Meanwhile, AS Level entrants were also down this year by 6.65%, meaning A-level figures are expected to drop again in 2016.
This decline is especially concerning when the design sector is growing at a historic rate, having been the fastest growing sector in the creative industries since 2008. The latest estimates are that the UK will need 1.82million new engineers by 2022 and a further 1m people to fill new creative jobs by 2030. The drop in students suggests we could soon be facing a critical shortage of workers and design skills in the UK.
"Industry is crying out for skilled designers, and foreign companies are cherry-picking the finest British designers at will," said John Mathers, Design Council chief executive: "We need to reverse these worrying trends before the skills gap becomes unbridgeable."
Part of the reason for the decline is likely to be the government's focus on the 'core academic' subjects of Maths, English and Science, which have all seen an increase in the last year. However, the loss of more specialist and creative skills could threaten to derail the government's plans for growth by increasing productivity.
Steve Rutherford, senior lecturer of Product Design at Nottingham Trent University said: "Students presenting for interview having studied D&T are much better placed to embark on undergraduate study and come already well versed in both the principles of design and the desire to be the country's next leading designers in an area where we lead the world.
"We are concerned that with less importance being placed on D&T in schools and any related drop in uptake, the massive potential that embarking on a design related degree course will not be drawn to the attention of future applicants."
