Following the Prime Minister's announcement on 29 September 2020 (which already seems a distant memory?) of plans to expand further education and training to prepare workers for the post-COVID-19 economy, the Department for Education has now published its Skills for Jobs White Paper.

The White Paper sets out proposals to reform post-16 education and training in England, and to give employers a central role in shaping reforms so that the needs of each local labour market are met. The proposals aim to deliver the Lifetime Skills Guarantee, helping individuals without A-levels or equivalent qualifications to learn flexibly throughout their lives and gain skills that lead to employment.

While the White Paper runs to 80 pages, the following points are likely to be of interest to employers:

·         Employers will be invited to lead in the development of Local Skills Improvement Plans, alongside further education colleges and other local stakeholders, so that training priorities which meet local labour market needs are established. The intention is to legislate to put employer leadership on a statutory footing.

·         Most post-16 technical education and training will be aligned to employer-led standards set by the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education. The aim is for a national system to be in place by 2030.

·         Apprenticeships will continue to be improved and expanded, so more employers and individuals can benefit from them as part of the Lifetime Skills Guarantee. This will include improving access to funding, making it easier for levy-paying employers to transfer funds, enabling the front-loading of training where appropriate, making apprenticeships work better in more sectors (including in construction), and enabling apprentices with significant prior learning to reduce the duration of their apprenticeship. The quality of traineeships will also be improved.

The White Paper sets out a clear expectation that engagement between employers and local education providers will increase, with employers taking an active role in shaping reforms. The German and Dutch Chamber of Commerce models are provided as examples of how sustained and effective engagement between employers and other stakeholders can be achieved, with the White Paper noting that strong employer-led skills systems already exist in these countries. The government proposes to establish "trailblazer local areas", where accredited Chambers of Commerce can lead Local Skills Improvement Plans.

The White Paper confirms Government commitment of £1.5 billion of capital funding to improve the condition of further education colleges, a further £291 million to support 16-19 year-olds and £375 million to deliver the 'Plan for Jobs' in 2021-2022.   However, noting that the White Paper is not just about financial commitment, the Department of Education say that:

"For too long we have squandered much of our latent creativity and talent:  the White Paper will be the level to unleash it."

Laudable sentiment indeed, and with unemployment (particularly for young people) likely to reach all-time record levels later this year  (following the end of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme) this White Paper needs to deliver.