Weaknesses in Government's skills strategy, says IoD

For immediate release
Wednesday 21 January 2004

The UK's skills shortages and skills gaps can ultimately only be closed by improving standards in education, a new report out today claims. A report by the Institute of Directors (IoD) warns that too many school-leavers are lacking in basic skills and qualifications.

Richard Wilson, Business Policy Executive at the IoD, said:

"The central priority for the future must be to improve levels of achievement in schools. Unless pupils leave school with a good grounding in basic skills and qualifications to at least Level 2, skill shortages and skill gaps will persist."

Published in response to the Government's recent Skills Strategy White Paper, the IoD report highlights several significant problems with the Government's approach. Levels of achievement in school remain disappointing, there are weaknesses in the system of Modern Apprenticeships and the convoluted superstructure of agencies that exist to improve skills and training in the UK is a cause of concern.

However, the IoD does identify several principal strengths within the Government's proposals, including:

measures to improve qualification levels, including the commitment to provide free tuition for any adult without a Level 2 qualification;
help for small firms to provide training, including the expansion of Employer Training Pilots; and
steps to encourage the low skilled to embark on training courses, including the proposal to provide a learning grant of up to £30 per week for adults studying full time for their first Level 2 qualification.

Richard Wilson said:

"Skill shortages and skill gaps have historically been the bane of the UK economy. Business is playing its part to address the problem. Employers in England already spend £23 billion every year on training. And the IoD's Director General, George Cox, is a member of the Government's Modern Apprenticeship Task Force, which is looking at some of the key issues facing this particular training programme.

"The Government's White Paper on skills is a welcome development insofar as it recognises the magnitude of the skills problem. Moreover, some of the commitments contained in the Paper, such as the provision of free study for a Level 2 qualification, are serious measures that should help to ease the problems associated with skill levels in the UK.

"However, overall the White Paper misses a number of important opportunities. It does not place sufficient weight on the importance of education and fails to indicate how standards in education are to be improved. It continues to emphasise the importance of Modern Apprenticeships, but fails to address the programme's deficiencies. It adds to a bloated superstructure of state funded agencies for training."

Ends.

20.1.04 No.228

Note to editors

1. The IoD's report, The Government's skills strategy for the nation:
strengths, weaknesses and future priorities, is available on the IoD website or from the Press Office on 020 7451 3264; press@iod.com

2. The paper also includes the results of two NOP surveys of IoD members on issues relating to skills. In the most recent survey, conducted in March 2003, 37% (185) of the directors interviewed had encountered skill shortages when attempting to recruit in the previous six months. Vacancies for associate professional and technical staff, sales staff and middle managers were the most difficult to fill. 44% (207) of the members surveyed believed that there was a gap between the skills of some of their current employees and the skills needed to meet their organisation's objectives. Gaps in managerial skills, IT or software skills and engineering or technical skills were the most commonly cited.

3. The IoD (Institute of Directors), founded by Royal Charter in 1903, is a non- party political organisation with upwards of 54,000 members in the United Kingdom. Membership includes directors from right across the business spectrum - from media to manufacturing, e-business to the public and voluntary sectors. Members include CEOs of large corporations as well as entrepreneurial directors of start-up companies. The IoD offers a wide range of business services which include business centre facilities (including six regional centres), conferences, networking events, issues-led guides and literature as well as information services and free access to a comprehensive business library and enquiry service. The IoD places great emphasis on director development and has established a certified qualification for directors - Chartered Director - as well as running specific board-level and director-level training and individual career mentoring programmes.

In addition, the IoD provides an effective voice to represent the interests of its members to government and key opinion-formers at the highest levels. These include ministers, constituency MPs, Select Committee members and senior civil servants. IoD policies and views are actively promoted to the national, regional and trade media.

For further information, visit our website: www.iod.com

Contact Points:

Richard Taylor, Press Officer, tel. 020 7451 3264

Mobile and out of hours. 07721 734886

David Marshall, Director of Public Affairs, tel: 020 7451 3263

mobile and out of hours: 07764 883420

Email. press@iod.com

Web. www.iod.com