Liberal Democrat Party Conference Roundtable

Chris Gale — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 09:58:12 GMT

At the Liberal Democrats' party conference on the 16th September, The City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development hosted a round table discussion, entitled ‘Upskilling communities: vocational education, social exclusion and the local agenda’.

With the UK facing recession, and with economies around the world feeling the impact of the credit crunch and global economic downturn, skills are becoming increasingly important as a means of driving competitiveness and productivity. The Centre for Skills Development, however, believes that vocational education has a wider value: it has the power to engage people in their communities, boost their self-esteem and life chances, and give them skills that they can put to use for social as well as economic benefit. By focusing on skills development, we have the chance to improve quality of life and strengthen our communities, both at home and overseas.

Recently, the direction of the UK’s skills policy has shifted back towards empowerment at the local level, with plans to shift responsibility for vocational education to local authorities. With an urgent need to ensure that the training being provided in the UK matches the needs of the labour market and therefore leads to good jobs, local government is best placed to ensure that training provision fits with the local economic picture. Local authorities may also have best insight into specific issues affecting the success of vocational education programmes within their communities. Is this enough to harness the power of vocational education to improve the prospects of people in our most marginalised communities?

During the debate we explored the following questions in detail:

•How can we ensure that the training on offer meets the needs of learners, to attract them to enter and remain in training?
•How can we better involve local employers to ensure that training leads to good jobs? What is the role of the Sector Skills Councils and Regional Development Agencies in this regard?
•How can we engage adults in learning, particularly those who left school with few or no qualifications?
•How best can we use modern technology, as well as more traditional resources?
•How can innovative community initiatives be supported?

[b]We are now inviting other stakeholders to participate in the debate on this forum, ahead of the release of a report from the roundtable event.[/b]

City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development / Skills & Equality / Skills & Equality / Liberal Democrat Party Conference Roundtable / Latest Posts

Liberal Democrat Party Conference Roundtable