The consultation document, Skills for Sustainable Growth, outlines The Department of Business Innovation and Skills’ (BIS) vision for skills and what are expected to be the key elements of a strategy for delivering it.
The documents invite views on how private investment in skills can be optimised in accordance with benefits and to allow public money to be used most effectively where it is most needed; where more limited public investment should be focused and the skills system can be made simpler and more effective; how support for individuals and employers can be improved to develop skills and learning and meet the needs of the economy; how businesses can be encouraged to engage in supporting local community learning; and holding colleges and other training organisations to account for their performance in responding to learners and employers needs and to prioritising training that adds real economic value
Hayes, minister for further education, skills and lifelong learning, said: "Skills are vital for our economy but they also help to build stronger communities and empower individuals. Only by seeing learning as a single whole, not a series of separate compartments, can we ensure that it takes its place at heart of both business strategy and community life.
"Delivering future priorities will involve making difficult choices about the use of public funds. I believe that we can deliver more and save money. But we will only achieve cost effectiveness by challenging the orthodox assumptions about what skills are for, how they are funded and what role Government should play."
But responding to the publication of the Government’s consultation the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) has warned an opportunity to drive economic growth could be missed. While the CMI supports a renewed focus on the delivery of training to create a better society, Petra Wilton, director of policy and research at CMI, cautioned: "Too much attention on basic skills that produce high social returns may be at the expense of the higher-level skills that boost economic performance and create sustainable businesses."
She said: "There is no doubt that the UK needs a radical rethink of its current skills strategy, and initiatives that boost uptake of training and qualifications should be applauded. However, during hard economic times it is vital that attention is given to developing skills with a high economic value. Without focusing on higher-level skills, employers will be left with weak leaders who are ill-equipped to do their job, meaning that UK organisations will continue to flounder behind our international competitors."
The CMI’s Economic Outlook report revealed the majority of business leaders (69%) want greater control over funding for skills development. The finding came in the wake of a poll suggesting that 81% believe their organisation ‘will increasingly need more employees with higher level skills’.
Wilton added: "We welcome the Government’s view that employers must be free to choose the training they think best suits their needs because if development opportunities are demand-led they are more likely to provide a return on investment and more likely to boost current low levels of employee engagement. By empowering employers and their staff to choose the training they undertake, it will also help ensure money is diverted to where it is most needed."
