Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department (a) collects and (b) produces labour market information.

Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Department for Business and Trade is responsible for employment rights.

In order to support this, the department collects and produces labour market information through published impact assessments, and statistics on trade union membership in the UK. This is undertaken to better inform policy decisions. They can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-business-and-trade/about/statistics.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps she has taken to help increase engagement between employers and further education colleges.

Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)

The department wants providers to continue to offer high-quality, relevant provision and to build upon the already fantastic work they do in partnership with local employers. The coming decade will see substantial economic change and as the economy changes, so will the skills needs of learners and employers. The department recognises that this will play out in different ways across the country and that is why the department introduced Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs) to support local innovation and growth so that every part of the country can succeed in its own unique way.

The department is delighted that across all areas of England, employer-led LSIPs have already helped engage thousands of local businesses and have brought them together with local providers and stakeholders to collaboratively agree and deliver actions to address local skills needs. By building locally owned LSIPs from the ground up, the department is reshaping the skills system to better support people to train for, and succeed in, their local labour market.

The department welcomes the excellent engagement currently taking place between the designated employer representative bodies (ERBs) leading the LSIPs and local providers of technical education and training. It has meant that in summer 2023, all 38 areas of England published a plan, which was approved by the Secretary of State for Education, setting out local skills priorities and actions across the next three years. Moving forward, the ERBs leading the implementation and review of the LSIPs are continuing to work closely with local providers and stakeholders to deliver the priority actions set out in the LSIPs. Indeed, each ERB will provide a public annual progress report in June 2024 and 2025 setting out progress made since publication of the LSIPs.

LSIPs are working alongside the department’s wider reforms to further education (FE) funding and accountability, enabling a step change in how FE provision meets local skills needs. To help ensure the success of the programme, and as part of this government’s commitment to continue to invest significantly into FE, the department provided a dedicated £165 million Local Skills Improvement Fund (LSIF) to support providers to work collaboratively to respond to the needs identified in the LSIPs.

Provider projects the department is funding through the LSIF include training to plug key skills gaps in digital, net zero and green, construction, artificial intelligence and health and social care, all of which were identified as priorities by employers through the LSIPs.

Together, LSIPS and the LSIF are galvanising and bringing employers and providers closer together to spread opportunity for young people, skills for businesses and growth for all areas of this country.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps she has taken to ensure careers advisors have knowledge of level 4 and 5 qualifications.

Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)

The National Careers Service (NCS) provides free, up to date, impartial information, advice and guidance on careers, skills and the Labour Market in England. It helps customers make informed choices about their career and learning options, whatever their age, ethnic group and background.

Over 760 careers advisers support customers to be:

• Informed and aware of the wide range of learning, training/retraining and work opportunities that are available to them.
• Better able to independently manage their careers; identify opportunities and respond to challenges in the employment and training market.
• Aware and able to access accurate and up to date information about careers and learning from the NCS whenever they need it.

The department has commissioned the Career Development Institute (CDI) to develop a bespoke Continuing Professional Development programme for careers advisers. In addition, the department regularly disseminates key information and updates via bulletins and newsletters to careers advisers in the community to ensure they have up to date information, including changes to the NCS website.

The Careers and Enterprise Company has developed case studies which showcase the affordable and successful delivery of the personal guidance. Through investing in Careers Leaders, the department is supporting schools to become better commissioners of careers professionals. The CDI is doing excellent work to put in place programmes to train and upskill careers professionals, including a new focus on digital skills.

The Gatsby Charitable Foundation has agreed funding for a new three-year programme to be delivered by the CDI to raise the profile of technical education among careers advisers working in schools and colleges across England. Careers advisers play a key role in helping young people define their career goals, understand their own strengths and development needs and decide on the right pathway to gain the skills needed to reach their goals. This new programme will raise careers advisers’ awareness and understanding of technical education pathways so they can confidently discuss them as options for the young people they work with.

Found: Kate Hollern Sir Mark Hendrick Sarah Champion Lilian Greenwood Olivia Blake Kim Leadbeater Seema

Found: Kate Hollern Sir Mark Hendrick Sarah Champion Lilian Greenwood Olivia Blake Kim Leadbeater Seema