New report calls for reform of UK’s skills system Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 17:29

Responding to the UKCES report, Ambition 2020, Peter Lavender, Deputy Chief Executive at NIACE, said:

"We welcome Ambition 2020, particularly its well made argument that literacy and numeracy is critical, although NIACE notes that literacy and ESOL provision has been reduced in importance in the current funding arrangements. The report also argues for a blend of supply-side and demand-side responses - one without the other won't work - so there has to be a greater effort to drive up participation in learning. Without this there is unlikely to be much change in the UK's ranking. The report also puts forward a crucial argument that inequality - the UK is 24th in the OECD table - directly impacts on skills and jobs for the UK, but there isn't much comfort in how this should be addressed."

"Overall, Ambition 2020 is right in much of its analysis and here's hoping that the government also see a 'fierce urgency of now' in framing their response."

The report's key recommendations include:

• improving information, advice and guidance for learners, in part by making the collection and publication of destination and earnings data mandatory for all colleges and universities in receipt of public funding;
• devolving more funding and decision-making to the front line - for example, through the network of Local Employment Partnerships (LEPs);
• prioritising public funding towards basic and lower level skills and stimulating greater co-investment with employers and individuals in higher level skills; and
• taking advantage of the new cap on non-EU migration to ensure that the opportunities created are secured by appropriately-skilled indigenous workers.

Chris Humphries CBE, Chief Executive of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, said:

"At the moment, our economy is still world-class - quite an achievement for such a small island. But we're living on past glories. Economic success rests on three legs - skills, jobs and productivity - and we are well below average on the first of these. Unless swift and decisive action is taken, we can expect the UK's economy to begin to slide down the international rankings."

"The Commission hopes and believes that the UK can continue to be a world class nation, with some of the best skilled workers and the best businesses. But at the moment, just like the England World Cup team, whilst aspiring to still be in the quarter finals in 2020, our current performance just enables us to scrape in at the bottom of the last 16."