There’s just a few weeks left for businesses to have their say on the current state of technical education in the UK.
The 31st January marks the deadline for businesses to join IfATE’s ‘The Big Conversation’ (the biggest consultation on technical education in years) and help shape the future of the current skills landscape so that it meets their needs. This call comes as a fifth of SMBs expect to see business increase in the coming year (despite cost of living and energy concerns) and having employees with the right skills will be paramount to support this.
Positively, technical education in England has changed for the better, but many employers aren’t familiar with the new and exciting opportunities available to them, or how to access them. Employers have been placed at the heart of the new system which aims to develop knowledge and skills in the areas needed by businesses.
To help employers understand the opportunities there could be for their business, Gatsby, a charitable foundation set up to support and strengthen technical education, has created a new resource for businesses, The Education Landscape: A Guide for Employers. It provides an overview of the education system in England as a whole and explains how employers can work with the technical skills system to benefit their business.
Building a better understanding of today’s skills options and opportunities will help employers provide meaningful feedback as part of The Big Conversation. Led by IfATE, it will be the biggest consultation on technical education in years. It’s a chance for employers, providers, business representative bodies and anyone else who uses technical qualifications to give their views and help shape the skills system. The deadline for businesses to join The Big Conversation is the 31st January 2023 which means now is a good time for businesses to feed in, as they forecast their future skills needs and strategically plan for the year ahead.
Jenifer Burden MBE, Director of Programmes at Gatsby, said: “Getting to grips with the education and skills landscape – which has changed and can be complex to understand – is a challenge. But the good news is employers can benefit in a number of ways if they choose to engage with it. The Education Landscape: A Guide for Employers has been developed with major industry bodies to help businesses understand how they can get the most out of engaging with the education system – and by joining The Big Conversation, they can play a part in shaping how the system evolves.”
Jennifer Coupland, chief executive of the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education, said: “If businesses need an introduction to – or a reminder of – the education and skills landscape and the opportunities available to them, then The Education Landscape: A Guide for Employers is an excellent place to start. We would then encourage businesses to have their say on the future of the technical education system in England – to ensure it continues to be built around their skills needs – via The Big Conversation.”
Find out how you can have your say at: The Big Conversation.