University Technical Colleges (UTCs) have received a large amount of coverage in the last month ranging from the front page of the Times to features on education in the Guardian as well as regional press.

Writing the cover story of the Times [1], Greg Hurst, Education Editor, hails UTCs as a "revolution in schooling" for the thousands of children who do not wish to follow the academic route.

Featuring again in the Times [2], UTCs are celebrated by Lord Adonis as redressing the lack of specialist technical education in mainstream schools. Adonis sees this failure as "one of the greatest disasters of postwar education policy". The former Labour Schools Minister and champion of the UTC system says plans for technical education set out in the 1944 Butler education Act have been long awaited fruition and deserve "the strongest political and business support".

Speaking in the Guardian and citing the JCB academy, a flagship UTC, Liz Lightfoot praised the rapid changes in the look and feel of the education system. Increased freedom for parents, teachers and governors to employ technology and dictate their own learning environments has, she says, brought education to the 'cusp of a new era'.

Discussions on entrance ages for UTCs have featured prominently. Echoing the mood across the national press, coverage in the Evening Standard endorses the UTC model as having got the entry age right. The article cites leading educational figures who believe that "eleven is too young … sixteen a bit too late."

Local press reporting was mixed, focusing on specific local issues.

the Shropshire Star [3] highlights the potential redevelopment of a local school into a UTC and the Warwickshire and Coventry[4] both provide commentary from local councillors sharing their concerns on the entry age for UTCs.

[1] The Times (Friday 7 January 2011, behind pay wall)

[2] The Times (Saturday 8 January 2011, behind pay wall)

[3] Shropshire Star (Tuesday 11 January 2011)

[4] Telegraph (Saturday 8 January 2011)