This House of Lords Library Briefing has been prepared in advance of the debate to take place on 6 September 2018 in the House of Lords on the motion moved by Lord Aberdare (Crossbench), “that this House takes note of the case for high-quality careers education and advice to be available to all students".
Careers Education and Advice (366 KB , PDF)
This Lords Library Briefing has been prepared in advance of the debate due to take place on 6 September 2018 in the House of Lords on the motion moved by Lord Aberdare (Crossbench), “that this House takes note of the case for high-quality careers education and advice to be available to all students”.
The provision of high-quality careers education and advice for students has been advocated as a means of promoting greater social mobility. The charity Education and Employers has argued factors such as socio-economic background and gender might limit someone’s expectations of the kinds of employment open to them. However, the Institute for Education has said that careers education has the potential to widen young people’s aspirations. Careers advice has also been promoted as a means of enabling the workforce to better adapt to changes to the jobs market and help people to ensure their skills training better matched the needs of the UK economy.
The quality and consistency of careers education and advice available for students has been questioned. Focusing on careers education and guidance in schools in England, parliamentary committees including the House of Lords Social Mobility Committee, the House of Commons Education Committee and the House of Commons Education, Skills and the Economy Sub-Committee have all argued that careers education and advice was inadequate and needed to be improved.
Various governments have attempted to improve standards in careers education and advice. Most recently, in 2017, the Conservative Government published Careers Strategy: Making the Most of Everyone’s Skills and Talents
Careers Education and Advice (366 KB , PDF)
In its manifesto ahead of the 2024 general election, the Labour Party stated that if elected it would remove the current exemption from VAT and business rates for independent schools. The impact of this measure has been debated; some estimate a net benefit to the government of £1.3bn to £1.5bn, while others argue it could result in a net cost.
In recent years, many universities have faced financial challenges. This has been attributed to several factors, including the impact of inflation on the real-terms value of tuition fee income from undergraduates, a dependence on international student numbers and increases in the cost of living. These challenges have led to some universities reducing their education provision and staffing allocations.
The House of Lords Education for 11–16 Year Olds Committee argued in a report published in 2023 that “urgent change” was needed in 11–16 education, including revising the curriculum, reducing the volume of exams at 16 and reforming school performance measures. The House of Lords is due to debate the report on 26 July 2024. The Labour government has launched a review of the curriculum and the assessment system, due to report in 2025.
