Technical Progression & Workforce Readiness

The gap is not always about provision.

Often, the gap sits between education, training, employers and the young person — in transition, workplace readiness, unmet SEND or neurodivergence, employer relationships and the quality of support when things begin to go wrong.

The result is lost potential for the young person and lost talent for the economy.

The Excellence Classroom is developing work focused on that gap: helping technical pathways become more inclusive, more sustainable and more effective at getting young people into skilled employment — and keeping them there.

Why this work matters

Across advanced manufacturing, engineering and other technical sectors, employers continue to report skills shortages and recruitment challenges.

At the same time, some young people with clear technical capability struggle to sustain progression through FE, apprenticeships and into employment.

Are we doing enough not just to create opportunities, but to help young people succeed once they enter them?

For some learners, the barrier is not technical ability. It is the transition into a different environment, the expectations of employment, the quality of support around them, or the absence of early intervention when things start to go wrong.

This is particularly important for young people with SEND, neurodivergence, disadvantage or disrupted educational histories.

Halui Angus

Halui Angus is a senior education leader, adviser and founder of The Excellence Classroom.

Her career spans more than 20 years across mainstream secondary education, science leadership, sixth form, SEND, alternative provision, safeguarding, attendance, curriculum, behaviour and whole-school improvement.

Her work has included

• senior leadership across mainstream and specialist settings
• extensive science and STEM leadership
• leadership of SEND and inclusion
• strategic safeguarding leadership
• attendance, behaviour and vulnerable learner strategy
• curriculum and quality of education
• alternative provision
• school improvement and implementation
• advisory work with schools, trusts and system leaders

Strategy only matters if it changes the experience and outcomes of the people it is intended to serve.

A strong STEM and technical foundation

Before moving into wider senior leadership, Halui spent many years leading science.

That scientific and technical foundation remains central to her work.

She understands the difference between academic success and successful progression into technical environments, and the importance of ensuring that young people are prepared not only for qualifications, but also for the expectations, relationships and realities of employment.

This becomes particularly important where technical potential is strong but progression is disrupted by barriers sitting outside the curriculum itself.

Inclusion without lowering expectations

The Excellence Classroom's approach is not about creating softer routes or reducing expectations.

It is about ensuring that capable young people are not unnecessarily lost from technical pathways because of barriers that could have been identified, understood or addressed earlier.

The work considers the whole journey:

And asks where the system is working well — and where it is not.

Governance and strategic safeguarding leadership

Halui brings board-level perspective through trustee responsibilities, alongside experience as a Strategic Safeguarding Lead across education settings.

This gives her a strong understanding of risk, assurance, accountability, vulnerable learners and the responsibilities organisations carry when young people move between education, training and employment.

Safeguarding is therefore not treated as a separate compliance issue. It forms part of the wider question of whether systems are genuinely capable of supporting young people to progress safely and successfully.

DfE-facing credibility

The Excellence Classroom has an established UKPRN and is registered within DfE procurement infrastructure, supporting direct engagement with national education and skills opportunities.

Current focus: Coventry & Warwickshire

The Excellence Classroom is currently exploring technical progression and retention across Coventry and Warwickshire, with a particular interest in advanced manufacturing, engineering and skilled technical pathways.

The work is focused on understanding whether there is a specific gap affecting young people with genuine technical potential who do not successfully sustain progression through FE, apprenticeships and into skilled employment.

The aim is not to duplicate existing colleges, training providers, employability services or supported employment provision. The focus is on what happens between those services — particularly where transition, retention and employer experience determine whether a young person succeeds.

Testing the evidence across the system.

The Excellence Classroom is engaging with stakeholders across:

• skills and employability
• further education
• apprenticeships
• advanced manufacturing
• technical education
• local government
• SEND and inclusion
• employer partnerships

The purpose is to test the evidence, understand the system and identify where a targeted progression-and-retention approach could add value.