The Higher Education landscape is evolving, providing new and exciting opportunities for your learners. The Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) is re-shaping student finance, providing flexibility like never before and Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQ’s) are growing to offer a skills-based route for school leavers blending the strengths of traditional degrees and degree apprenticeships.

Our aim is to provide a vision of the future helping you understand the evolution of opportunity and provide the best possible support and guidance to your learners.

 

“Reframing Progression – Higher Technical Qualifications and the Extended Education Landscape”

• Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) are employer-designed, government-approved technical qualifications at Levels 4 and 5 (equivalent to the first two years of a degree) that are intended to prepare learners directly for skilled employment or higher education progression.
• Delivered as part of an Extended Education package, HTQ’s are rapidly changing the landscape for school leavers of the future, offering a middle ground between highly sought after, but sometimes elusive Higher and Degree Apprenticeships, and traditional academic degrees.
• Evolution of these programmes, alongside the potential for fluid, modular based learning linked to the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE), will offer huge evolution of choice. The role of sixth form and careers teams will be crucial to help students make informed and individual decisions.

 

 

Schedule:

09:30-10:15 Arrival, Registration and Refreshments

• Registration and informal networking
• Opportunity to engage with DMU staff and school and college colleagues
• Refreshments available

 

10:15-10:30 Welcome and Conference Overview

Speaker: Jill Cowley, Pro Vice Chancellor, De Montfort University

• Welcome to DMU
• Purpose of the conference and intended outcomes for delegates
• Why HTQs matter now: skills, progression, and parity with traditional pathways
• Overview of the agenda to follow

 

10:30-11:00 Launch of the University’s Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs)

Speakers: Head of Higher Technical Education and Professional Skills, Helen Kennedy-Holleman

• Overview of HTQ’s with the wider higher education framework
• The university’s HTQ portfolio:
• Subject areas and start dates
• Delivery modes
• Employer involvement and labour market alignment
• Progression routes:
• Into employment
• Into degree programmes (top-up and integrated pathways)
• How HTQs run alongside A-levels, T Levels, apprenticeships, and traditional degrees

 

11:00-11:30 Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) and Student Finance Reform

• Overview of the LLE:
• Modular funding
• Credit-based learning
• Eligibility and timelines
• What this means for HTQs specifically
• Anticipated changes to student finance:
• Maintenance support
• Loan repayment considerations
• Practical implications for advising 16–18 learners:
• Who HTQs are best suited for
• Talking to parents about cost and value
• Known information vs. areas still subject to change

 

11:30-11:45 Comfort Break and Networking

 

11:45-12:10 Digital Peer-to-Peer Engagement: The Ambassador Platform (TAP)

Speaker: Jamie Bradford, Head of Future Students, De Montfort University

Overview of the Ambassador Platform and its role in student decision-making

• How sixth forms and colleges can use digital peer-to-peer engagement
• Specific HTQ and technical pathway ambassador support
• Safeguarding, moderation, and quality assurance
• Case studies or early engagement data

 

12:10-12:45 Panel Discussion and Q&A

Panel: Academic HTQ Lead, Careers/Outreach Lead, Employer or Industry Partner

Focus:

• Common adviser questions about HTQs and LLE
• Parental perceptions and overcoming barriers
• Best practice in positioning technical pathways alongside academic routes

 

12:45 Networking Lunch

 

1:30 Close and Next Steps

• Summary of key takeaways
• How delegates can access further resources and contacts
• Feedback and evaluation
• Invitation to future CPD or partnership activity

 

If you wish to secure your place, please complete the form below and we will follow up with additional information.