Skills Pledge
North West Employers Signs Up to the Skills Pledge North West Employers is delighted to join the list of the first 150 employers to sign up to a public pledge to train their staff, ensuring they have the skills needed to compete in the global workplace.
By making the Skills Pledge, employers commit to support all their employees to develop basic literacy and numeracy skills and work towards a full Level 2 qualification equivalent to five GCSEs A* to C.
The pledge is a key part of the Government response to the recommendations for the Leitch Review of Skills which was published in December 2006. Lord Leitch’s independent review of skills warned that the UK must ‘raise its game’ on skills at all levels if it is to sustain and improve its position in the global economy and get on track to achieve world class skills by 2020.
Achieving that world class ambition means dramatically increasing the number of adults who improve their skills and achieve qualifications each year, at all levels from functional literacy and numeracy to higher education levels. Click below to read the final report from the Leitch Review.
Leitch Review of SkillsWhat is the Skills Pledge?
The Skills Pledge is a voluntary, public commitment by the leadership of a company or organisation to support all its employees to develop their basic skills, including literacy and numeracy, and work towards relevant, valuable qualifications to at least Level 2. The purpose is to ensure that all staff are skilled, competent and able to make a full contribution to the success of the company/organisation. Click the links below for Employer Guidance and Case Studies.
Skills Pledge Employer GuidanceSkills Pledge Case StudiesWhat would the commitment be? To actively encourage and support our employees to gain the skills and qualifications that will support their future employability and meet the needs of our business/organisation.
To actively encourage and support our employees to acquire basic literacy and numeracy skills and, with Government support, work towards their first Level 2 qualification in an area that is relevant to our business/organisation.
To demonstrably raise our employees’ skills and competencies to improve company/organisation performance through investing in economically valuable training and development.
Who makes the commitment? The commitment is formally made when the Chief Executive and Leader or other senior leader on behalf of the organisation signs the Skills Pledge certificate.
What funding and support is available? The Government will provide public funds through the Train to Gain programme to help employers deliver the Skills Pledge in England. The core commitment is that the Government will pay for the costs of training in basic literacy and numeracy skills through the Skills for Life programme, and training for unqualified employees to achieve their first full Level 2 qualification.
Through Train to Gain, the Government will also help employers develop a wider training programme to meet their full training needs, including help with Level 3 qualifications, access to the Apprenticeships Programme, additional and higher level qualifications for staff who already have some qualifications. But employers will be expected to pay their share of that wider training programme, reflecting the benefits to them and their staff.
North West Employers is working closely with LSC partners to develop a tailored offer to local authority employers and will be hosting a signing up day in September.
For further information please contact Pat Wilson, Business Support Manager on 0161 214 7103, or click the link below to e-mail Pat.
Pat WilsonHow do I make the Pledge? To register your interest in making the Skills Pledge you can call 08000 15 55 45 or click on the link below to register your details using the online form.
Train to GainLaunch of the Skills Pledge
On 5 November 2007 North West Employers and the Learning and Skills Council launched the support package for authorities that sign up to the Skills Pledge. Over 80 people attended the event. Please click the link below for photographs from the day.
Skills Pledge Launch PhotosTo help us share the key messages from the day we have produced a podcast of the event. Click the link below to listen to what some of our speakers had to say about the Skills Pledge and how local authorities can benefit. Right click
here to download the podcast.
For further information on the Skills Pledge, contact us by clicking the link below.
Skills Pledge