Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she is taking steps with Cabinet colleagues to support collaboration between local businesses and schools on work experience and apprenticeship placements in rural areas.
Answered by Janet Daby
The department wants to support all young people to access education and training opportunities, to break down the barriers to opportunity and support economic growth.
That is why young people in rural areas can benefit from the high quality training that apprenticeships offer. Apprentices in England can choose from apprenticeships in a wide range of sectors including agriculture, environmental and animal care, engineering and manufacturing, and business and administration. The department is introducing new foundation apprenticeships, a pre-apprenticeship training offer, that will give more young people a foot in the door and support clear pathways into work-based training and employment.
The department is also taking steps towards introducing two weeks’ worth of high quality work experience to all young people, irrespective of their background. This will open doors to a wider range of employers and businesses and give young people a greater insight into the labour market.
The department recognises that young people need support to capitalise on these workplace experiences, reflect on what they have learned and set future career goals. The department will therefore train 1,000 new careers advisers so that young people can get the expert advice they need.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to work with (a) the oil and gas sector and (b) other parts of the private sector to support the technical and vocational skills training required to achieve the Prime Minister’s ten point plan for a green industrial revolution.
Answered by Gillian Keegan
The oil and gas sector has a key role to play as we move to a net zero economy and this Government has committed to supporting this energy transition with a transformational North Sea Transition Deal. The focus of this deal will be on ensuring the sector can support the energy transition and anchoring the supply chain across the UK. This also includes a focus on skills, supporting high-quality jobs in new energy technologies that will help to decarbonise our economy.
Private sector engagement through employers is also key to our work in helping shape future policies and programmes. The new Green Jobs Taskforce, which was launched on 12 November 2020, has been set up to help the UK build back greener and deliver the skilled workforce needed to reach net zero emissions by 2050. This is a joint initiative between the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Department for Education.
Working with employers and relevant stakeholders such as BP and the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB), the Taskforce will develop an action plan to support 2 million good-quality, green jobs and the skills needed by 2030, supporting the UK to transition to a net zero economy and deliver a green recovery.
One key aim of the Taskforce is to identify the support needed for workers transitioning from high carbon industries such as oil and gas and how to best mobilise their skills for a Green Industrial Revolution.
Taskforce members will represent views of businesses, employees and the skills sector. Involvement in this work will not be limited only to Taskforce members, and there will be opportunities for a wider set of stakeholders, including the private sector, to contribute.
Details of the Taskforce including a full list members can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-government-launches-taskforce-to-support-drive-for-2-million-green-jobs-by-2030.
We are also working closely with the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education who are convening a Green Apprenticeships Advisory Panel to guide the Institute in identifying existing apprenticeships that support the green economy and encouraging trailblazers to align those apprenticeships to net zero and wider sustainability objectives. The Panel will also advise where there is a need for new apprenticeships to be created by employer groups. The Institute will be working to ensure that apprenticeships play their part in helping workers reskill and support a move to green sector jobs.
The ECITB grant also supports a wide range of training in the oil and gas sector, from craft, apprenticeships, and technical training to project management. The ECITB’s recently announced COVID-19 support package is directly focused on the oil and gas sector, including the ‘Train to Retain’ initiative, which will support the retention and development of graduates and apprentices, ensuring that vital engineering skills are secured in the industry.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make it his policy to provide funding for study abroad programs from 2020 in the event that UK students do not have access to Erasmus+ in time for the 2020-21 academic year.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
The government places great value upon international exchange and collaboration in education and training. This will continue to be the case after we leave the EU and establish new relationships with academic institutions across Europe and the rest of the world.
If it is in the UK’s interests, we will seek to participate in some specific EU programmes as a third country. The draft Political Declaration envisages the possibility of UK participation in EU programmes like Erasmus+ and the negotiation of general terms of participation. My officials are preparing for all eventualities and are considering a wide range of options with regard to the future of international exchange. These include potential domestic alternatives to the Erasmus+ programme for the 2020/21 academic year and beyond, should we need them.