Structure

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Structure

• Challenges
• Skills for Business Network
• Sector Skills Councils
• Sector Skills Development Agency
• SfB Network in Northern Ireland
• Sector Skills Agreements

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The skills picture - productivity

• Productivity levels in the UK are lower than in
  all of the EU 15 countries except Portugal, Spain
  and Greece 1
• If we narrow the productivity gap with the US by
  a tenth, it would be equivalent to an extra 440
  per employee and would add 4,000,000,000 to the
  bottom line of UK businesses 2
• NI Productivity almost 16 lower than in UK3
• Sources
• 1 Campbell and Garret, 2004
• Believe or be left behind, Skills for Business
• Economic Vision for NI, February 2005

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The skills picture employer needs

• Nearly two thirds (60 per cent) of employers
  experience difficulty recruiting people with the
  required skills 1
• A quarter (26 per cent) of employers would like
  to move up market but are prevented from doing so
  by the skills of their workforce 2
• More than half (52 per cent) of employers say
  that the education system doesnt provide enough
  people equipped with the skills they need to
  start working for their organisation 3
• Source
• 1, 2, 3 IFF, 2004

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About Skills for Business

• The Skills for Business network is tasked with
  tackling skills gaps and shortages across the UK
• Were doing this on a sector by sector basis
• The Skills for Business network comprises
• - Sector Skills Councils (SSCs)
• - The Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA)

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About Skills for Business

• The networks key objectives are to
• Improve UK productivity, business and public
  service performance
• Reduce skills gaps and shortages
• Increase opportunities for employers to boost the
  skills and productivity of everyone in their
  sector
• Improve the quality of learning supply at all
  levels, whether apprenticeships or higher
  education

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About Sector Skills Councils

• There are 25 fully-licensed SSCs
• Each SSC is
• - Employer-led
• - Independent
• - UK-wide
• Together, the SSCs cover 85 per cent of the
  workforce

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Sector Skills Councils
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About the SSDA

• Formally, UK Government Agency (NDPB)
  co-sponsored by DTI/DfES with UK-wide remit
• The SSDAs relationship with the SSCs is to
• - Provide core funding
• - Support / Champion
• The SSDA leads on cross-sector issues, eg
• - Management and leadership, IT users, customer
  service, sales and marketing
• Provides cover for sectors without an SSC, eg
• - Voluntary sector, local government, ECITB, car
  parking, hairdressing..

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In Northern Ireland

• NI SSDA Manager started July 05
• Bill McGinnis on SSDA Board
• SSDA Board meet annually in NI
• SSC Chief Execs SSDA Directors in Belfast on
  16/17 Jan 06
• DEL sit on UK Policy Group with DfES, DTI, other
  devolved administrations

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In Northern Ireland

• Network development
• Awareness/communications activities
• Mapping to local priorities
• Endorsement by DEL Skills Strategy
• Skills Expert Group
• Workforce Development Fora
• Sector Skills Agreements

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What is a Sector Skills Agreement?

• Compact between employers, the SSC, and providers
  to
• Ensure that the skills the sector needs are the
  skills the sector gets
• Development of an action plan to meet the
  sectors needs
• Ten year vision with detailed planning for next
  three years

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Who is the Agreement Between?

• Employers, Employees and the SSC
• Setting out the sectors skills requirements and
  what they will contribute
• SSCs (on behalf of their employers), delivery
  partners and Government
• To guarantee support for the proposals contained
  in Sector Skills Agreements
• To ensure required resources are available for
  effective delivery

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What will it Offer Employers?

• Provider network and infrastructure which offers
  the right skills
• Qualifications fit for purpose
• Progression routes that the sector needs
• Flexible delivery models and support services to
  suit employers
• A more collaborative environment within the
  sector
• Closer working with Government agencies

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Sector Skills Agreement - Stages

• Stage 1 - An assessment of current and future
  skill needs
• Stage 2 - A review of the range, nature and
  relevance of current provision in relation to
  this assessment
• Stage 3 - Priorities, objectives and measures
• Stage 4 - Commitment to collaborative action by
  employers to meet skills needs
• Stage 5 - Agreement at national level to the
  commitment of public resources

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Northern Ireland SSA Project Board

• Policy, Funding Regulation
• DEL
• DETI
• DENI ??
• QCA CCEA
• Trade Unions (NIC-ICTU)
• NIO, DARD, DHSS, DCAL, INI as required

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Sector Skills Councils
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SSA Tranches
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• Recommendations
• Qualifying the Existing Workforce
• Qualifying the existing workforce to a minimum
  NVQ Level 2
• Encourage industry registration schemes as a
  means of ensuring adequate health and safety
  training for all those employed in the industry
• Improve management skills
• Improving the literacy levels of those in the
  industry
• Assess the numbers of and skills requirements of
  migrant workers

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Technical Workforce Development

• Upskilling from Level 2 to Level 3
• Improve craft supply at Level 3 through
  recruitment and upskilling of current workforce
• Improve supply of technicians at Level 4
  (Technician Engineers)
• Tackling graduate skills deficits and increase
  the graduate population within the workforce to
  meet high value added requirements.

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NI SSA Communications
Expert Panel
CBI
EDF
NI SSA Project Board
IoD
HE
ANIC/FE
Small Business Fed
Local Govt
NI Chamber of C I
WDF
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Northern Ireland Contact
Laurence Downey SSDA Manager Phone [phone]
7101 Mobile [phone] Email
laurence.downey_at_ssda.org.uk
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