First Intuition Director, Gareth John, was invited to represent the IoD Education Group at a Ministerial Reception last night at the Department for Education.
Following the election of the new Labour government, the event was an opportunity for key voices in the skills sector to get together and hear from the Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson, as she introduced her new ministerial team.
In Bridget’s speech, she spoke about how “Education will once again be at the heart of change”.
“Opportunities should be for all, not just a lucky few. There should be no ceiling on ambitions for young people. We will break down barriers to opportunities.”
She spoke powerfully about resetting the DfE’s relationships with the education and skills sector including businesses training apprentices.
“You have worked wonders under challenging conditions and turbulent times. We will be open to your expertise and promise to listen to your guidance and champion your causes.”
It was great to hear Bridget’s passion for the skills sector and we at First Intuition look forward to seeing the positive changes implemented by the Labour government and her team.
However, there are some particular areas where clarity is still needed:
- The role of Skills England in determining eligible training for levy funding and how long it will take for that body to get up to speed at a time when urgent change is needed
- Exactly what ‘flexibilities’ in the use of Growth and Skills Levy funding will mean in practice
- How further devolution of adult skills will be reconciled with a national post-16 skills strategy
Gareth John will discuss these areas closer when he chairs an IoD Education Group webinar on ‘UK Skills Policy and Delivery: opportunities for the new government' on Thursday 28th July, 8-9am.
The session will look at how the next government should address the skills and labour shortages across the UK. Including the key priorities from major representative bodies in the skills sector, and what can business leaders do to forge long term partnerships with Westminster and Whitehall.
Gareth will be joined by a number of experts in the skills sector, including Alex Hall-Chen of the Institute of Directors (IoD), Faye Skelton of Make UK, Paul Wilson Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), Jane Gratton of British Chambers of Commerce, Robert Nitsch recently of IfATE (Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education), Robert West of CBI (Confederation of British Industry) and Simon Ashworth of AELP.
You can find more information and register for the webinar here: https://www.iod.com/events/skills_policy_forum_opportunities_for_the_new_government2233136881/
