§ 80. Mr. Lawlerasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans there are to integrate educational qualifications with the two-year YTS.
§ Mr. Chris PattenThe Manpower Services Commission, having consulted the Education Departments, has established a YTS certification board under the chairmanship of Mr. Peter Reay of Cadbury Schweppes plc. Members of the board are representatives of the City and Guilds of London Institute, the Business and Technician Education Council, the Royal Society of Arts and the Scottish Vocational Education Council.
It will be for that board to secure co-ordination of qualifications available within YTS to ensure that every trainee has the opportunity to progress towards an appropriate qualification. Such qualifications may be those offered by the organisations in membership of the board, or may be those offered by others. The MSC is particularly aware of the need to ensure that qualifications such as O-levels (and, from 1988, GCSE) and A-levels are available to those trainees for whom these represent suitable avenues for progress in working life.