Allan Baillie KCC Skills & Employability

Skill Gaps – Skill Building Skills Gaps Youth unemployment Earning and Learning The ‘right skills’ The role of employers

‘Realising Talent: Employment & Skills for the Future’. CESI for LGA. July 2014 ‘It’s about work…excellent adult vocational teaching and learning’. Commission on Adult Vocational Teaching And Learning. Nov 2013 ‘Precarious futures? Youth employment in an international context’ UK Commission for Employment & Skills [UKCES]. June 2014

Skills Gap The average skill level of the UK population is equivalent to… …level 2.3 ‘On average, we have to lift England’s workforce to A-level standard, rather than the projected 5 x GCSEs standard’ LGA Why?

Skill Gap (by 2022) Low skills: 9.2m people, 3.5m jobs High Skills: 11.9m people, 14.8m jobs lost growth = £375bn Realising Talent: Employment & Skills for the Future. CESI for LGA. July 2014

Youth & ADULT UNEMPLOYMENT Unemployment hits young adults hardest: at the height of the recession, young people were nearly 4 times more likely to be unemployed than the rest of the adult population. Current Kent Figures for youth/adult unemployment: – Youth unemployment [18-24] 3.1% (3, 956) – Adult unemployment [18-64] 1.7% (15,504) March 2015

Young adults are finding it increasingly difficult to compete in the labour market

Youth Unemployment March 2015, 3956 unemployed x 52 weeks = £12m (11,931,296) – Lost revenue (income tax) = another £10-15m Unemployment is very costly and …wasteful

18 and Unemployed In March 2015 there were… … year olds claiming Job Seekers Allowance = 8 per secondary school 700 x £54 x 52 weeks = £2m (£1,965,600)

Earning & LEARNING `There are long term and deep rooted challenges hindering young people’s movement into work` `Experience of the workplace is fundamental` `High levels of young people earning and learning lead to lower youth unemployment`

‘International evidence suggests a causal link between earning and learning (at 15-19) and the chances of becoming unemployed (20-24)’ UKCES

Benefits of Work Experience Young people who experience work experience activity are 5x less likely to be NEET Work experience is increasingly important in the admissions process for Higher Education Work experience is associated with improved motivation and attainment Graduates with work experience get better degrees, higher wages and are less likely to be unemployed

‘Employability’ Employer surveys Numeracy Literacy Customer care Communication Relevant skills/quals? ….plus Team work Interpersonal skills Problem solving Flexible Willing to learn Positive attitude

VOCATIONAL EDUCATION & TRAINING Commission for Adult Vocational Teaching & Learning (CAVTL) A clear line of sight to work – a two way street with employers Clear ‘escalators’ to higher vocational learning Access to industry standard facilities Dual professionals – occupational and pedagogical expertise

Adult skills ‘Achieving a step- change in qualification levels is not possible by relying on ever better qualified young people – adults, already in the workforce, will need to continue to attain higher qualifications’ Realising Talent: Employment & Skills for the Future. CESI for LGA. July 2014 Message for young people…. Never stop learning!

Futureproofing ‘Responding to current employer demand is important but it is equally important to build the workforce skills for the future’ CAVTL

The local need Local economies need a good match between employer demand and labour supply – the right skills and the right level of skills projections-for-the-south-east-of-englandwww.gov.uk/government/statistics/labour-market- projections-for-the-south-east-of-england (UKCES Data)

Employment sector Base 2012 (000’s) Expansion demand Replacement demand Net requirement 21 Science, research & engineering (21.3%) 99 (32.5%) 164 (53.8%) 42 Secretarial and related occupations (-38.1%) 69 (+44.7%) 10 (6.6%) 53 Skilled construction & building (3.0%) 46 (32.8%) 50 (35.8% 61 Caring & personal service occupations (+27.2%) 141 (+45.7%) 225 (73%) All Occupations (6.5%) 1795 (39.3%) 2092 (45.8%) Occupation sectors – samples from UKCES data

Conclusion Level 3, the new benchmark, to reduce the ‘skills gap’ Overwhelming international evidence for the benefits of ‘earning and learning’ (flexible study programme) Relevant vocational education in partnership with employers (a ‘two way street’) Emphasise education and training for life: ‘never stop learning’ Use LMI to provide locally responsive education and training