Edexcel, one of the country's major awarding bodies, has welcomed the government's announcement that new vocational GCSEs will be introduced from 2002.

Following the Education and Employment Secretary's announcement yesterday, Edexcel's Chief Executive, Christina Townsend, commented:

"Edexcel is one of the leading providers of both academic and vocational qualifications. As the market leader for GNVQs it is perfectly placed to invest its considerable experience and expertise into the development of the new vocational GCSEs.

"We welcome this move to make vocational education more widely available for young people from 14. The Minister has said that traditional routes failed to motivate some bright youngsters. He is right and I am glad that the importance of vocational skills and training is now being recognised. I believe that offering vocational GCSEs at this level is an important milestone in education provision in this country, which builds on the popularity and success of the Part 1 GNVQ post 14."