Skills
Gateshead College
Rob Dodds
Controller
Unipres Training Academy
Graeme Hurst
Highway Adoptions Engineer
Sunderland City Council
Ian Betsho
OD Business Partner
Fujifilms Diosynth Biotechnologies
Further support
For more guidance, templates, case studies and events to help you plan and host industry placements, visit the T Level employer support website.
Please contact us if you’d like to speak to someone about T Levels or industry placements, or can’t find what you’re looking for.
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#tlevels #skillsrevolution @educationgovuk @sdn_hq