Higher education working with employers: South East Wales Employer Forum Dr Peter Treadwell Director of Treadwell Consulting former Dean, Academic Development, Cardiff Metropolitan University

South East Wales Employer Forum Original Partners

Establish an Employer Forum in SE Wales Facilitate engagement between HEIs and employers in order to provide a co-ordinated approach to education-business partnerships Engage with at least 12 STEM related employers in South Wales as potential Forum members Undertake a regional stakeholder analysis into STEM related skills shortages Via the Forum, develop ways of improving response to the STEM skills needs of both employers and employees Main aims of the project

Initial points of focus for the Forum Building on ‘best practice’ engagement with local primary and secondary schools that inspires pupils to study STEM study and related careers Engaging/inspiring more women into STEM study and related careers Improving teachers’ knowledge and understanding of how STEM study can be clearly applied to contemporary work and society situations Working more closely with regional FE/HEIs to influence curriculum content and work placement opportunities

Initial points of focus for the Forum

Broad Context The Forum format builds on the success of the HEFCW NE Wales ‘Reaching Wider’ HE STEM partnership project between the University Of Bangor and Glyndwr University in North Wales and BITCW The Forum also builds alignment with the Wales Government Skills, Higher Education and Lifelong Learning Group (SHELL) STEM priorities contained within the ‘For our Future: The 21 st Century Higher Education Strategy and Plan for Wales’

Research Context: HE STEM consultations Utilities: Wales & West Utilities; Dwr Cymru Technology based companies: BT; Mitel Chemical companies: Dow Corning; Penn Pharmaceuticals SMEs: UES Energy; SCS Group Engineering and Construction: Costain; Rockwool; International Rectifier Vinci Construction; Daniel Consulting Ltd Arup; Capita Symonds; GE Aviation

Research Context: Sector Skills Councils Excellent Labour Market Intelligence (LMI) from these SSCs, highlighting broad concerns from the HE STEM sector in Wales - A reduced experience to practical training/independent thinking Lack of adequate R&D skills Too little work based learning; internships and entrepreneurship

Specific project findings STEM educational issues Lack of awareness from some companies on how to engage and build STEM partnerships with local primary and secondary schools Difficulty of engaging with local FE/HE institutions, especially accessing their STEM based services [knowledge, skills, contacts] Poor basic skills levels of school leavers and graduates Recruitment issues linked to quality and competency (and volume) of applicants to graduate employment

Specific project findings Generic HE STEM skills issues In -company challenges linked to succession planning [ageing workforce] In- company STEM high level [CQFW level 4+] skills shortages Skills up-dates mainly provided by in- company/private sector trainers Little CQFW level 4+ STEM short course training offered by local FE/HEIs FE student core knowledge/skills good, but poor project management skills Modern Apprentices tend to lack ‘transferable/employability’ skills Enticing women into STEM and related subjects/occupations very difficult

Specific project findings Basic Skills Close to crisis situation? Specific STEM skills shortages corporate, structural, civil and maintenance engineers electronic and chemical engineers statistical /mathematical occupations - surveying, accountancy, geology laboratory or quality technicians, systems designers and analysts IT and computing technicians anaerobic digestion technologists 35% loss of existing workforce in next 5-10 years – and struggle to replace ‘skill-set’

Specific project findings Emergent HE STEM Wales needs – graduate specialists/skills in sustainable technology and construction “hard-wired” technology programmes energy, sustainability and green skills agendas leadership and project management Issue trend in formal education [11-18; 18+] creating technology ‘users’ rather than ‘creators and innovators’ of IT technical complexity and capacity

Specific project findings – successes with Modern Apprenticeships

The SE Wales HE STEM Forum Established 2012 Chaired and hosted by Arup Co-ordinated by BITC Wales Focus sharing best practice/innovation in education-business partnerships creating a Pan-Wales N Wales and SE Wales STEM network providing guidance on relevant STEM support schemes

Join - the SE Wales HE STEM Forum – build your ‘network!’

HE STEM project progress

The National HE STEM programme Wales and the SE Wales HE STEM Forum - must be sustained! Help us think our way forward in the following Plenary session! Let’s build some ‘followership!’