A record number of T Level, A Level and Level 3 vocational students are celebrating their success today. The class of 2026 achieved extremely strong results across both academic and technical courses, opening opportunities to higher education, apprenticeships and employment.
Middlesbrough College, which was among the first in the country to introduce T Levels back in September 2020 and is now one of the UK’s largest T Level providers, with over 800 students enrolled on 17 courses, is celebrating another successful year for its growing technical courses.
Olivia Cox, aged 20, lives in York, and completed a T Level in Building Services and Design with a focus on electrical installation. As part of the course, Olivia completed a work placement at her local Fire Service and has now secured full-time employment with the service.
Speaking about her results, Olivia said: “The support I’ve had from the college has been amazing. I did 80% of studying in the classroom and 20% in work experience, and I’ve been offered a full-time job, and I love it.”
This year, over 300 students at the college received their T Level results, which are equivalent to three A Levels, with almost three-quarters achieving high grades. The College has also seen more than a 50% increase in the number of students collecting their T Level results, reflecting growing demand for vocational education. There was also plenty to celebrate for A Level students who achieved a 99% pass rate at Middlesbrough College’s sixth form, with the highest ever number of A Level students achieving A* to A grades. Over 90% of students got into their first-choice university, and over 20% of students got into Sutton Trust universities such as Leeds, Manchester, York, Newcastle and Durham. This year, the college has seen an 8.5% increase in the number of students being placed compared with last year.
Shayne Jeffrey, 18, received A’s in Biology, Maths and Chemistry and an A* in his Extended Project Qualification (EPQ), which is a personal project case study that carries extra UCAS points and is going to study Medicine at Bangor University in September. Shayne says: “I’m really happy with my results and can’t wait to start my course next month; it’s a five-year course and from there I will look at where I want to specialise.”
Students studying T Level programmes, including cyber security, childcare, digital production, health, surveying and design, excelled with their results, supporting skilled young people into sectors identified as priorities for regional and UK economic growth plans.
T Levels combine study with industry experience. Students undertake an industry placement lasting at least 45 days alongside their classroom learning, giving them the opportunity to apply their knowledge in the workplace and develop skills.
Zoe Lewis, Principal and Chief Executive of Middlesbrough College, said: “Today is about celebrating the tremendous hard work of our students, and they should be incredibly proud of their achievements.
“We are particularly delighted to see our vocational and T Level students succeeding. High-quality technical education has a hugely important role to play in developing the future skilled workforce, and these students leave us with not only fantastic qualifications, but valuable workplace experience.
“At the same time, A Level students have achieved some highly impressive results, with many now progressing to exciting destinations across the country.
“Whether our students are moving on to university, an apprenticeship or directly into employment, we are incredibly proud of what they have achieved and look forward to seeing what they do next.”
The College has continued to invest in skills and specialist facilities, including a £12 million TTE Technical Centre which has seen further development this summer with the addition of six new classrooms, to accommodate the significant increase of students starting in September, supporting students to develop the skills needed by employers across Teesside and beyond. Middlesbrough College is also home to University Centre Middlesbrough and MC Apprenticeships and Training, formerly Northern Skills.
Middlesbrough College’s £130 million campus supports more than 12,000 students, including 2,200 apprentices.
