3. Employer Ownership: the UKCES vision
• Employers should have the “We need to take
space to own the skills
agenda determined steps to
• There should be a single encourage greater
market for skills
employer ownership of
• Skills solutions should be
designed by employer-led skills, working to secure a
partnerships to reach more sustainable partnership
people and businesses
• Public contributions for
for the long term”
vocational training should
move to employer
incentives and investments
Charlie Mayfield
• Transactions should be UK Commission for Employment and Skills - Chairman
John Lewis Partnership - Chairman
transparent
3
4. Opportunity to act now
• Up to £250 million
employer ownership
investment fund
over two years
• Jointly led by BIS, DfE
and UKCES
• Need bold
propositions from
employers, in
partnership with
colleges and training
providers
4
6. What could a bid include?
• The pilot is taking a different approach: it is open
and flexible to encourage ‘customers’ to come up
with new ideas and ways of working
• We want businesses to propose how they would
use direct public investment, alongside their own,
to improve the skills of their current and future
workforce
• If proposals give us effective and sustainable ways
to improve skills in the workforce, to drive up
productivity and growth, they will be backed by
significant public funding
6
7. What could a bid include?
• Apprenticeships and wider employee training
opportunities
• Training and skills development to help people
into work
• Innovative approaches to the design and
delivery of training and workforce
development
7
8. Who should apply?
• Proposals are welcomed from all sectors of the
economy in England
• Employers of all sizes are encouraged to develop
bids which are in line with the threshold for bids:
£250k for SMEs and £1m for large businesses
• A range of partners can have a key role in shaping
proposals – for example, SMEs working with a
Group Training Association or National Skills
Academy to develop a bid for specialist training
support
8
9. What should employers set out in a bid?
1. Outcomes that they wish to achieve
2. The rationale behind the proposition
and why it cannot be done as
successfully through existing funding
routes/delivery channels
3. The mechanism by which it will be
delivered
4. The level of private investment
5. The public investment needed to make
it happen
9
11. How will final decisions be made?
• Investment board will
review applications
and select those that
fit most closely with
the investment criteria
• Balanced portfolio of
investment
• Further guidance,
including the
application form, is
available online
11
12. Next steps and more information
• Prospectus document available from
www.ukces.org.uk/employerownership
• Detailed guidance and application form
available online
• Queries relating to applications:
employerownershipqueries@bis.gsi.gov.uk
• Deadline for registrations 13 April
• Deadline for applications 26 April
12
Editor's Notes
Charlie and other Commissioners at UKCES have set out a vision for Greater Employer Ownership of Vocational Skills. They have outlined the need to rely less on government setting the agenda, and give employers the freedom to take the lead, working in partnership with employees and trade unions, working closely with colleges and training providers. The rationale, in summary: Over the past two decades successive governments have driven the reform and expansion of our vocational skills system with notable successes. But the fact is we have become less competitive globally on skills, and for many employers the ‘system’ is still too complex. we need to create the conditions for employers to own the agenda, to develop the skills they need to compete and to make it easier for them to do so. We need more opportunities for young people and those in work through a skills agenda that is employer owned and focused on competitiveness and growth.
The pilot programme is a positive response to the challenge being laid out by Charlie Mayfield , chair of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, and his Commissioners for a radical new vision for business ownership of the skills agenda: The Employer Ownership pilot offers all employers in England direct access to up to £250 million of public investment over the next two years to design and deliver their own training solutions. The pilot is jointly overseen by UKCES, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Education. The Employer Ownership Pilot launched on 7 February will test this employer ownership vision, by routing public investment directly to businesses, rather than FE colleges and training providers. It will give businesses real purchasing power in the skills market to secure the support they, and their workforce, need to prosper.
We are looking for proposals that demonstrate how they will support one or more of the following key objectives of employer ownership and this pilot: Employer ownership increases the impact of work readiness, workforce development and Apprenticeships activity. Employers are better able to secure the training they need by having the influence they require over quality and content and can shape training provision to meet their needs. Collaboration amongst employers to address cross-sector or supply chain skills challenges is increased. Employer leadership, commitment and investment in skills is increased , including the involvement of employers who do not have a track record of investing in skills. We want to see innovative bids that provide a package of training and employment opportunities that meet the needs of employers and individuals. This could be within a sector, supply chain or local area. We want to see innovative bids that provide training and employment opportunities that meet the needs of employers and individuals. This could be within a sector, supply chain or local area. We want employers to put together bids that set out the outcomes that they wish to achieve, the rationale behind the proposition, the mechanisms by which it will be delivered, their level of investment, and the public investment needed to make it happen. Public investment will be provided directly to employers that are successful in their bids.
The overall aim of the Pilot is to find more effective and sustainable ways to improve skills in the workforce and to use these improved skills to drive up productivity and growth For employers, the pilot offers greater flexibility to improve programme design, to deliver training and employment opportunities that have real value in the labour market, and to demonstrate how accountability for public funds can be made as simple as possible. As part of the pilot employers will be asked to demonstrate how public investment would be used to leverage business investment and how the investment will contribute to growth, a commitment to raising skills levels in their sector, supply chain or local area and how they could support Apprenticeships. Subject to where we end up on this with Ministers.
We would expect bids to demonstrate how they would achieve one or more of the following: increasing the number of people participating in training and achieving qualifications, for example through Apprenticeships improving the quality and the relevance of training developing skills that make a significant impact on employer productivity and growth achieving a step-change in the scale, quality, relevance and impact of how skills are delivered, acquired, developed and applied supporting wider job opportunities, such as work experience and pre-apprenticeships All bids will have to show how their bid delivers value for money for public investment. The Pilot is an open invitation and therefore we have not provided an exhaustive list of what bids should include, however, below we highlight some of the themes that we are particularly keen to support: Apprenticeships and other skill development opportunities Training and skills development to help people into work Employer leadership and commitment Collaboration
This opportunity is open to all employers irrespective of size and sector. Whilst your organisation can be based anywhere, the benefits of your proposal must focus solely on England. All bids must be led by a named employer(s). Bids will require the signature of CEO or an alternative Director from the lead employer(s). Other bodies such as Sector Skills Councils, Industry Training Boards, National Skills Academies, employer/trade associations, professional bodies, City Regions Local Enterprise Partnerships, Local Authorities, universities FE colleges and training providers have an important role to play in supporting and providing the infrastructure to help employers to bid either independently or in collaboration. Employers who have an existing contract with the SFA and or NAS can use the Pilot to develop their offer further and demonstrate how a different relationship and delivery mechanism could leverage greater outcomes. Current contract holders can also combine participation in this Pilot with the employer simplification funding pilot. We want to see significant proposals for skills investment and therefore the minimum cash investment from government will be £250, 000 for collaborative proposals from small employers and £1 million from large employer or consortia. FOR EXAMPLE, Bids might include: Groups of leading employers in regional clusters investing in their sector by providing ‘up front funding’ to support training opportunities in small and medium sized employers (SMEs) through initial investment loans. Large and small employers in a supply-chain developing a single Apprenticeship programme alongside work experience, job trials and internships, backed by flexible public and private investment . Businesses working to together to de-risk apprenticeship and employment opportunities by looking across their sector for flexible opportunities rather than just within their own business.
We want to see innovative bids that provide training and employment opportunities that meet the needs of employers and individuals. This could be within a sector, supply chain or local area. We want employers to put together bids that set out the outcomes that they wish to achieve, the rationale behind the proposition, the mechanisms by which it will be delivered, their level of investment, and the public investment needed to make it happen. Public investment will be provided directly to employers that are successful in their bids. The Pilot will make available up to £250 million of public investment for successful bids over two years; up to £50 million in 2012/13 and up to £200 million in 2013/14. We expect to hold subsequent rounds of bidding building on lessons learnt and successful activity from this first round. Two year projects will be welcomed and investment can cover a longer period if training has started within the pilot’s lifetime. A full application form will be published in late Feb 2012
Economic benefit and value for money – proposals must demonstrate their potential for increasing skills and workforce development and for this to have a tangible impact on employer performance and growth. It is essential that proposals clearly demonstrate how the proposed projects achieve a step change in the scale, quality or relevance of training and the skills developed. Innovative approaches to skills and workforce development – proposals should demonstrate how they address strategic skills needs and demonstrate how this solution is new or an improvement on existing options for delivering training. Proposals should therefore explain why existing training options are considered inferior and clearly identify the aspects of the project which are new. This may involve changes to the content of training but could also be a new delivery method or a set of partners collaborating together for the first time. Feasibility - proposals will need to demonstrate a robust, achievable and adequately resourced plan for developing and implementing the training. The proposal should show that a strong team with a positive delivery track record will lead the project and that strong and appropriate partnerships have been forged to deliver the solution. Quality – proposals will need to demonstrate how quality will be enhanced and how the breadth and depth of learning will be provided. Proposals should explain the steps that will be taken to ensure that those undertaking the training or pre-employment opportunity will be supported to gain the most from this.
An Investment Board will review applications and select those that fit most closely with the published investment criteria. Final decisions will be taken in the context of ensuring a balanced portfolio of investments. To assist with the short listing process the lead employer(s) from a bid may be offered the opportunity to present their proposals to the Board. This will depend on the value, complexity and risk associated with each proposal. Please note that those applicants invited to present to the Pilot Board will be notified a minimum of three weeks before the Board date. The Board is chaired by Charlie Mayfield, and comprises six Commissioners and senior officials from BIS and DfE, with advice from SFA and NAS.
Questions and enquiries regarding the Employer Ownership Pilot can be submitted to [email_address] We aim to respond to questions within three working days. It is important to note that in order for all applicants to have access to the same information responses including significant new information will be shared publicly through the Pilot website. The identify of those asking questions will be anonymised. This website will be updated regularly and applicants should ensure they have taken account of the latest information provided when preparing their applications NOTES on GIF if required: Government invests in skills through a number of different but complementary routes. Below is a brief overview of some of the most relevant employer based funding routes. Growth and Innovation Fund (GIF) GIF co-invests in working with business networks to put in place the infrastructure to develop innovative skills solutions with the potential to transform growth in the sector, region or supply chain. For employers interested in developing proposals around new infrastructure for skills, GIF support may be available. Where employers' proposals cover both infrastructure and public investment to meet training costs, BIS and UKCES will discuss with bidders how they might access GIF if appropriate, alongside the employer ownership pilot fund.
