Skills, skills, skills. Can new Bill change the tune?

By Marc Ambasna-Jones 31 Jul 24 Reading time: 4 mins

“Our skills system is in a mess,” said Prime Minister Keir Starmer in a recent statement about the government’s plans for a new body to address the perennial problem of skills gaps. Called Skills England, that body is expected to reshape and reinvigorate thinking around training and skills development – but given the pace of change, especially within key innovation sectors, those skills gaps will be tough to close.

The statement continued that between 2017 and 2022 skills shortages in England doubled to more than half a million, and now account for 36% of job vacancies. To be fair, just about everyone in every industry talks about skills shortages, gaps and vacuums, but what is really meant by this? How is it impacting innovation and start-ups and can Skills England make even the smallest of dents?

“Skills England will go some way in bridging the talent gap that exists, but it won’t be easy,” says Lesley Holt, lead for UKTIN Talent. “Even now 42% of telecoms businesses are reporting a specialist digital or IT skills gap in the external labour market. Upskilling the current pool, though helpful, will not solve the issue entirely. That’s why we need to look at diversifying our talent to include a diverse range of people, creating a more skilled and robust workforce for the future.”

With 5G Advanced and 6G innovation, this is key. As Holt suggests, developing the right skills and maintaining access to talent “is mission critical for any economy or industry, but even more so when it comes to driving innovation.”

To compete within fast moving sectors, access to relevant skills demands flexibility but also a forward thinking plan to cover the education bases. Holt adds that when developing a new technology, “people are your lifeblood,” and “there is no hiding that a skills shortage in England is holding us back.”This is a concern given the economic benefits of driving up innovation and its resulting entrepreneurism. As the Henry Royce Institute reported recently, re-skilling, up-skilling and developing new skills capabilities within materials innovation are key to enabling economic growth. And as Julian David, CEO of techUK, told BI Foresight back in May (regarding the policies of the last government), “if you want a quantum strategy, it’s not just about putting money up and encouraging people to get the latest tech, it’s also about investing in all this stuff around it, particularly skills and talents.”

How to make it work?

According to Adam Levine, high performance coach at InnerXLab, the proposed Skills England Bill is “a pivotal step forward in tackling the UK’s skills shortages in cutting-edge fields like quantum computing, AI and robotics.” He goes on, “By giving priority to these sectors, the Bill offers an opportunity to close existing skill gaps and drive the nation towards international competitiveness.”

Levine also has some advice. He suggests not trying to reinvent the wheel too much but instead make better use of what is already in the market.

“To combat low uptake of jobs in tech-related fields, the government should concentrate on building strategic partnerships between academic institutions, industries and research centres,” says Levine. “I recommend stressing the benefits of practical training in enhancing the skills of current employees, while also encouraging businesses to invest in dedicated training programmes.”

Bringing together businesses and training providers, developing new and enhancing existing partnerships is central to the proposal, and also welcomed by Joe Marshall, chief executive of the National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB).

“We particularly celebrate that partnerships with employers will be at the heart of this new body,” says Marshall. “We also welcome the news that the government is taking the bold step to reform the Apprenticeship Levy. As always, the devil will lie in the detail, but the aim to have a more flexible Levy than in the past is very welcome.”

Marshall adds that the NCUB has, “long argued that it is vital companies are able to make full use of their Apprenticeship Levy funds for broader use, to increase the skills of their workforce. The government is delivering on their promise of change here.”

For Levine, it is also a case of embracing potentially radical change. It’s a suggestion that little has worked up to now to meet the skills challenges across multiple innovation sectors. 

“It’s clear that a more radical change in education and training is needed if we want to meet the proposed requirements,” says Levine. “I believe incorporating interdisciplinary approaches, offering flexible learning options and providing practical project experiences would go a long way in preparing the workforce for a career in innovative technologies. From what I’ve seen, businesses are eager to see more industry-led apprenticeships, with a curriculum that mirrors the rapidly changing technological landscape.”

If nothing else, the government should learn from other countries. Levine cites Germany and Singapore as having “excellent models in effectively tackling skills shortages.” He says these nations have managed to combine vocational training with academic education, all while building strong industry partnerships.

“From my perspective, embracing lifelong learning initiatives would help the UK improve its skills development processes, so the country is better able to compete on the world stage,” says Levine.

Marc Ambasna-Jones / Editor-in-chief

Working as a technology journalist and writer since 1989, Marc has written for a wide range of titles on technology, business, education, politics and sustainability, with work appearing in The Guardian, The Register, New Statesman, Computer Weekly and many more.