Skills Minister Nick Boles has outlined a series of new plans for vocational education after the age of 16, with 15 routes into technical education that will “harness talent” in the UK.

Lord Sainsbury chaired a report into technical education and many of his recommendations have been incorporated into the new Post-16 Skills Plan as 16 year olds will be able to choose from 15 high quality routes into the industry of their choice, as opposed to the 20,000 they are faced with at present.

Although 160 different organisations offer a large amount of courses, the Sainsbury report suggest that young people are not clear on which course will provide them with the best chance of landing a job after study.

Employers will set the standards for the new courses, which will now offer both technical and academic options that will be aimed at a set of skilled occupations, with each course being offered by a single course provider – the winner of an exclusive licence from a competitive selection process.

The report led by Sainsbury found that the existing system is confusing for young people and fails to deliver the skills required by the employers of the UK, which has impacted negatively on the country’s competitiveness, economy and productivity.

It has also been announced that 2019 will be the year when these routes are made available, although critics have claimed that this is “wildly optimistic.”

Boles said that Britain possesses all the requirements needed to compete with other skilled countries; however we must harness talent through an improved technical education system.

He added: “This cannot be the government’s job alone; we must work with employers and post-16 providers to unlock the potential in this country.

“The skills plan is the next step towards that goal, building on the progress we have already made by investing in apprenticeships, and creating a skilled workforce that is the envy of every other nation.”