Council launch plan to develop a more skilled and flexible workforce in Plymouth
An ambitious plan to develop a more skilled and flexible workforce in Plymouth will be officially presented for approval to the Council’s cabinet this month.
Plymouth’s Plan for Employment and Skills is needed to ensure the skills of the city’s workforce keep up with the demands of employers.
Council Leader Tudor Evans said: “Plymouth is a world class leader in marine, science and advanced manufacturing; as well as being internationally famous for our rich pioneering, maritime, military and historical heritage.
“There is a growing appetite for people to work together across Plymouth to match skills with employer need, to help the city grow, drive enterprise and innovation, and develop the talents of our residents.
“Science, technology, engineering and maths – or STEM skills are hugely important to growing Plymouth’s economy and unless we address the skills shortages that currently exist in these key skills then employers will start to recruit from outside the area.
“By introducing this plan we will work closely with our universities, training providers, employers and the public sector to ensure that training and skills development in the city match employer’s needs.”
The Plymouth Growth Board, (PGB) a private sector led partnership, bringing together representatives from key city organisations to work together and drive forward the economic priorities of Plymouth, is fully supportive of the plan for employment and skills.
Paul Woods, Chair of the PGB said, “If Plymouth is to truly become Britain’s Ocean City, with opportunities for all, we need to ensure that the people in and around our city are best placed to benefit from its growing opportunities.”
The Plan for Employment and Skills sets out strategic objectives and projects, both underway and planned, that will help boost the city’s economic prosperity.
Highlights include:
• Better understanding of present and future skills shortages; and enable employers to become more involved in the development and review of education and training courses to help address this
• The creation of an education and training ‘prospectus’ to showcase all vocational and academic offers to young people and their parents, linked to national careers service support
• A brand new mentors project supporting 375 unemployed young people (18 to 24 year olds) into work – with £2.3million funding from Plymouth’s City Deal
• A wage progression project – to support 750 young people to keep their first job, move into a better job and develop a career – with £750,000 from the City Deal
• A brand new Work Coach pilot supporting 100 young people (16 to 17 year olds ) preparing for work
• Help develop ‘work ready’ skills for our children by piloting Employability Passports in schools, to be extended into our colleges and universities with an employer endorsed Chartermark
• Improved employer engagement with schools, including a City Deal funded Challenge Fund, to be launched this month, to enable schools to teach through enterprise projects linked to advanced manufacturers
• Improved promotion of apprenticeships, including a Building Plymouth Summit in March to promote the 10,000 new job opportunities projected in construction over the next ten years
• The launch of a Core Skills Task Force for Plymouth - to review and better promote core skills provision, including STEM, ICT and other skills
• A brand new £13 million state of the art STEM Centre based at City College Plymouth – to boost talent for science and engineering based work
• Support for enterprise skills to increase graduate retention and enable SMEs/micro-businesses to thrive-secure major grant funding from the Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership and elsewhere to assist with delivery of the Employment and Skills Plan, including employer-led skills initiatives and ensure access for all.
Councillor Sue McDonald Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Public Health said: “Plymouth has some fantastic opportunities to match our people to the jobs and skills required in the future. This new plan for employment and skills aims to help understand where these opportunities are, and get people thinking about what skills they need and how to go about getting them.”
