What skills does your business need to thrive?

West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce has received a significant step forward in the delivery of its Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIPs) following confirmation from the Department of Education that it has approved its delivery plan and we now need you as business leaders to help us take this forward.

West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce is leading two Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) programmes for both West Yorkshire and York and North Yorkshire. The West Yorkshire programme is being delivered in conjunction with Mid Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce.

Following the update from Government the Chamber is now creating leadership and steering groups for both plans.

Launched by central Government in 2021, LSIPs allow for training and educational curricula to be tailored to the specific needs of the local business community, a model common in Germany and Scandinavia. LSIPs focus on addressing any mismatches that may exist between what employers require and what learning providers offer in their teaching and training programmes, specific to local economic needs.

Skills for Jobs

LSIPs are part of the national “Skills for Jobs” initiative focused on post-16 technical education and training. What is unique to the LSIP is the focus on specific local need and the extent of the consultation with businesses of all sizes on their skills needs and defining what are the sectors to focus the plan on. The LSIP is therefore a process of gathering information about the skills gaps in the region, consulting with organisations and detailing how business and training providers can address this for the most challenging sectors for the region. This will shape a plan that is a living document, published by the DfE next June. The language and a format must be accessible to all. It will be reviewed and updated annually in response to changes in current and predicted needs.

Already the LSIP programme has significant support from key stakeholders including colleges of further education, universities, local authorities, the LEP, business groups, employer representative bodies and trade associations.

The development of the LSIP will be underpinned by continuous engagement with partners, stakeholders, and businesses.

3 Steps

The LSIP has 3 overlapping stages to complete over the next 6 months followed by annual review:

Step 1 : Skills Market

Gather the data on the current skills market for the area and start to address data gaps, where practical. We currently believe the focus for the LSIP will be on STEM, Green Skills and Manufacturing and possibly a 4th area. This may be different for West and North Yorkshire, and consultation may change this. (currently underway).

Step 2 : Employer Consultation

Consult widely with employers of all sizes and training providers to gather views and shape content, start to build new relationships between businesses and providers. (January – March 2023).

Step 3 : Evidence & Report

Drafting the report, review content and ensure it is clearly evidence based before submission to the department for Education (headlines must be shareable with training providers in March with report completed in May and published on gov.uk in June 2023)

Annual review

By the end of March 2024 and 2025 to inform the training providers annual agreements and reflect changes in the skills market.

Contribute to the plan for local skills

Chambers of Commerce are leading the development of most of the LSIPs. The extent of our networks and ability to engage with businesses ranging in size from less than 10 staff to thousands was key to securing the contracts. We are uniquely positioned to build on our existing relationships to access all the available data. The networks and expertise in lead generation we have will ensure we create a truly representative and useful plan.

We are now looking to open up to partner organisations in both the education and learning sector and the wider business community.

Contacts

www.wnychamber.co.uk/local-skills-improvement-plan/

Email for enquiries: skills@wnychamber.co.uk