My DH thinks there could be an alternative to university which gives bright school leavers:
A "Gap Year" overseas experience
A year to mature before going into the workplace
A year away from home (for most) in a university-like environment
Training in stuff which is useful to most employers
His target market would be school leavers with As and Bs at A Level who are not obsessed by the need for further academic learning, don't want to clock up £40k in debt but feel that they've got to go to university to get a worthwhile career. They also want to sample a student life for a while.
Students would do 3 months abroad doing voluntary work. They would then have two terms learning the basics of personal finance, what company accounts mean, employment law, the functions within a company etc.
They would also be trained in public speaking, Microsoft Office, memo writing, data analysis etc.
He reckons it's doable for £12k and that employers would love the "product" (and would supply the bulk of the trainers). The "institute" would be set up in a university town so that the students got a broader experience of university life.