Last week the Government outlined its legislative agenda for 2021‐22, which included the Skills and Post‐16 Education Bill as part of the Prime Minister’s pledge for a ‘skills revolution’ in England. With the aim of bringing the skills and education system closer to the employer market, the Bill details significant reforms to post‐16 education and training, including the Lifetime Skills Guarantee to enable easier retraining for individuals, greater influence for employers in planning publicly‐funded training programmes, and reforms to the student finance system.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said these new laws “are the rocket fuel that we need to level up this country and ensure equal opportunities for all”. Education secretary Gavin Williamson added: “Through legislation, our vision is to transform the sector (Education and Training) and expand opportunity right across the country, so that more people can get the skills they need to get good jobs.”
The main benefits of the Skills Bill will be:
- Offering adults across the country the opportunity to retrain in later life through the lifetime skills guarantee, helping them to gain in demand skills and open up further job opportunities.
- Realigning the system around the needs of employers so that people are trained for the skills gaps (roles that have been vacant for a long time) that exist now and, in the future, in sectors the economy needs including construction, digital, clean energy and manufacturing.
- Improving the quality of training available by making sure that providers are better run, qualifications are better regulated, and that providers’ performance can be effectively assessed.
Visit the Skills Hub
The hub provides information on sector careers, apprenticeships and funding, as well as access to e-learning, CPD and other training. It brings together details of courses specific to the finishes and interiors sector, making accessing and booking training quick and easy.