Opportunity and Excellence Green Paper (Department for Education and Skills (DfES), March 2003)

Among other developments the Green Paper set up an independent Working Party on 14-19 Reform, chaired by Sir Mike Tomlinson. The Working Party was asked to make recommendations to effect improvements across the curriculum in teaching and learning for 14-19-year-olds. The Working Party was asked to focus on:

• Raising participation and achievement
• Devising means to ensure that all young people are competent in functional mathematics, literacy and communication, and ICT
• Improving the quality and status of vocational programmes, including Apprenticeships
• Providing greater stretch and challenge
• Ensuring opportunities for breadth and depth of learning;
• Ensuring that assessment arrangements were appropriate and the amount of assessment manageable
• Ensuring coherence across all programmes of study

The Working Group proposed a system of Diplomas.