Edge - raising the status of practical, techical and vocational learning

Welcome to the Edge Foundation

We celebrate success and showcase vocational excellence
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Read Edge’s Six Steps for Change to find out our views on the education and training system
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Edge is an independent education foundation, dedicated to raising the status of practical and vocational learning.
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We work with policy-makers and opinion-formers so that we can take our message to the people who make the decisions
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Working with a number of organisations who share our belief in the importance of technical, practical & vocational learning is important to us
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News

The finalists for this year’s VQ Learner and Employer of the Year awards have been announced!

With just under two weeks until VQ Day itself, the shortlisted learners and employers for the VQ Awards have been announced.
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F1 in Schools Launches in Qatar with Williams

F1 in Schools has expanded its programme into Qatar. Partnering with Williams for the launch in the Doha British School over 50 delegates from over 20 Schools attended along with dignitaries from the Supreme Education Council.
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Edge Hotel School

Applications for Exclusive Hotels Scholarships are now open to students starting at The Edge Hotel School in May 2013.
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Edge Hotel School

The Edge Foundation is delighted to announce that three £3,000 scholarships will be available to students applying to the Edge Hotel School at the September 2013 intake.
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Edge welcomes the interim report of the Skills Taskforce set up by Labour and chaired by Prof Chris Husbands of the Institute of Education

Edge submitted evidence to the Skills Taskforce in April, and the interim report reflects many of the points we made. In particular, the Taskforce is very critical of what they call “the damaging divide” between vocational and academic education. As they rightly say, we need to stop putting learning into two different silos – instead, we need young people to have access to the best of both.
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Post-16 qualifications and performance measures: Edge response to government consultation

Edge believes we should establish an over-arching school graduation certificate for all young people, based on credits achieved over the four years from Year 10 (age 14) to Year 13 (age 18). Core requirements would include credits in English, maths and science, supported by credits in a wide range of options including traditional “academic” subjects and hands-on vocational and vocationally-related subjects.
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Edge wants an education and training system which:
- helps young people find out what they're good at and what they enjoy doing
- rewards and recognises individual success in all its forms, not just in exams
- helps people choose paths that support their talents and ambitions
- shows how education creates the knowledge, skills and talents needed by the UK economy
Step 1: Recognise that there are many talents and paths to success
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Step 2: Ensure that "learning by doing" is valued equally with academic learning
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Step 3: Provide technical, practical and vocational learning as an integral and valued part of every young person's education and as a recognised route to success
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Step 4: From the age of 14, give young people a choice of learning experiences and pathways based on their motivation, talents and career aspirations
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Step 5: Ensure that the technical, practical and vocational education and qualifications offered in schools, FE and HE are high quality and recognised by employers
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Step 6: Ensure all young people, whatever their different abilities and interests, leave the system with confidence, ambition and the skills to succeed and the skills the economy needs
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