Addressing the labour market emergency: Scottish Government response

Theme three – Training to enable unemployed people to transition into employment

Key actions

• We are reviewing our Labour Market Strategy to ensure a coherent package of education, skills and employability support is in place.
• We are working with partners to protect existing apprenticeships and to enable more employers to participate.
• We will work with Skills Development Scotland (SDS) to develop plans to enhance the current Adopt an Apprentice offer to allow more redundant apprentices to complete their training.
• We will develop a COVID-19 Transition Training Fund focused on helping those in sectors where there is the greatest risk of job losses.
• We are re-purposing the Flexible Workforce Development Fund to respond to the current labour market challenges to enable employers to adapt to a post COVID-19 delivery environment.
• The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) is undertaking a review to consider ways of achieving responsive, sustainable and coherent provision.
• The SFC has provided £6 million funding to universities for the provision of short reskilling courses.
• We are taking forward the actions on our Sustainability Plan for colleges and universities to address existing resource constraints within the system and the scale of the external shock caused by COVID-19.

Skills, both which have been acquired by those already in work and in those entering the labour market for the first time, are key to unlocking opportunities in the labour market as they emerge and by extension supporting our businesses to re-start, adapt and recover.

We will radically re-purpose Scotland’s training offer to ensure we maximise the accumulated talent, knowledge and experience of our existing workforce, and ensure those entering the jobs market for the first time receive the support and acquire the skills which are relevant to Scotland’s recovery.

What we were asked to do

The ESSB sub-group report has highlighted the need to revisit, and where appropriate or feasible, repurpose all of the Scottish Governments skills interventions to ensure they deliver for the future needs of the labour market.

The sub-group made a significant number of recommendations on training and skills including actions to support the Apprenticeship Family through the crisis, expansion of existing interventions including Individual Training Accounts and the Flexible Workforce Development Fund, and additional measures to help workers facing redundancy as a result of COVID-19, transition into sectors with greater job opportunities, such as green jobs and social care.

They also set out a number of recommendations for further and higher education to prioritise how the sector responds to the COVID-19 crisis with a focus on flexibility.

What we are doing now

Since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, we have worked with partners to better understand how the labour market is changing and the impact this will have on skills needs for people of all ages. It is clear many more people will need skills support as unemployment rises and some sectors continue to be more adversely affected.

We are:

• Working with partners to protect existing apprenticeships and to enable more employers to participate
• Extending the SDS COVID-19 Relief Grant to the end of August, providing continued support for training providers through the phased route map out of lockdown
• Re-purposing the Flexible Workforce Development Fund to respond to the current labour market challenges to enable employers to adapt to a new post COVID-19 delivery environment
• Supporting training providers to provide critical services to employers and learners during lockdown.

In partnership with our colleges and universities, we have:

• Announced an additional £75 million of funding for university research to help Scottish universities protect their research and innovation base in the short term
• Provided, through the Scottish Funding Council (SFC), £6 million funding for the 2019/20 Academic Year for the provision of short reskilling courses, with a further £6 million funding available for Academic Year 2020/21
• Sustained Foundation and Graduate Apprenticeships places
• Commissioned the SFC to consider ways of achieving responsive, sustainable and coherent provision.

What we will do

We will:

• Review our Labour Market Strategy to ensure a coherent package of education, skills and employability support is in place to respond to the future labour market challenges we face while maximising outcomes from economic opportunities such as the transition to a net zero economy
• Work with SDS to develop plans to enhance the current Adopt an Apprentice offer to allow more redundant apprentices to complete their training. We will also work with SDS and SFC to develop improved pathways to apprenticeships
• Develop a COVID-19 Transition Training Fund focused on helping those in sectors where there is the greatest risk of job losses. As part of this, we will ensure Individual Training Accounts are focussed on our COVID-19 response
• Take forward the actions on our Sustainability Plan for colleges and universities to address existing resource constraints within the system and the scale of the external shock caused by COVID-19
• Work with colleges and universities to maximise their contribution to recovery, including scoping additionality to ensure the best utilisation of our skills budget
• Take forward the outcomes of the SFC Review into achieving sustainability within the sector.

Case Study – Fast Track

During 2019, two "Fast Track" 6 week work-readiness courses were piloted in Glasgow. Fast Track is a 6-week course directed to un/under-employed HNC/D and Degree level graduates seeking careers in Financial & Professional Services who need more learning support for future employment in those sectors.

Co-designed and co-delivered by industry SMEs, the course curriculum has been co-designed and delivered with the Hub's industry members. These include BNP Paribas, Lloyds, Barclays, HSBC and Morgan Stanley among others.

Fast Track follows a common curriculum centred on four main modules, Environment, Business Culture, Risk and Skills. But there is content flexibility to reflect the regional nature of in-demand roles. The collaborative and innovative nature of Fast Track was reflected in its Pioneer Award at 2019 Financial Services Awards.

Barry Connolly from the Royal Bank of Scotland, and Chair of the Financial Services Advisory Board Skills and Talent Group, said:

“Fast-track is making financial services feel more accessible to more people – and is a great example of the collaboration happening across industry, government and the education sector.”

Future Demand/Scale Up

People who have customer service skills and experience, but who are impacted by redundancy, are a future audience for Fast Track. Responding to the pandemic, there has been progress to deliver Fast Track “at scale” and through online and blended delivery. There has also been increased interest from colleges and more companies are being invited into the East and West Hubs. SDS is also progressing Fast Track sustainable funding options with the SFC. When SQA accreditation is confirmed, separate discussion will be led with DWP to secure Fast Track as an approved course for people on benefits.

How we will implement change

The principles of Scotland’s Future Skills Action Plan, launched in 2019 remain valid today. As we respond to the economic crisis, we must increase the agility of the skills system to respond to employers and workers needs and demands. There must be more opportunities for upskilling and retraining and ensuring a financially sustainable system, working with employers in all sectors to develop a culture of co-investment. Finally, noting the risk of long term scarring of unemployment on young people, we must continue to work to enhance the experience of 15-24 year olds in the education system to enable them to progress successfully through learning.

Increasing flexibility in the skills system; reprioritising available capacity

We will work with employers, apprentices, colleges, SDS, the Scottish Apprenticeship Advisory Board, the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and the Apprenticeship Approval Group to consider all of the recommendations made including:-

• Considering how education and skills sectors can work to sustain models of on-line delivery in the future across the apprenticeship family, including Foundation, Modern and Graduate Apprenticeships
• Working with colleges and other stakeholders to consider the expansion of shared apprenticeships
• A relaxation of the single employer status
• The development of apprenticeship pathway programmes
• Considering an extending period of off-the-job training for apprentices, while ensuring that any such period does not affect the integrity of apprenticeships in Scotland
• Working with employers and delivery partners to consider how we can extend the ‘group training’ model.

Retraining and upskilling

The Scottish Government has committed to bring forward proposals for a new retraining offer focused on helping those at greatest risk of unemployment. This will be a flexible and proactive programme of skills interventions to support people facing redundancy in those sectors and regions most affected by the current crisis.

In the coming weeks, we will work with stakeholders and delivery partners including SDS, SFC, local government, employers and the STUC to develop proposals for this fund. We will work to identify key sectors where jobs are most at risk, including hospitality, while also identifying those sectors which continue to recruit, or where growth is predicted, including to support our ambitious just transition targets.

Maximising the contribution of Further and Higher Education

In support of economic recovery, our colleges and universities will be central to our national reskilling effort and we are working to support the swift increase in upskilling and retraining opportunities targeted on furloughed staff and those seeking to retrain.

For the college sector, in particular, we are considering how adaptations to the Flexible Workforce Fund can assist in responding to the increased demand for these skills. The Flexible Workforce Fund has enabled colleges to further develop their engagement and collaboration with employers. Building on these existing partnerships we are supporting colleges to flex more of their provision to respond to new employer demand and are currently working with employer representatives to ensure the Flexible Workforce Fund can support a broader employer base.

Ensuring courses are visible and accessible to learners is essential. We expect both sectors to work with SDS in increasing the visibility of courses, such as through the online skills portal already established for furloughed workers and the ongoing development of the My World of Work website course search facility.

Work is already underway to support universities to respond to the demand for upskilling and reskilling. In maximising their contribution, the SFC will encourage universities to consider business focussed partnerships, such as The Future Made for Success initiative, set up by Heriot-Watt University. Evaluation of such schemes will help build best practice across the sectors. We will also work with the sector to maximise the contribution of existing post graduate programmes.

In light of COVID-19, the volume and demand for on-line learning has increased substantially, requiring the sectors to adapt at pace. The quality and importance of a consistent learning experience is being monitored by institutions, Education Scotland and the Quality Assurance Agency. Evident progress is already underway, as demonstrated by the partnership between Jisc; the UK digital network for colleges and universities, and the College Development Network (CDN), which has, for example, introduced Virtual Bridge online training sessions for college staff in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

We also recognise the importance of the Open University (OU) in Scotland in shaping future on-line learning. The OU’s modular provision, MOOCS, Micro credentials and free online content and Badged Open Courses all offer the accessible, flexible skills development opportunities that business and industry require.

Partnership and greater alignment is a theme running through the recommendations and we recognise the importance of partnership and place, ensuring alignment between national and regional economic recovery. We will be seeking to maximise the role institutions and regional colleges, in particular, play in generating and responding to the demand for skills. We also recognise the vital role Regional Economic Partnerships have in bringing together key economic actors across public, private and third sectors, to take a strategic view regarding skills demand and requirements, based on direct knowledge of regional advantages and strengths which can be built upon.

The requirement for more significant system alignment will be a key consideration of the SFC’s review of coherent provision, which in turn will be central in shaping future cross sector collaboration in support of longer term regional and national economic regeneration.

Skills planning

The need for an aligned skills system remains a priority. Up to date labour market data and intelligence will be critical to this, but so too will a clear commitment to collaboration at a local, regional and national level across partners and agencies.

Work is already underway, including the monthly publication on SDS’ website of labour market data and insights report and dashboard. Detailed, individual regional data and insights reports are currently in development. Data updates of “Regional Skills Assessments” Data Matrix tool are in progress to allow partners to self-serve on updated ‘post COVID-19’ labour market intelligence.

Looking ahead, SDS and SFC will seek to enhance and extend existing skills alignment activity in support of future skills and job resilience. In support of regional economic sustainability, this work will be well aligned to new place based investments, responding to the new labour market challenges through targeted activity in partnership with specific college regions. Together, our skills agencies will bring a renewed focus to the mapping and alignment of our skills provision, updating this work, to enable colleges and universities to address skills challenges and opportunities and thereby maximise the impact of our joint skills and area based investments.