Summary
Manchester Digital ran TConnect, a pilot supported by the Gatsby Foundation and Greater Manchester Combined Authority, to simplify T Level placements for employers. The programme showed that while employers value workplace experience, they often lack the capacity to supervise placements without diverting resources from customers and projects. Most tech businesses lack dedicated early careers teams or large HR departments.
Government relaxation of T Level requirements follows a significant decline in placements, with student completions falling by around a third between 2022-23 and 2023-24. The pilot identified that success depends heavily on invisible middle work: recruiting employers, supporting students, managing expectations and maintaining communication between colleges, businesses and young people.
The scheme demonstrated that second-year students were more successful than first-years, suggesting confidence matters as much as technical knowledge. Manchester Digital warns that flexibility in T Level rules alone will not increase SME participation; policymakers must recognise the value of intermediary organisations that reduce friction and provide pastoral support to make employer engagement sustainable.
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Common questions
- What is this article about?
- A Greater Manchester pilot programme has revealed that employer engagement in work experience schemes depends less on willingness than on bandwidth, particularly for smaller firms without dedicated early careers teams. Manchester Digital's TConnect scheme, backed by the Gatsby Foundation and GMCA, found that coordination and pastoral support can make meaningful differences but requires sustained i
- When was this published?
- This article was published on 9 July 2026.
- Who published this article?
- This article was published by Manchester Digital.