Westminster Hall Debate on Skills in Scotland
Summary
A recent Westminster Hall debate looked at the similarities,
differences and key learning points between the skills system in
Scotland, and the rest of the UK. Issues highlighted included the
lack of agreements around a Scottish strategy in response to the
Leitch Review, falling funding for apprenticeships in Scotland and
the lack of Train to Gain provision. However, the relative freedom
of Scottish colleges to flex their provision to meet employer needs
was commended.
Semta View
Semta welcomes the focus of funding on engineering and life
science adult apprenticeships in Scotland. We are working with
employers across the UK through our 4 Nations Group, to establish
good practice and ensure informed representation to the various
governments. We are also working to help deliver Skills for
Scotland: A Lifelong Skills Strategy, which picks up many of the
principles of Leitch.
Main points
- The debate on 4th November 2008 was raised by Eric Joyce,
Labour MP for Falkirk. Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for
Innovation, Universities and Skills (Sion Simon) spoke on behalf of
the Department.
- Devolution means that the Leitch agenda is being carried
forward in different ways. Sector Skills Councils are one of the
aspects of the Leitch Review which apply equally across the
devolved nations.
- Changes to local economies have meant a move away from
traditional ‘single business’ in an area (eg iron) to a system of
mobility and diverse economic activity.
- UKCES has noted that, despite Scotland having higher
levels of skills per capita, it has lower levels of productivity
than the UK as a whole, which appears to contradict the accepted
view that high skills equal high productivity. This may be due to
the employment of over-qualified people due to the nature of
available jobs, but requires more investigation, which is currently
underway by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills. It may
also be due to the relationship between capital investment in
high-tech equipment (traditionally lower in older sectors and
service industries) and productivity.
- Forth Valley college and chemicals company INEOS in
Falkirk have created a scheme to recruit school leavers and train
them to Master of Engineering status in six years, in an effort to
address the practical skills deficiencies of traditional graduate
trainees.
- Scottish college leaders believe that they have more
flexibility and scope for local decision-making than their English
counterparts. England should learn from this.
- The English system, with its support for businesses
through Train to Gain, has made a strong commitment to funding,
which the Scottish system lacks, despite its use of individual
learning accounts.
- The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills is
clearly fully committed to apprenticeships, but funding for
Scottish apprenticeships has been cut from £52.8m to £50m. Adult
apprenticeships have been abandoned outside three key sectors
(construction, engineering and life sciences).
- The Edge Foundation is commended for its involvement in
promoting applied skills and entrepreneurship.
- An Apprenticeships Bill in Scotland mirroring the
provisions of the Draft Apprenticeships Bill in England has been
introduced.
- It is imperative that the current economic situation does
not impact on investment in skills, across the UK, as firms who cut
training during downturns are two and a half times more likely to
fail than those who do not.
- Scotland is still effectively waiting for a skills
strategy in response to the Leitch Review, having rejected the
proposed response twice (in September 2007 and May
2008).
Semta represents the view of our employers across government and
the media. If you are an employer in the science,
engineering, or manufacturing technology sectors, we welcome your
views at policy@semta.org.uk
11 November 2008
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