UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS The Employability Challenge Alison Morris Programme Manager UK Commission for Employment and Skills 2 December 2009

2 UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS What sort of skills do employers say are in short supply? Source: National Employer Skills Survey 2007, LSC

3 UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS Core Skills Key Skills Essential Skills Soft Skills Functional Skills Skills for Life Enterprise Skills Employability Skills  27 different definitions – one need! Employability Skills – not another definition?

4 UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS Employability Skills……. ….are active or applied capabilities that are demonstrated by doing them in a way and to a standard that employers need. Self- management Thinking and solving problems Working together and communicating Understanding the business Using numbers effectively Using language effectively Using IT effectively Positive Approach

5 UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS “The Employability Challenge”: Key messages in the report 1.Challenges publicly funded practitioners – schools, colleges, university and training providers - to put employability at the heart of their core business 2.Provides practical approaches to successfully developing employability skills – drawn from the expertise of over 200 organisations and illustrated through 20 case studies 3.Challenges policy makers, funding bodies and awarding organisations to create a better environment that supports this success

6 UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS Developing Employability Skills is about the ‘how’, not just the ‘what’, of teaching Six key principles identified for success: 1.Based on real workplace practice – with real employer involvement, and people outside the learning environment 2.Experiential, putting principles into practice, learning from mistakes and observation of self and peers 3.Personal, with active engagement, challenging inappropriate behaviour and supporting self-improvement 4.Reflective, offering frequent opportunities to observe progress and challenges, and learn from them 5.A structured and integrated process – personal development planning, advice & guidance, recorded 6.Strong institutional leadership and resources, ideally through a whole institutional review

7 UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS Employability Phase 2 Next stages of investigation underway: Funding – ensuring that institutional and learning programme funding recognises the new pedagogy, and supports new institutional and learning approaches Teacher/tutor development – indentifying and developing the qualities and skills to support employability Assessment – review current assessment approaches, and develop new methods that assess applied skills, and reinforce institutional and learning best practice

8 UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS Employability Phase 2 A four nation project - needs to make recommendations relevant for the whole of UK Scope covers HE, FE, 14-19, Apprenticeships and DWP contracted provision Needs to be informed by the views of a wide range of stakeholders This is an ongoing campaign

9 UK COMMISSION FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS work programme Programme ActivityTiming 1Ongoing campaign to promote messages to providers, engage employers and learners, and increase employer engagement Ongoing 2Interim reports on Funding, Teacher/tutor training and Assessment December Publish final reports on Funding, Teacher/tutor training and Assessment February Publish final report, including policy recommendations and measures for future monitoring March 2010