Following the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Budget announcement on Wednesday 27 October, Liz Bromley, Chief Executive Officer of NCG, said:
“We welcome any support that will genuinely place skills at the centre of the recovery with the means to make a real impact. Funding that supports the most disadvantaged and uses education to shape positive futures is critical, and we are pleased to see the government make its £2bn pledge to education recovery.
“It is encouraging to see the government increase its investment into education. The funding for T Levels and vocational education is especially positive to see, as these qualifications have the potential to really drive the recovery of the economy across a range of sectors.
“We are at a moment in time when strategic investment in further education to develop home grown skills and the future workforce can make a real difference to the UK’s recovery post pandemic, but we look forward to seeing the accompanying detail that will support the sector to put this into action in a meaningful way. For example, we’d like to see further information on the £1.5 billion of capital offered to improve our learning environments. It’s welcome support, however, we hope that there will be realistic time limits placed on spending this fund to ensure that we can use the money available in the best possible way for long-term impact without rushing into short-term options.
“Investment into Skills Bootcamps mirrors NCG’s commitment to lifelong learning and will support the upskilling of workers who have found themselves displaced as a result of the pandemic. The £560m Multiply numeracy programme for adults is also a positive move in terms of enhancing the prospects of people across the country – we are keen to see whether this includes accessible courses such as Functional Skills to maximise this opportunity to ‘level up’ educationally.
“It will be interesting to see how the government plans to facilitate collaboration between education and industry, as the development of sustainable long-term partnerships is key to creating a skilled future workforce. We’d welcome the opportunity to share our longstanding experience in working with employers to create tangible links to the workplace, especially in key sectors such as STEM and clean energy. In fact it is disappointing to see so little announced about green energy, especially as this Statement comes just a few days before COP26 and should be high on the agenda.
“For apprenticeships, which have experienced continual underspend, we’d like to see the government outline realistic and tangible strategies for educating and incentivising employers to engage with the apprenticeship scheme, to maximise opportunities for young people and help to build back better.”
Grant Glendinning, Executive Principal North and Strategic Lead for Apprenticeships at NCG, added: “It’s very welcome to see the total funding for apprenticeships rise to the promised levels but in tandem, improvements to the regulatory system are essential to ensure the amazing benefits apprenticeships provide for young people and employers are maximised.
“This means simplifying the Digital Apprenticeship Service, removing the complexities around employer incentives, and rationalising the burdensome bureaucracy inherent to the system.
“This should be done at speed, safely, to achieve the growth in starts this great opportunity brings.”