Join us
And find out why ATL is the fastest growing union in the education sector
ATL fears good A level grades won't guarantee a university place
19 August 2010
It will be sad if today turns out to be a muted celebration for many students because they fail to get a university place despite getting good A level grades, says the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL).
Nansi Ellis, head of education policy at ATL, said:
"Does the government want to be infamous for casting this generation of students adrift with nowhere to turn? Despite making the right noises about the importance of education and social mobility it has halved the number of extra university places and scrapped the Future Jobs Fund. This would be bad enough when the economy is booming and there are plenty of jobs, but potentially catastrophic when we are in a recession.
"The majority of young people are passionate to learn and keen to contribute to society, but many are understandably nervous about what the future now holds.
"The government needs to do everything possible to ensure that every student has the opportunity of a place in education, training or help to get a job. If it does not, this government will go down in history as having failed young people."
Notes to editors
The Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) is an independent, registered trade union and professional association, representing approximately 160,000 teachers, headteachers, lecturers and support staff in maintained and independent nurseries, schools, sixth form, tertiary and further education colleges in the United Kingdom.
ATL exists to help members, as their careers develop, through first rate research, advice, information and legal advice.
ATL is affiliated to the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE) and Education International (EI). ATL is not affiliated to any political party and seeks to work constructively with all the main political parties.