A step forward but there’s still room for improvement

Following the recent publication of the Government’s skills strategy, Terry Watts, chief executive of Proskills, the sector skills council for the process and manufacturing sector, welcomed the enhanced role for SSCs but is concerned that the new skills strategy is not doing enough for industry and the existing workforce.

Terry Watts says: “The strategy recognises the need to simplify the skills system and we welcome the plans to reduce the number of regional bodies with overlapping responsibilities, but we believe that in order to accurately represent the needs of employers, the skills strategy should have a sector rather than a regional lead. We are concerned the suggested moves to simplify the skills system will not have the desired benefits for employers, and will instead only serve to simplify the system for the Government and stakeholders. If changes are not made with employers in mind, they will not benefit the economy.”

The new skills strategy, ‘skills for growth,’ gives employers, through the sector skills councils, a voice in the skills system that will help to develop the British economy for the future. It increases the amount of investment in apprenticeships, which will help tackle youth unemployment and train people for real jobs. However, it also suggests that funding will be cut for other vocational qualifications.

Watts says: “It is hard to understand the decision to withdraw funding from units and smaller qualifications or the removal of support for additional “non-first” qualifications. Our research shows that these are precisely the qualifications that will be of most benefit to companies and people in our industries as we move out of the recession.

“Multi-skilling the existing workforce will be as important as developing new skills in the quest to meet the stretching skills targets set in the Leitch report to keep the UK competitive. Whilst Proskills agrees that Apprenticeships will be an essential part of making the UK more productive, we hope that the increased funding for these qualifications will not result in a drop in funding for other training demanded by industry and individuals.”

Stephen Falder, the chairman of Proskills and director of HMG Paints says: “The skills strategy is a positive move forward, but there is still room for more improvement. To keep employers engaged with the Skills System it will be vital to use a sectoral approach instead of having a regional lead. Employers will welcome the commitment to continued investment in vocational education. However, we have found that many previous government promises have been hollow, and that the funding promised to the manufacturing sector through Train to Gain was not delivered. As well as developing new skilled people through Apprenticeships, it is essential that we have support to upskill and multiskill our current workforce to aid successful recovery from the recession. If there is no support for existing industries, how can we create new jobs? “

Clive Bowers, chairman CPI corrugated sector and chief executive of Smurfit Kappa Corrugated UK says: “Public money should be invested in skills where it can generate the best results for UK PLC. Manufacturing has to be supported as it is the fundamental source for the future prosperity for UK PLC.”