SKILLS CRISIS
From classroom to career: why lifelong learning has become a business imperative
Britain cannot solve its youth employment challenge without also confronting the skills pressures facing people throughout their working lives, the British Chambers of Commerce has warned. Its new report calls for a simpler system that connects careers advice, training and employment support- and gives employers the confidence to invest.
The debate about Britain’ s skills system is often divided into separate problems. There is the urgent question of how to prevent young people from becoming disconnected from education and work. There is the persistent frustration of employers unable to recruit people with the capabilities they need. Then there is the challenge facing adults whose jobs are changing, or who need to retrain to remain productive through longer working lives.
A new report from the British Chambers of Commerce( BCC) argues that these are not separate conversations at all.
From Classroom to Career: Delivering Growth Through Lifelong Learning in England calls for a more coherent approach linking careers education, skills development, employment support and lifelong learning.
Published as businesses await the final report of Alan Milburn’ s review into young people not in education, employment or training( NEET), it warns that an urgent response to the youth jobs crisis must form part of a much wider rethink.
At the heart of the report is a straightforward economic argument: growth depends on people having the right skills in the right jobs, not just as they first enter employment but throughout their careers.
Stuart Elford said:“ Businesses across Staffordshire know that skills are fundamental to growth. Employers want to invest in their people and create opportunities for the next generation, but they need a system that is simpler to navigate, shaped by genuine business need and able to support people throughout their working lives.
“ Tackling youth unemployment and helping adults retrain should not be treated as competing priorities. If we connect education, careers advice and skills provision more effectively with the needs of employers, we can build a more resilient workforce and unlock sustainable growth across Staffordshire.”
The scale of the immediate business problem is set out starkly. The BCC’ s latest UK-wide workforce survey, which questioned more than 850 businesses, found that 58 % were facing skills shortages. Around two-thirds, 67 %, said better access to skilled employees would support growth in their organisation.
Those findings suggest the skills debate is not an abstract policy exercise. For businesses trying to increase output, adopt new technology, enter new markets or improve productivity, access to capable people can determine whether an ambition becomes a viable plan.
One journey, not a series of interventions
The BCC’ s central contention is that Britain needs to stop treating careers advice, education, training and employment support as disconnected interventions.
A productive economy, it says, must help young people take their first steps into work while enabling adults to retrain, upskill and adapt as the economy changes.
That need is becoming more pressing. The report points to an ageing population, a rising state pension age, declining immigration and rapid technological change. Careers are likely to become longer and less linear, requiring more people to move between roles or sectors and learn new skills while in work.
The change can already be seen in the age at which people leave the labour market. In 1999, the average exit age was 63.2 for men and 60.8 for women. By 2025, it had risen to 65.8 and 64.7 respectively.
56 ISSUE 7