Temporary “jobs and skills hubs” should be set up in further education colleges to allow them to help those out of work in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic, the Collab Group has said.

In a briefing note, the group, which represents 34 large colleges across the UK, said it had made a set of proposals to the government to support the country’s efforts to rebuild the economy post-Covid.

This, it said, included providing support to jobseekers by setting up temporary “jobs and skills hubs”, which would provide tailored careers advice, “undertaking skills triage, providing employability skills support, providing English, maths and basic digital skills support”.

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'Natural assets'

The group said colleges were "natural assets" to increase local capacity for employment- and skills-related support services, and with it being likely that the demand for job centre services would rise considerably over the coming months, one of the ways that colleges could help was by providing extra capacity to support temporary job centres, or “skills and jobs” hubs.

These could be set up rapidly in locally familiar locations, they would be able to leverage the expertise of information, advice and guidance specialists to advise jobseekers on opportunities for training and employment, and colleges would be able to leverage their employer links combined with a deep knowledge of their local labour markets, said Collab. They could also offer a range of IAG (information, advice and guidance) services and conduct skills diagnostic assessments.

Collab Group chief executive Ian Pretty told Tes: “Once we get into the autumn, it is likely that we will be facing a massive economic crisis and the demand for employment-related support and services will likely increase dramatically. It is foreseeable that, come October, there will be concerns about the capacity of job centres to respond to rising demand to access their services.

“Further education colleges are well placed to increase this capacity. Colleges can leverage their physical estates but they also bring with them a wealth of experience in getting people back into sustainable employment. Colleges understand their local labour market, they have excellent links with employers and can rapidly assess the skills of jobseekers to advise them on opportunities and pathways that work for the individual and their local economy. Harnessing the power of colleges is a win-win for everyone.”