Friday, 27 March 2026
A new Key Stage 4 alternative to GCSEs, developed in partnership with Nottingham University Business School (NUBS), Caterham School in Surrey, and the social entrepreneurship charity Enactus UK, aims to bridge the skills gap and equip young people in Years 10 and 11 for an AI- and technology-driven future.
The qualification, named EDGE, has been designed to connect traditional education with the rapidly evolving world of work. Combining academic business theory with creativity, innovation, and real-world problem solving, the course places social impact at the heart of learning.
Available as an option alongside GCSE subjects, the new EDGE qualification enables pupils to design, develop and launch their own social enterprises. Working with business mentors and industry experts, pupils navigate the entrepreneurial journey while developing the skills needed to translate ideas into real life start-ups. It embraces technology teaching the ethical use of AI and technology as a core element.
This is an incredible moment for those of us who have been campaigning for many years, championing the importance of enterprise education. Recognising business with purpose is our future. It鈥檚 important that as educators we shift.鈥�
Caterham School’s collaboration with universities and employers highlighted a growing skills gap between academic achievement and the capabilities young people need when entering the workplace. The EDGE qualification has been created to address this challenge by developing skills such as navigating uncertainty, applying knowledge in unfamiliar contexts and turning ideas into viable solutions.
We feel very strongly that as a school it is our responsibility to create pathways and opportunities for pupils to learn in ways that genuinely prepare them for a fast-paced, uncertain world.鈥�
Built around a flexible and forward-looking framework, EDGE combines traditional business studies theory with project-based learning. Pupils develop key capabilities including critical and strategic thinking, entrepreneurial mindset, collaboration, leadership and confidence applying learning beyond the classroom.
Amy Brereton, CEO of Enactus UK, said: “By developing these skills and behaviours in a safe environment, pupils gain the confidence to take them into the world and apply them as soon as they finish school.”
The programme has already been validated by leading business thinkers and educational innovators across the UK, helping ensure the qualification reflects what universities, employers and society increasingly value. The first cohort of pupils will begin the course in September 2026.
The ambition is to share the EDGE curriculum and qualification with state-maintained and independent schools across the UK to ensure the skills gap identified by major employers of graduates and school leavers.
The EDGE Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation Certificate represents more than a new course – it signals a broader shift in education towards combining academic excellence with enterprise, innovation and social purpose.
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More information is available from Professor Andrew Bacon in Nottingham University Business School, via andrew.bacon@nottingham.ac.uk
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