The Sixth Form Colleges Association (SFCA) said a demographic boom has left demand for places “really high”, blaming insufficient Government funding for oversubscribed colleges being unable to expand.
“As a result, sixth form colleges are squeezing more and more students into already overcrowded classrooms, or turning students away,” said James Kewin, deputy chief executive of the SFCA.
“Some sixth form colleges may be over-subscribed, especially in certain areas of the country – for example in areas with large amounts of new house building – which could mean competition for places for some students could be high,” he said.
Asked whether students will be turned away this year, Freeman said: “The honest answer to that question is, we don’t know.” He explained that numbers are “not entirely predictable” as the sector is an “open market”, meaning pupils can hold multiple offers before deciding where to go in August.
Freeman raised concerns about shrinking options for pupils who underperformed at GCSE level, as sixth forms increasingly close Level 2 foundation programmes due to “pressure on places.”
“There’s a lack of second chances out there for those students, and that is a funding and capital issue,” he added.
square SCHOOLS ExclusiveSEND pupils 'injured by staff' at UK school owned by Abu Dhabi royal family
Read More
The SFCA called for an “urgent” uplift to capital expansion funding to allow increasingly oversubscribed colleges to create more classrooms.
“Students will still find a sixth form place, but it may not be in their first-choice institution, particularly if that is a sixth form college,” he added.
The latest Department for Education (DfE) data shows that the number of pupils in sixth form has increased by 15 per cent from 424,204 in 2019 to 500,082 in 2024.
Research by the Education Policy Institute (EPI), published in June, found this is “particularly prevalent amongst lower attainers” and suggests that increased absence rates at school age could signal a “broader disengagement from the education system”.
Kerwin called the Government’s plan to phase out certain BTECs “disastrous” and warned that it could see “more young people disengage from education at the age of 16”.
Murdoch also highlighted the “very challenging financial position” facing many sixth forms and colleges, pointing to “historic underinvestment in post-16 education.”
The Government has been contacted for comment.
Hence then, the article about gcse students could be turned away from sixth forms unless they get top grades was published today ( ) and is available on inews ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( GCSE students could be ‘turned away’ from sixth forms unless they get top grades )
Also on site :