Boosting adults’ skills levels by investing in vocational education could boost the economy by £21 billion annually by 2026, a new report finds.
The independent commission on sustainable learning for life, work, and a changing economy, led by the former chair of the Commons education select committee, Neil Carmichael, has produced an interim report that was presented at a fringe event at the Conservative Party Conference on Tuesday evening.
The authors of the report, backed by education company Pearson, noted that if UK skills could achieve a top quartile OECD ranking of countries by adult education level, this would translate into a £108 billion dividend over a decade.
Small pots of money ‘not enough’
Mr Carmichael said the UK needed a skills system that was “more responsive, more flexible and truly engages employers and industry.”
“It is clear from our work that what is required is a fundamental change in culture, where young people from all backgrounds are inspired and equipped to develop technical and professional skills to support their career ambitions.”
He added: “It is not enough to rely on yet another batch of initiatives and relatively small pots of money to deliver such a system and the workforce we need. Instead, all assumptions must be rigorously tested and new and bold ideas, rooted in evidence, should be advanced.”
A final report from the commission will be published by the end of the year.
Recommendations
- An organised, long-term, stable system, which grows, responds and develops as demands change.
- Transparency of information about need, including regional priorities and opportunities.
- An engagement with the network of employers, training providers, and exam awarding bodies that draws their energies into improving and adapting the learning environment.
- A widespread realisation that a workforce should be continually learning, and striving to manage that learning for self-improvement.
- Proper, focused, and accessible funding in the system, not just to cover technical skills, but to embrace the wider workplace social and interpersonal skills that make an effective worker.
