Lord Jones on colleges' key role in training future workforce
Lord Jones of Birmingham says colleges have a key role in training the people who can drive the economy forward
Educating our future
Teachers and lecturers are critical in leading the UK out of recession. The work they do in colleges and schools across this great region of ours can shape and affect so many different parts of our lives.
None of us is unaffected by what goes on in the educational establishment, least of all those of us immersed in the world of business.
Having travelled to 45 countries in 15 months in my role as trade minister, it strikes me that we continue to live in a great country. Having heard other nations’ views of us, it seems the only country which knocks Britain is Britain itself.
Fundamentally selling our nation’s credentials abroad and at home is vital to creating wealth. The next ten to 20 years will be crucial for endowing our young people with the skills employers are looking for in order for the UK economy to succeed.
In my opinion, the further education sector is key to sustaining the long-term skills base necessary for seeing us through this recession. The biggest challenge for educational institutions is training up a workforce that is fit for purpose, for an economy that is changing and will continue to do so.
We are witnessing a fundamental shift in how our economy is structured and focused. Businesses must reconsider trading commodities which base value on what customers will pay. This system will no longer create healthy commerce and wealth. Instead, companies will need to assess what added value they can bring to their sector.
So the task falls to teachers and lecturers to begin this process of training people to drive the economy forward.
We see the devastating effects that having no skills has on an individual and on society.
They feel demoralised, isolated, powerless and worthless. Many who have few qualifications feel they cannot contribute to their community and their local economy.
The knock-on costs, aside from the obvious financial burden, put a strain on the NHS and on the community.
These are well documented observations and should drive us to invest in more up-skilling and training to ensure we support these people and get them to play a more effective role in our society.
Training and teaching people empowers them and ultimately inspires innovation.
I believe colleges like Matthew Boulton and Sutton Coldfield colleges are in a prime position to lead the way in aiming for excellence in teaching standards and aspiring to maintain a curriculum which is relevant and dynamic.
We should not focus solely on getting young people to universities. They have their place, but we need training and skills qualifications that cater for all the industries and sectors which need vital new employees in the years to come.
Therefore, we must strive for first-class teaching that ensures people can come out of education with a qualification that stands up to scrutiny and enables them to enter the workforce with something to contribute.
Business centres grow and thrive in areas where learning is exploited and held in high regard.
Birmingham is already a centre for excellence in many sectors, including education. We are fiercely proud of the city and the West Midlands. It must, therefore, be a high priority to maintain and invest in the education sector the much needed funds to cement the region’s future as a place that attracts the best companies and individuals.
In these trying economic times, educational institutions must be leaders, advocates for our future with a vision of a highly skilled and vibrant workforce and, ultimately, they must deliver this remit to be committed to training.
The Government has a significant role to play in delivering the target of improving the skills base in the UK.
Train to Gain is the national skills service that supports employers of all sizes and in all sectors, offering skills advice on Investors in People, basic skills, leadership and management training. Initiatives like Train to Gain cannot succeed if there are not enough sufficiently educated people to be employed by these companies that need specialist knowledge.
In a recent Government report, Skills Action Plan for the West Midlands, key objectives were highlighted to stimulate the improvement of skill in the Midlands. By 2011 they hope to have a five-fold increase in the level of direct employer investments generated by the Train to Gain service, a 50 per cent increase in the number of employers taking on apprenticeships and a 25 per cent increase in the number of graduates recruited by West Midlands businesses, particularly from the region’s higher education institutions.
West Midlands businesses are working hard to improve the skills performance of employees. There has been an increase of employers investing in training and up-skilling from 56 per cent in 2005 – the lowest in the country – to 64 per cent in 2007 – the fourth highest.
This investment is necessary and must go further because economic exclusion accounts for a fifth of the £10 billion output gap in the West Midlands.
Intervening to provide opportunities to up-skill and train are vital to reducing economic exclusion and it is easy to see a direct correlation between the levels of skills and qualification and employment. I see it as absolutely paramount that we support individuals in education and training to facilitate them getting employment and to begin contributing to the regional economy.
Our economy is dependent on the private sector to drive and generate wealth and the private sector is dependent on employing highly qualified and competent people who can propel business.
If the private sector struggles, the tax revenue dwindles and thus provides less money to fund the public sector – the sector charged with training and educating our future workforce.
This could become a negative cycle if we do not intervene now and start viewing training and skills as vital to stimulating and rejuvenating our economy.
n This piece is based on a recent address by Lord Jones to the annual conference of Matthew Boulton and Sutton Coldfield Colleges.
