Government unveils Skills England strategy 

Prime minister Keir Starmer and education secretary Bridget Phillipson have launched Skills England as part of the government’s ambition to boost skills across all regions. 

Between 2017 and 2022 skills shortages in England doubled to more than half a million, and now account for 36% of job vacancies.

Recent figures from the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) show persistent skills shortages across the construction industry. More than 250,000 extra construction workers are required by 2028 to meet demand, according to CITB’s Construction Skills Network (CSN) 2024-28 report. 

Skills England will bring together central and local government, businesses, training providers and unions, providing strategic oversight of the post-16 skills system aligned to the government’s Industrial Strategy.  

By working with the Migration Advisory Committee, Skills England also aims to help reduce reliance on overseas workers.  

Commenting on the launch, the prime minister said: “Our skills system is in a mess, which is why we are transforming our approach to meet skills needs over the coming decades.

“They will help to deliver our number one mission as a government, to kickstart economic growth, by opening up new opportunities for young people and enabling British businesses to recruit more home-grown talent.

“From construction to IT, healthcare to engineering, our success as a country depends on delivering highly skilled workforces for the long-term. Skills England will put in place the framework needed to achieve that goal while reducing our reliance on workers from overseas.”

The education secretary reiterated that the government’s first mission is to grow the economy, “and for that we need to harness the talents of all our people to unlock growth and break down the barriers to opportunity”.

“The skills system we inherited is fragmented and broken. Employers want to invest in their workers but for too long have been held back from accessing the training they need,” Phillipson said.

“Skills England will jumpstart young people’s careers and galvanise local economies. It will bring businesses together with trade unions, mayors, universities, colleges and training providers to give us a complete picture of skills gaps nationwide, boost growth in all corners of the country and give people the opportunity to get on in life.”

Phillipson has appointed Richard Pennycook, former chief executive of the Co-operative Group and lead non-executive director at the Department for Education, as the interim chair of Skills England. A permanent board, chair and CEO will be appointed in due course.   

The organisation, which will be established in phases over the next 9-12 months, will identify the training for which the growth and skills levy will be accessible in a bid to give employers more flexibility in terms of how levy funds are spent.   

All functions of the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) will transfer to Skills England. IfATE will continue its work in the interim as the transition to the new organisation is finalised