The Trustees of UTC South Durham are consulting relevant stakeholders and partners on a proposed change to its admissions arrangements. The proposal is to admit Year 9 students to the UTC from September 2028.
Currently the UTC recruits up to 150 students into Year 10 (aged 14), as well as recruiting to the 6th Form, from across a wide region including 8 local authorities. The proposal is to recruit up to 135 students at age 13 (the start of Year 9) and to reduce the PAN (pupil admissions number) for Year 10 and 11 to 135.
There are significant educational advantages for students starting earlier and this has been demonstrated in several other UTCs around the country:
- An additional settling-in year, with more time to adapt to the UTC’s careers-based education and culture before the pressure of GCSEs begins
- A stronger academic foundation, giving an extra year to build the core knowledge needed for strong GCSE results
- Earlier access to employer engagement, projects and technical experiences currently squeezed by the pace of a five-term GCSE programme
- An opportunity for fresh momentum in their education, focused on their interests and treating them as young professionals
We are holding two consultation events in October/November. They are likely to take place using Zoom (or similar) and you can sign up using the links below
The consultation lasts for 6 weeks and will close on Friday 13th November 2026.
Learn more: https://www.utcsouthdurham.org/year9/
