Background Context

The Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan has been developed with the sector in Norfolk and

Suffolk, working alongside the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership, the New Anglia

Skills Board and supported by SkillsReach.

SkillsReach was contracted to facilitate and prepare eight sector skills plans for the New

Anglia LEP priority sectors. The project was commissioned by the Education and Skills

Funding Agency, in partnership with New Anglia LEP, and funded through the European

Social Fund. Each Sector Skills plan and supporting Data Pack has been developed in

collaboration with local employers and other stakeholders.

The New Anglia Skills Board places employers at the centre of decision making on skills in

Norfolk and Suffolk to ensure the skills system becomes more responsive to the needs of

employers, residents and the future economy.

SkillsReach is an established East of England-based strategic skills consultancy with an

associate project team with extensive experience of developing skills plans.

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Executive Introduction

‘Welcome to the Learning and Skills Sector Plan for New Anglia. It sets out our

collective vision for how local skills provision can increase local competitiveness and

productivity, support inclusive economic growth and ensure that high quality local

career-pathways are recognised, accessible and taken up by local people.

This plan is a key step in the development of a regional collaboration between

business, localities and skills providers to ensure inclusive growth, and that skills

opportunities are connected and maximised for businesses and local residents.

We look forward to making an increasing and sustainable contribution to the future of

our vibrant New Anglia Economy’.

Signed……

Corienne Peasgood

Principal, City College, Norwich

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Contents

Executive Introduction

1 Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan- the Key Priorities

Challenges and Opportunities

Proposed Skills Interventions

Partnership Strategy

2 The Learning and Skills Sector in Context

Defining the Learning and Skills Sector

Routes into Learning and Skills Careers

3 Stakeholder Feedback

Developing Technical Specialism

Developing a Cross-cutting Approach

Leveraging Employer Investment in Skills

Future Proofing Technical Expertise

Vacancy Filling and Workforce Development

Apprenticeships

HE- Talent Retention

Employment Demand & Future Forecasting

Key Workforce Challenges- Summarised

Leadership and Management in the Learning and Skills Sector

Supporting Careers Leadership and Delivery

Appendix A- Skills Plan Development Process

List of Consultees

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Challenges and Opportunities

The data analysis and qualitative consultation (detailed in the subsequent chapters in this

report) have enabled an evidence base to be developed that captures and defines a range

of issues and risks linked to the demand and supply of skills for the Learning and Skills

sector in New Anglia. In contrast, there are a range of strengths and major opportunities to

position the skills plan against, giving planned interventions real momentum moving ahead.

The consultation has highlighted four key priorities of action for the skills plan to address:

1. High Quality Technical Education

Government policy for post-16 vocational education has positioned technical reform

as an overarching priority, with skills seen as a major contributor for developing world

leading competitiveness in the UK’s economy. Alongside this is a growing

expectation from employers to benefit from high quality vocational training,

underpinned with high quality, fit for purpose, technical standards. Both the Industrial

Strategy and the Post-16 skills reform position ‘localism’ as providing the catalyst for

these changes.

There remain however fundamental challenges. Recruitment into the Learning and

Skills sector can be difficult for specific teaching roles, particularly for high demand

subjects and areas of training and education that require niche/specialised skills.

The sector has highlighted the challenges of maintaining technical expertise in

response to vocational skills reform: encouraging ex-industry specialism into high

priority areas such as engineering, advanced manufacturing and digital skills, with

wage rates cited as a major barrier.

Furthermore, leadership and investment from industry is imperative for the supply of

current and future skills to be resilient and valuable in terms of building

competitiveness in New Anglia’s economy. The Learning and Skills sector recognises

there needs to be enhanced collaboration and planning as a ‘sector community’ and

extra emphasis on aligning skills with employer leadership, business investment and

growth within local economic strategy.

The first key aim of the New Anglia Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan is to

work collaboratively, as a learning and skills community and together with

partners including the New Anglia LEP, to develop the effective level of

leadership and investment needed from employers, for high quality technical

education to be secured and sustained.

The first key outcome of the New Anglia Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan

is that local employers benefit from world class, technically excellent training;

enabling the acquisition, utilisation and ongoing development of skills.

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2. Developing a Talented Workforce

The Learning and Skills sector in New Anglia experiences relatively high levels of

unfilled and hard to fill vacancies, compared to both regional and national averages.

The sector also experiences organisational concerns regarding the utilisation and

level of proficiency of staff - again higher than local and national averages for all

sectors. The concerns relating to underutilisation and proficiency are partly driven by

teaching professionals having to respond to dual/multi-professionalism subject

delivery and a balance of responsibilities aligned with teaching and individual learner

support (SEND for example). Whilst the focus within this plan is set out against a

scope of post-16 education and training, with an emphasis on technical skills there

are wide variations of training needs within learning and skills teaching and delivery.

For example, a lecturer in engineering with strong links to industry compared to a

tutor in foundation learning or A-Level academic delivery. This impacts on diversity of

needs linked to labour market information, building workforce resilience and

responding to external demands.

There are however structural, labour market, challenges linked to the flow of talent

and availability of suitably qualified teaching professionals in line with current and

forecast demands. The Learning and Skills sector recognises the need to test the

teaching offer for the key sectors defined as being most important for New Anglia’s

growth and competitiveness. In addition, the sector is keen to share and collaborate

on action linked to workforce planning, the development of niche expertise and

marketing careers within learning and skills in New Anglia.

The second key aim of the New Anglia Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan is

to develop collaborative workforce development planning processes for the

Learning and Skills sector across New Anglia. Joint planning will enable

providers to define common workforce priorities in response to external

education and training demands and labour market challenges. Furthermore, it

will provide ongoing options for managing risks, building organisation

resilience and sharing expertise.

The second key outcome of the New Anglia Learning and Skills Sector Skills

Plan is a resourceful and resilient New Anglia learning and skills sector that

continues to work proactively to ensure it is adaptable to change; ensuring

education and training delivery is of a high standard and responsive, with a

well organised and highly professional workforce.

3. Excellence in Leadership and Management

The Learning and Skills sector recognises that the development of management

skills and securing the leadership pipeline for senior roles is a major challenge overall

and one that builds internal resilience and effective external ‘whole system’

collaboration on learning and skills. There are examples in New Anglia of how

leadership development is being coordinated across several group-based

approaches: from early years through to FE and HE, with several key sectors also

including strong industry linked partnerships. There are also a range of interactions

7 | P a g e

and sponsorships aligned to the Education and Training Foundation’s ongoing

leadership development programmes.

The Learning and Skills sector is keen to develop further area-based leadership

collaboration. This would be aimed at addressing system wide leadership challenges

and informal peer-support arrangements looking at transformative initiatives aimed at

developing leadership by working across the civic, voluntary and private sectors.

The third key aim of the New Anglia Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan is to

design and share across all years’ education in New Anglia, a collaborative

plan for management and leadership development. The plan will organise

activity aimed at promoting how education leadership can be developed via

local, external, transformative challenges and internal best practice in

management development.

The third key outcome of the New Anglia Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan

is that the learning and skills sector in New Anglia benefits from talented

managers and leaders, with its workforce effectively supported and education

delivery to a high standard, and with communities benefitting from supportive

local leadership.

4. Excellence in Careers Guidance

Since the implementation of the new National Careers Strategy in 2017¹ and the

establishment of the national Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC), schools and

colleges are encouraged to take a more proactive and strategic approach towards

careers and enterprise delivery in order to equip the next generation of school and

college leavers with the appropriate employability and enterprise development that

employers will value. OFSTED will expect to see evidence on how independent

careers guidance is provided in schools to all year 8-13 pupils (12-18-year olds) and

that it must be provided in an impartial manner.

Both Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils take a strategic approach toward the

planning and provision of careers guidance, emphasising important issues linked to

the quality of delivery across all ages and assessing the capacity to deliver

interventions for a diverse range of needs, including via SEND provision and support

for NEETs. In addition, New Anglia LEP leads a network of Enterprise Advisers

(EAN), that works in partnership with Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils and the

National Careers Service (operated by Futures) to develop a joined-up response to

the National Careers Strategy. The EAN has a focus on supporting Gatsby

Recommendations as a measure but also takes a broad focus on key issues aligned

to the Careers Strategy. These include access to and delivery of Careers Leader

training (funded via DfE and controlled via the CEC, with Suffolk County Council one

of the formally approved providers) and the overall sharing of best practice across

the school and college network. Furthermore, the strategic focus taken by Norfolk

and Suffolk County Councils covers the planning of action that includes effective

provision of advice and guidance, with effective interventions, for young people with

Special Education Needs (SEND) and those that are either at risk of or are seen to

¹ Careers Strategy- Making the Most of Everyone’s Skills and Talents (2017), DfE

8 | P a g e

be Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET). New Anglia was one of the

successful LEP areas to win a share of the extra £5 million investment the

government has ringfenced to further promote the adoption of careers and enterprise

activity linked to the national strategy- via Careers Hubs.

Several key issues linked to developing excellence in careers guidance have been

identified via the consultation: ensuring existing resources are used effectively,

recognising the importance of area-wide collaboration and planning and ensuring that

careers guidance is developed strategically through a comprehensive approach. Four

key thematic opportunities have been identified:

Establishing effective oversight and coordination - of careers and

enterprise planning and intervention across New Anglia.

Testing and Effective Use of Labour Market Intelligence - both careers

and enterprise leads within Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils have

advocated for ongoing measures to test the relevancy, accuracy and quality

of labour market intelligence with employers and schools.

Promoting Best Practice - encourage the promotion of best practice in

delivery that can showcase initiatives that both inform the Careers Hub and

can be disseminated to schools and colleges across the whole of New Anglia.

Planning Sustainability - there are three key challenges in terms of

addressing sustainability for effective careers and enterprise guidance are:

• Funding and resources beyond 2020 that provide ongoing CPD for the

careers guidance community and can build on ‘operational’ initiatives

such as the Careers Hub.

• Promoting collaboration and ongoing alignment of partnership and

organisation activity against a strategic overarching focus for New

Anglia, which can create a shared vision and set of outcomes; and

can maximise efficiency through effective collaboration.

• Developing a framework of quality assurance that can consider how to

effectively baseline the capability of delivering effective careers

guidance across all years’ education and training, including provision

of excellent careers guidance specific to the needs of SEND, NEETs

and other vulnerable groups.

Taking a Strategic Approach Towards Careers Advice and Guidance for

Adults- stakeholders have raised concerns regarding the paucity of strategic

focus via the National Careers Strategy regarding advice and guidance

available for adults. This effects people in work looking to progress, move

jobs and plan career changes and adults looking to enter employment.

The fourth key aim of the New Anglia Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan is

to develop a strategic approach toward the coordination, delivery and forward

sustainability planning of careers guidance and enterprise across New Anglia.

Ensuring aims are in line with the National Careers Strategy, measuring quality,

promoting diversity in provision to all young people and adults, including

9 | P a g e

Priority 1- High Quality Technical Education

Recruitment into the learning and skills sector can be challenging, particularly for

high demand subjects and areas of training and education that require

niche/specialised skills. The sector has highlighted the challenges of maintaining

technical expertise in response to vocational skills reform: encouraging ex-industry

specialism into high priority areas such as engineering, advanced manufacturing

and digital skills, with wage rates cited as a major barrier.

Furthermore, leadership and investment from industry is imperative for the supply

of current and future skills to be resilient and valuable in terms of building

competitiveness in New Anglia’s economy. The Learning and Skills sector

recognises there needs to be enhanced collaboration and planning as a ‘sector

community’ and extra emphasis on aligning skills with employer leadership,

business investment and growth within local economic strategy.

Key Aims and Outcomes:

To work collaboratively, as a learning and skills community and together with

partners including the New Anglia LEP, to develop the effective level of leadership

and investment needed from employers, for high quality technical education to be

secured and sustained.

The outcome of which - local employers benefit from world class, technically

excellent training; enabling the acquisition, utilisation and ongoing development of

skills.

Action to be Taken:

Three long term areas of action should be developed under the auspices of the Skills

Board, these are:

Developing technical specialism by ensuring the technical standards

within existing post-16 training meets the needs of business across New

Anglia. This would involve a gap analysis assessing how New Anglia’s specific

skills priorities that are reliant on technical specialism, are currently supported

with up to date technical standards, accessible through local skills provision.

Gaps in standards or out of date standards risk creating skills supply shortfalls.

A process of assessing standards would need to include remedial action -

planning for the definition of new standards via local employer-led sponsors

and working with government to deliver accredited outcomes. (Developing

specialism within teaching is captured in Priority 2)

ii)

Developing a Crosscutting Approach - enhance the business growth and

support interventions for employers with technical training needs, by reviewing

how skills and training is effectively brokered. A key starting point would be

assessing how the LEP’s Growth Hub and LEP commissioned business

support provision can effectively broker employer investment in skills alongside

12 | P a g e

other recommended action. The Skills Board should be consulted on how

productivity and growth advice and guidance correlate to skills and training,

helping business support to clearly articulate the business case for skills when

advising local businesses. In addition, local training providers are keen to

develop a regular ‘skills conversation’ with businesses at an area level. The

Skills Board should consider how a cross-sector local skills event can help

training providers develop their employer offer and raise the profile of skills

solutions, with employers.

iii)

Leveraging Employer Investment in Skills- The New Anglia LEP should

encourage skills leaders to work with them to review how commitments around

investment in skills- both in terms of training/upskilling and other resources

(trainer support, input on quality assurance and donation of kit/equipment) can

be most effectively promoted across the range of business support funding

processes that are currently accessible. This may involve lobbying

policymakers nationally to promote greater focus on skills as part of any grant

funding frameworks. In addition, niche technical professionalism should be

identified through R&D, investment and grant based support activities; and

employers should be encouraged to work with the learning and skills sector to

develop technical excellence in teaching and training.

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Priority 2- Developing a Talented Workforce

The Learning and Skills sector in New Anglia experiences relatively high levels of

unfilled and hard to fill vacancies, compared to both regional and national

averages. The sector also experiences organisational concerns regarding the

utilisation and level of proficiency of staff - again higher than local and national

averages for all sectors. The concerns relating to underutilisation and proficiency

are partly driven by teaching professionals having to respond to dual/multi-

professionalism subject delivery and a balance of responsibilities aligned with

teaching and individual learner support (SEND for example).

There are structural, labour market, challenges linked to the flow of talent and

availability of suitably qualified teaching professionals in line with current and

forecast demands. The Learning and Skills sector recognises the need to test the

teaching offer for the key sectors defined as being most important for New Anglia’s

growth and competitiveness. Furthermore, the sector is keen to share and

collaborate on action linked to workforce planning, the development of niche

expertise and marketing careers within learning and skills in New Anglia.

Key Aims and Outcomes:

To develop collaborative workforce development planning processes for the

Learning and Skills sector across New Anglia. Joint planning will enable providers

to define common workforce priorities in response to external education and

training demands and labour market challenges. Furthermore, it will provide

ongoing options for managing risks, building organisation resilience and sharing

expertise.

The outcome of which - a resourceful and resilient New Anglia learning and skills

sector continues to work proactively to ensure it is adaptable to change and that

education and training delivery is of a high standard and responsive, with a well

organised and highly professional workforce.

Action to be Taken:

Medium Term (6-12 months)

(i) Test the current teaching offer for the key sectors, considering ongoing priorities

for alignment with emerging strategies (for example the Local Industrial Strategy)

and national policy on skill reform. The testing process should identify and

measure risks by cross-referring to the Skills Board’s suite of skills plan priorities.

Existing strengths and areas for development should be considered alongside

aiming to identify action, agree outcomes and build a resilient offer overall.

(ii) Through the Skills Board agree how the FE and Independent Training Provider

groups can develop joint workforce development planning, identifying solutions to

shared challenges linked to vacancy filling, talent retention and academic supply

15 | P a g e

Priority 3 - Excellence in Leadership & Management

The Learning and Skill sector recognises that the development of management

skills and securing the leadership pipeline for senior roles is a major challenge

overall and one that builds internal resilience and effective external ‘whole system’

collaboration on learning and skills. There are examples in New Anglia of how

leadership development is being coordinated across several group-based

approaches: from early years through to FE and HE, with several key sectors also

including strong industry linked partnerships. There is also a range of interaction

and sponsoring aligned to the Education and Training Foundation’s ongoing

leadership development programmes.

The Learning and Skills sector is keen to develop further area-based leadership

collaboration. This would be aimed at addressing system wide leadership

challenges and informal peer-support arrangements looking at transformative

initiatives (for example addressing social and economic deprivation) aimed at

developing leadership by working across the civic, voluntary and private sectors.

Key Aims and Outcomes:

To design and share across all years’ education in New Anglia, a collaborative

plan for management and leadership development. The plan will organise activity

aimed at promoting how education leadership can be developed via local, external,

transformative challenges and internal best practice in management development.

The outcome of which - the learning and skills sector in New Anglia benefits from

talented managers and leaders, with its workforce effectively supported and

education delivery to a high standard, and with communities benefitting from

supportive local leadership.

Action to be Taken:

Short Term (3-6 months)

Through the role of the Skills Board, share existing learning and skills

leadership partnership initiatives that involve peer-support activity and takes a

‘whole area’ perspective.

ii)

Assess how the Skills Board can continue to engage with area based

transformative leadership, developing a plan to support ongoing leadership

development for the sector in this way.

18 | P a g e

Medium Term (6-12 months)

iii)

Consult with partners on how new leadership initiatives, involving all year’s

education and with other stakeholders across public, private and voluntary

sectors, can be developed. Planning should establish the aims and outcomes

of how external leadership can engage with local challenges and offer a

focused role for education.

Long Term (12 months+)

iv)

Assess existing activity focused on management and leadership development

across FE, the Independent Training provider partnership and HE represented

at the Skills Board. Share lessons learnt and perform a joint appraisal (SWOT

etc) via a Skills Board Task and Finish Group, to capture challenges and

opportunities, and to promote the development of joint action.

The FE College Group also highlighted the importance of developing

excellence in middle-management alongside activity focused on securing the

pipeline of senior leaders and effective governance. Advocate for the College

Group to develop a shared plan for developing middle management - targeting

resources, leveraging external funding and exploring options for greater

cooperation.

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Priority 4 - Excellence in Careers Guidance

Since the implementation of the new National Careers Strategy in 2017² and the

establishment of the national Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC), schools and

colleges are encouraged to take a more proactive and strategic approach towards careers

and enterprise delivery in order to equip the next generation of school and college leavers

with the appropriate employability and enterprise development that employers will value.

OFSTED will expect to see evidence on how independent careers guidance is provided in

schools to all year 8-13 pupils (12-18-year olds) and that it must be provided in an

impartial manner.

Both Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils take a strategic approach toward the planning

and provision of careers guidance, emphasising important issues linked to the quality of

delivery across all ages and assessing the capacity to deliver interventions for a diverse

range of needs, including via SEND provision and support for NEETs. In addition, New

Anglia LEP co-ordinates an Enterprise Adviser Network (EAN) that works in partnership

with Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils, to develop a joined-up response to the National

Careers Strategy. The EAN has a focus on supporting Gatsby Recommendations as a

measure but also takes a broad focus on key issues aligned to the Careers Strategy.

These include access to and delivery of Careers Leader training (funded via DfE and

controlled via the CEC, with Suffolk County Council one of the formally approved

providers) and the overall sharing of best practice across the school and college network.

Furthermore, the strategic focus taken by Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils covers the

planning of action that includes effective provision of advice and guidance, with effective

interventions, for young people with Special Education Needs (SEND) and those that are

either at risk of or are seen to be Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET).

New Anglia was one of the successful LEP areas to win a share of the extra £5 million

investment the government has ringfenced to further promote the adoption of careers and

enterprise activity linked to the national strategy- via Careers Hubs. At this stage a

process of alignment is in development between the Enterprise Adviser Network, Norfolk

and Suffolk County Councils and the New Anglia LEP - to carry forward the planned

action of the Careers Hub and ensure the strategic focus developed via the EAN is

maintained. The New Anglia LEP Careers Hub is made up of 32 local schools and

colleges in Ipswich, Norwich and along the A140 corridor, working together with

universities, training providers, employers and career professionals to improve careers

education. The Hub will also work closely with the schools and boards of the Ipswich and

Norwich Opportunity Areas.

Several key issues linked to developing excellence in careers guidance have been

identified via the consultation and should be considered in the context of a primarily rural,

sparsely populated area:

Promoting Best Practice - encourage the promotion of best practice from across New

Anglia in delivery that can showcase initiatives that both inform the Careers Hub, provide

CPD for practitioners and can be disseminated to schools and colleges, independent

² Careers Strategy- Making the Most of Everyone’s Skills and Talents (2017), DfE

21 | P a g e

training providers and organisations delivering support within the voluntary and community

sector, across the whole of New Anglia.

Planning Sustainability - stakeholders have raised the issue of sustainability planning as

a key strategic challenge for careers guidance delivery across New Anglia. Funding and

resources for the Careers Leader Training Programme are essentially finite, with funds

either stopping or reducing from 2020. Furthermore, there is a diverse and complex

landscape of delivery and activity in play both in within the Careers Hub direct and at a

wider level: across education business partnerships and private providers (Beacon East,

ConnectEB, All Together, the two Chambers of Commerce for New Anglia and private

providers of careers guidance support - to name but a few). Careers guidance is also

often a key feature of support programmes delivered via the voluntary and community

sector, which aims to address economic and social inclusion. Furthermore, there are other

key established resources, for example the “icanbea…” website and the range of action

drawn together by overarching programmes such as Suffolk’s “Raising the Bar” strategy

that aims to improve the levels of education attainment via multisector partnership

working. Further activity includes the National Collaborative Outreach Programme

(NCOP), which aims to widen participation within Higher Education through supporting

HEI outreach and engagement with schools and colleges. Locally the national NCOP

activity is delivered as the Network East Anglia Collaborative Outreach programme

(NEACO), led by the University of Cambridge and aiming to widen HE participation across

Norfolk and Suffolk.

In summary, the three key challenges in terms of addressing sustainability for effective

careers and enterprise guidance are:

• Funding and resources beyond 2020 that provide ongoing CPD for the

careers guidance community and can build on ‘operational’ initiatives such

as the Careers Hub.

• Promoting collaboration and ongoing alignment of partnership and

organisation activity against a strategic overarching focus for New

Anglia, which can create a shared vision and set of outcomes; and can

maximise efficiency through effective collaboration.

• Developing a framework of quality assurance that can consider how to

effectively baseline the capability of delivering effective careers guidance

across all years’ education and training, including provision of excellent

careers guidance specific to the needs of SEND, NEETs and other

vulnerable groups.

Taking a Strategic Approach Towards Careers Advice and Guidance for Adults-

stakeholders have raised concerns regarding the paucity of strategic focus via the

National Careers Strategy regarding advice and guidance available for adults and the lack

of synergy between adult and young people careers support. This affects people in work

looking to progress, move jobs and plan career changes and adults looking to enter

employment. The current localised approach is extensively focused on young people and

students, however there is a crosscutting principle evident in the collection of Skills Plans

for New Anglia which highlights the need for flexibility within the local workforce and for

greater measures to retain graduates locally.

22 | P a g e

Testing and Effective Use of Labour Market Intelligence - both careers and enterprise

leads within Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils have advocated for ongoing measures to

test the relevancy, accuracy and quality of labour market intelligence with employers and

schools. Feedback highlighted that organisations engaging with careers guidance should

be empowered to develop their own processes for accessing and using labour market

intelligence but that there should be supportive scrutiny to ensure that data is fit for

purpose. The recent Area Review³ corroborated this issue, with a commitment for Norfolk

and Suffolk County Councils and New Anglia LEP to work collaboratively to develop good

quality information on local employment, sectors, skills needs and key developments that

may provide opportunities for career progression.

Key Aims and Outcomes:

To develop a strategic approach toward the coordination, delivery and forward

sustainability planning of careers guidance and enterprise across New Anglia.

Ensuring aims are in line with the National Careers Strategy, measuring quality,

promoting diversity in provision to all young people and adults, including vulnerable

groups - with strong involvement and assurance from the business community.

The outcome of which - young people and adults benefit from effective career

guidance and enterprise initiatives, ensuring they make informed choices

regarding ongoing learning and careers options, develop valuable employability

skills and make positive progressions into work and economic independence.

Action to be Taken:

Short Term (3-6 months)

(i) Charge the ‘New Anglia Careers Inspiration Group’ as the oversight and

coordinating group for Careers and Enterprise skills planning.

(ii) Design an overarching plan for capturing and sharing sector intelligence. The plan

should be developed in line with the national Careers Strategy and the Gatsby

expectations. The plan should aim to:

a. enable the diverse network of stakeholders, including the New Anglia

Careers Hub, local authorities, independent careers / training providers,

schools, colleges, HE and the voluntary and community sector - to access

relevant labour market insight from sector skills partnerships established

via the range of skills plans - on an ongoing basis.

b. specify how sector skills plan priorities involving employer sponsorship and

involvement, can be effectively coordinated.

c. Work with and promote existing LMI resources, such as national tools (e.g.

Labour Insight / Burning Glass) and local initiatives such as “icanbea...”

³ Norfolk and Suffolk Area Review (DfE 2017)

23 | P a g e

d. Test the relevancy, accuracy and quality of labour market intelligence

available on an ongoing basis via employer assurances.

Medium Term (6-12 months)

(iii) Canvass best practice examples from schools, colleges and other

partnership/provider activities, establishing case studies that can be set out against

the Gatsby framework recommendations - across all New Anglia. Ensure that the

case studies are broadly disseminated via the EAN and Careers Hub and via

online media (LEP website etc). Best practice should also promote examples of

digital service development, excellence with SEND support, NEET provision,

disadvantaged groups and vulnerable young people and adults.

(iv) Develop a Careers Guidance and Enterprise Sustainability Plan - focusing on

three key elements:

a. An impact assessment of the reduction of funds and resources that support

current CPD and delivery activity from 2020 onwards, with funding options.

b. The promotion of collaboration and ongoing alignment of existing networks

and partnership activity, against a shared New Anglia vision and common

set of outcomes - aiming to create an effective and efficient overarching

strategy.

c. Developing a baseline for quality assurance in respect of the current

capability/qualification of careers advice and guidance delivery across

schools, colleges and independent providers for the benefit of all year’s

education and training. This can help target support and CPD resources

according to need, including careers guidance focused on primary, SEND,

NEET provision, disadvantaged groups and vulnerable young people and

the widest local adult audiences.

(v) Develop a crosscutting sustainable plan to promote careers guidance for adults in

work and those seeking to return to work, by engaging with existing stakeholders

such as ‘Futures for You’, sector-based groups and industry institutes that provide

CPD, ensuring that local labour market information is both current and engaging.

Agreed action should aim to make careers guidance provision accessible, of a high

quality and relevant to the needs of local people and businesses.

24 | P a g e

2 The Learning and Skills Sector in Context

The New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has sponsored the development of a

Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan for the New Anglia area.

There were just over 498,000 teachers working in state funded schools in England in 2017,⁴

which equates to 451,900 Full Time Equivalent (FTE), represented a 1.2% fall in total

numbers between 2016 and 2017. Of this, there were 221,100 FTE working in nursery and

primary and 204,200 FTE teachers working in secondary education.

For the Further Education (FE) workforce, defined in the broadest sense of the delivery of

study in England taken after the age of 16 that is not part of Higher Education (HE), it was

estimated there were 326,000 staff working across the sector in 2016.⁵ This equated to

250,000 staff working in colleges, 51,000 working in within the private sector work based

training market and approximately 25,000 staff working within publicly funded Adult and

Community Learning.

Nationally - the total spending on adult skills has fallen by 45% in real terms between

2009/10 and 2017/18, with the composition of funding shifting considerably toward work-

based learning. The composition of apprenticeships and other work-based learning delivery

stood at 7% of the adult skills funding budget nationally in 2002/03 and by 2017/18 it had

increased to approximately 33%.⁶

For Higher Education (HE), the total number of staff was estimated at 46,000 in 2016/17, an

increase of 12.6% over a 10-year period, with 68% of this growth attributed to academic

staff. Overall it is estimated 49% of all staff working in HE are on academic contracts.⁷ The

Data Pack analysis uses workforce estimates by industrial classification; therefore, HE staff

delivering HE provision within FE establishments will fall within the FE workforce statistic.

For New Anglia the size of the Learning and Skills sector workforce is estimated at 66,000,

which represents a combination of education as a broad industrial group and the specific

teaching occupational categories.⁸ The primary education workforce represents the largest

banding of total employment overall for the sector across New Anglia, equating to 45%

(28,000 staff).

At a regional level (East of England) there has been an overall increase in employment for

the sector of 10% over the last 10 years; however, the absolute numbers employed within

Further and Higher Education have contracted by approximately 10% over the same

timeframe. In line with national trends the largest increase in employment has occurred

within primary education.

Overall the Learning and Skills sector is worth £2.14 billion GVA to the New Anglia economy

(LEP Economic Strategy Analysis), with enabling factors including the scale of employment,

the spending and procurement investment impact locally and the subsequent multiplier effect

⁴ School Workforce in England: November 2017 (DfE June 2018)

⁵ Understanding the Further Education Market in England (BIS 2016)

⁶ Annual Report on Education Spending in England (IFS 2018)

⁷ Pattern and Trends in UK Higher Education (Universities UK 2017)

⁸ All New Anglia references- see Learning and Skills Sector Data Pack for sources.

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that education bears within the local economy, affecting local businesses and suppliers. In

addition, the outcomes relating to education and skills contributes toward an overall

‘knowledge economy’ underpinning all sectors’ growth, competitiveness and productivity.

As of 2017/18 there were 52 funded schools with sixth forms in New Anglia, including 8 local

authority-maintained schools, 41 academies, 2 free schools and 1 university technical

college. In addition, there were 10 special schools with sixth forms. From 2018 there were 6

FE colleges:

• City College Norwich

• Easton and Otley College

• East Coast College

• Suffolk New College

• The College of West Anglia

• West Suffolk College.

The University of East Anglia, University of Suffolk and the Norwich University of the

Creative Arts, offer most of the Higher Education provision in New Anglia; however, all 6 of

the FE colleges also deliver Higher Education provision. In 2015 to 2016, 7,670

apprenticeship places were delivered in Norfolk and 6,340 in Suffolk. The FE colleges in the

area offered 6,550 apprenticeship framework enrolments between them. Overall, the most

popular frameworks were business administration, children’s care learning and development,

customer service, construction skills, health and social care, hospitality and catering, and

management. There are many Independent Training Providers delivering apprenticeship

frameworks to Norfolk and Suffolk residents, including large national training providers, most

of whom are not based in the area and some of whom deliver very small numbers.⁹

The FE colleges, together with sixth form colleges- Suffolk One, East Norfolk Sixth Form and

Lowestoft Sixth Form, have formed a collaborative college group; working together with the

New Anglia LEP to advance the delivery of education and skills in line with New Anglia’s

economic strategy. There is also a network of New Anglia Learning Providers, a network of

Independent Training Providers and Local Authority training delivery, also developing a

joined-up approach with the New Anglia LEP. Both groups are represented on the New

Anglia Skills Board and have a played a major role in contributing to the development of the

suite of Skills Plans sponsored by the Skills Board that are aligned to New Anglia LEP’s

priority sectors.

⁹ Norfolk and Suffolk Area Review (DfE 2017)

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Defining the Learning and Skills Sector

In developing this Skills Plan, we have considered both the broad industrial group of

‘Education’ (which captures both teaching and non-teaching activity), and the teaching

occupations that fall under the broad occupational group of ‘Teaching and Educational

Professionals’. A full breakdown of the industrial subsectors used (SIC codes) and the

teaching and educational codes (SOC codes) is captured in the Learning and Skills Sector

DataPack, which captures the detailed quantitative analysis of the scale, value and skills

trends for the sector in New Anglia. (Available on request).

The consultation has involved a broad enquiry across the New Anglia education and skills

sector; this has included research and stakeholder engagement on early years, primary,

secondary and post 16 delivery. The focus of the consultation has however focused on two

principle areas:

• activity within primary and secondary education that focuses on the development of

careers and enterprise delivery in support of the transition young people make into

post 16 learning and skills choices.

• Post 16 learning and skills delivery itself, with an emphasis on Further Education

(FE) and the role of the independent training market, across New Anglia.

The data analysis has performed a broad assessment of learning and skills at all years,

including Higher Education (HE) however the qualitative focus for the development of the

plan has concentrated more specifically on the 16-19 academic and vocational delivery of

learning and skills overall. This is line with the core remit of the skills plans supporting

Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) priorities.

The scope of consultation has also been iterative, adapting to the feedback provided by

stakeholders as the planning work developed. As leadership within education was cited as a

key priority by consultees working both within pre and post 16 learning and skills, the

consultation has explored themes of all years’ education as a ‘whole system’ across New

Anglia. This has informed the key priorities concluded within the plan.

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Routes into Learning and Skills Careers

There are a range of pathways into the Learning and Skills sector in England. At a broad

level the routes can be grouped into two main areas- (i) teaching as a professional role

within education and training, including tutors of vocational training and (ii) non-academic or

non-core academic roles, including administration, management and leadership, business

administration, advisory specialisms and research. Formal guidance¹⁰ for those interested in

pursuing a career as a teacher, groups options based on traditional postgraduate and

undergraduate routes:

• Postgraduate qualified teaching status (QTS)- this programme is offered by

universities, colleges, SCITTs, and School Direct training providers in England. QTS

can be achieved via the Assessment Only route- having a degree and substantial

experience of working in a school, early years, or further education setting, this

option enables QTS without undergoing a teacher training programme.

• Undergraduate Initial Teacher Training- an education degree that leads to QTS,

including a specific route for early years education.

• Undergraduate degree plus QTS- a non-education degree, followed by further

training that achieves QTS, which can be achieved via a post graduate certificate in

education (PGCE) or a postgraduate diploma in education (PGDE) or via several

other options including a post graduate teaching apprenticeship and direct

employment, with further training, by an employer that leads to QTS.

• Level 5 Diploma in Education and Training- a 1 year, Level 5 Diploma in Education

and Training (DET) programme, which is recognised as a teaching qualification for

the post-16 sector. This can be achieved via a university or college-led pre-service

training route, or via working as an unqualified Further Education teacher while

training part-time.

There are also a range of vocational routes into practitioner, assistant and support

professional roles within learning and skills. From 2020 onward the Education and Childcare

T Level will introduce a new routeway from technical, higher and through to professional

occupations for the sector. This includes occupations such as - Childcare Assistants,

Teaching Support Assistants, Early Years Support Practitioners, Teaching Instructors and

Teaching/Teaching Support Professionals.

Existing apprenticeship frameworks - covering Supporting Teaching and Learning in Schools

at Level 2 and 3 and Learning and Development at Level 3 will effectively close to new

starters from August 2020, as the new T Level occupational map is introduced. Alongside

this are the already existing reformed apprenticeship standards for- Learning and

Development Practitioner Level 3, Teaching Assistant Level 3 and Learning and

Development Consultant at Level 5. These are 18-month courses with entry requirements

typically set by the employer. Learning and development qualification at Level 3 can then

support the progression toward professional registration with the Chartered Institute of

Professional Development (CIPD).

¹⁰ Routes into Teaching in England, (UCAS 2019)

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3 Stakeholder Feedback

Feedback from stakeholders from across the Learning and Skills sector in New Anglia,

captured via the consultation, has highlighted that meeting the demands of employers

remains a critical priority overall. Central to this are several key areas linked to the reform of

vocational and technical skills, the role of ‘people’ defined in the new Industrial Strategy

White Paper¹¹ (one of the key ‘pillars’ seen as a driver for business productivity and growth),

and the increasing shift toward localism for economic development policy and delivery.

Developing Technical Specialism

Firstly, to build technical skills teaching capacity; the national Industrial Strategy White

Paper references the reform of technical skills, initially announced in the Post 16 Skills

Plan,¹² which in turn was a response to the Sainsbury (Independent Technical Panel Report)

Review of Skills.¹³ Stakeholders, through the consultation, have reflected on the dual

challenge of impacting the policy linked to the reform of technical skills and training within

existing education delivery alongside new vocational qualifications being developed.

Central to this challenge is priorities linked to employer investment: ensuring industry can

provide input and sponsorship overall to help grow technical specialism. This employer

sponsorship can be drawn across three main themes - (i) working in partnership with the

learning and skills community to identify and define emerging skills needs, (ii) leveraging

resources to support the investment in capital and training kit requirements and (iii) providing

specialism toward training delivery itself.

The reform of vocational training is holistic in its approach toward all aspects of delivery.

Apprenticeships have seen the transition from previous frameworks based on occupational

areas to new standards that better represent the technical competency as defined by a

business to perform in the job. The funding system has transitioned alongside this, with

employers now having more ‘transactional power’ over training delivery. Alongside this has

been the introduction of the apprenticeship levy, which places more emphasis on effective

investment in workforce development for levy paying employers. T Levels, which are

expected to cover around 25% of 16-18-year-old FE delivery by 2027, aim to offer a third

choice alongside the academic and apprenticeship routeways on offer and build on the same

employer co-design and definition of standards as with the reform of apprenticeships,

moving away from traditional frameworks. The first three T Level routes (or maps)

announced (from an initial 15 occupational areas) for delivery from 2020/21 onward cover:

(i)

Digital Design,

(ii)

Education and Childcare

(iii)

Construction (design, survey and planning)

These routes incorporate a Level 3 (A Level equivalent) learning pathway aimed at 16-18-

year olds over a 2-year period, which must include industry placement/s (and/or part-time

relevant employment) as part of the balance between classroom and ‘on the job learning’.

¹¹ Industrial Strategy White Paper (2017), HM Government

¹² Post 16 Skills Paper (2016), DfE

¹³ The Independent Panel on Technical Education (2016), Open Government- National Archives

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The T Level qualification is predominantly aimed at achieving a work outcome upon

qualification; however, it can also lead to Higher level learning- across academic degree and

higher apprenticeship options.

Alongside this are the already existing reformed apprenticeship standards for- Learning and

Development Practitioner Level 3, Teaching Assistant Level 3, Teacher Level 6 and

Learning and Development Consultant at Level 5.

The Learning and Skills sector across New Anglia regard the introduction of T levels

and the ongoing reform of apprenticeships via new technical standards, as a major

area of impact. The Industrial Strategy emphasises the convergence technical specialism

will have with other key policy developments such at Institutes of Technology (IoTs) and the

new National College networks. This therefore highlights that the implementation of technical

reform is not limited to FE colleges or for training in niche/STEM based industry (although

investment in STEM skills is a standout area of action for the Industrial Strategy overall) but

will affect a range of colleges and HE, and their associated partnerships too.

The Learning and Skills community across New Anglia therefore anticipate that teaching to

the reformed technical capability, in line with new national standards, is a key issue to plan

for, as vocational training reform accelerates. Subject specialisms will be required which will

impact on upskilling existing staff for teaching the new qualifications and for the recruitment

of new tutors/teachers from industry, with current experience and an industrial ‘skillset’ that

will match employer demand.

Developing a Cross-cutting Approach

Secondly, the Learning and Skills community recognises that a skills plan for their

sector must help promote a ‘cross-cutting and underpinning’ series of actions.

Consultation with the FE Principal and Vice Principal Groups emphasised that building

inherent responsiveness within the ‘skills system’ should be positioned centrally within this

skills plan. They see this responsiveness being driven by robust partnerships with industry

locally that can build investment opportunities, promote advocacy for training solutions

across business communities and find new ways of developing the sponsorship of skills

activity. There was recognition too amongst the Independent Training Provider community

that more industry specific partnerships - favoured to be grouped by ‘area-based hubs’,

could help define and promote initiatives for employers to become more involved in

education at all years- from primary/secondary careers and enterprise activities through to

facilitating placements within specific niche areas for graduates.

Feedback highlighted that:

• Solutions to identify and capture the relevant resources such as training kit, tutor

supply and infrastructure development should be a joint responsibility between

industry and the learning and skills community. Stakeholders highlighted that the

Local Enterprise Partnership could assess how business support and growth activity

coordinated via the Growth Hub can broker skills investment in line with the

recognition of ‘People’ as a pillar for economic growth, within the national Industrial

Strategy. This includes reviewing the business support diagnostic process to identify

how ‘skills’ is currently captured as a growth/productivity priority and the procedure

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for encouraging more business leadership within the existing and emerging skills

priorities linked to all of the Skills Plans. Feedback from FE colleges focused on

developing plans with the New Anglia LEP to pinpoint when and how skills

investment can feature across the range of business facing activities and

interventions that they cover.

•

Furthermore, although localised activity is often limited to work within national policy

guidelines in terms of grant funding, procedures for facilitating growth and innovation

investment, including R&D - brokered via the New Anglia LEP, should identify issues

and opportunities for training delivery. This includes the importance of skills co-

design for new product development linked to technical vocational reform and how

equipment/infrastructure can be utilised/recycled, through the process of investment,

for the benefits of the skills and training community too. Feedback highlighted that

this was particularly critical for areas such as manufacturing and engineering,

construction and energy - where there was high demand for technical innovation that

are heavily linked to specific operational environments and machinery, and the

relevancy of the training method was imperative. The New Anglia LEP should

encourage skills leaders to work with them to review how commitments around

investment in skills- both in terms of training/upskilling and other resources

(trainer support, input on quality assurance and donation of kit/equipment) can

be most effectively promoted across the range of business support funding

processes that are currently accessible; for example, maximising the Employer

Support package announced in May 2019 to support employer work

placements for T Levels.

•

The Growth Hub’s activity includes two dedicated skills advisory roles that link activity

between the Skills Board, its partners and growth hub intervention. The New Anglia

Local Enterprise Partnership would be keen to review how the interaction on skills

can respond to the emerging priorities from this skills plan with an emphasis on

securing greater employer leadership and investment in skills development and

delivery. A practical approach would be to review the processes for signposting

employers to skills initiatives via the Growth Hub and communicate how employers

can engage in skills leadership actions - rather than just be signposted to training

delivery.

•

Providers were clear that they did not want to duplicate existing planned activity in

sector-based skills partnerships. They did however recognise the importance of

consolidating the range of current employer facing priorities linked to engagement

and brokerage for the key sectors for skills action (for example supporting enterprise

work placement delivery initiatives) into one regular planning mechanism.

Furthermore, there should be a greater emphasis to work with existing business

partnerships - such as the Chambers of Commerce, EEEGr and TechEast, to

leverage more Corporate Social Responsibility investment within skills activities.

Providers felt that taking an area-based approach to this would be a practical way of

working with the business community and aligning all years’ education, via regular

joined-up conversations.

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Leveraging Employer Investment in Skills

Thirdly, the Learning and Skills community identified recruiting tutors from industry

into teaching and training as arguably the biggest challenge for responding to the

demands of employers overall. Stakeholders recognised that there is significant

competition from other learning providers nationally for the acquisition of new entrants who

have the relevant technical capabilities and industry experience. Furthermore, this is

exacerbated by trying to meet wage level expectations for ex-industry, which is particularly

pronounced for specific sectors such as Digital Tech, with a relatively high imbalance

between industry and education earnings. The Learning and Skills community recognise that

more can be developed ‘internally’ as a sector to assess and collaborate technical expertise

for delivery, which requires a higher degree of knowledge. This includes developing a

strategy for defining areas of professionalism and coordinating processes for sharing niche

sector expertise. In addition, feedback highlighted how local strategy developed through the

nascent Local Industrial Strategy (LIS) consultation, should also position developing niche

training expertise as a key element to ‘People’ within the key sectors developed in the

strategic plan.

The LIS will set out clearly defined priorities for how local areas will maximise their

contribution to UK productivity. It will allow places to make the most of their distinctive

strengths and will better coordinate economic policy at a local level to ensure greater

collaboration across boundaries. The LIS will help to inform local choices, prioritise local

action and help to inform decisions at a national level. It will also inform the allocation of any

future local growth funding deployed through the New Anglia LEP. Learning and Skills

stakeholders are keen therefore to ensure that the development of the LIS - which is a

consultative process involving direct dialogue with specific industry prioritised by the New

Anglia LEP specifically within a growth, productivity and innovation focused scope - identifies

solutions for training infrastructure investment and tutor recruitment.

Future Proofing Technical Expertise

At a national level the government announced a range of funding initiatives aimed to support

provider adoption of T Level delivery. This includes an annual £500 million funding package

in support of the extra learning hours required to deliver T Level qualification outcomes and

a capital investment consultation plan of up to £38 million, split over two phases focusing on

infrastructure upgrading and investment in kit and resources (from 2020). The infrastructure

investment requires a minimum of a 50% match contribution from providers in order to reach

the eligible grant threshold. Consultation with the Education and Training Foundation (ETF)

highlighted the additional investment they are facilitating to coincide with T Level

implementation and the wider technical skills reform. Making up a £20 million investment

package, the support comprises:

• Taking Teaching Further (TTF)- funding to support the recruitment of industry

specialists in teaching roles backed up by specialised training and development via

the Education and Training Foundation.

• T Level Professional Development Programme- bespoke training facilitated via

the Education and Training Foundation and scheduled to commence delivery from

2019 onward aiming to develop technical expertise in the priority sectors linked to the

broader package of technical vocational reform.

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The Education and Training Foundation have stressed however that this funding is aimed at

supporting the initial adoption of T Level delivery and the key impact of the overall vocational

reform pushed through recent nationally policy by the government. During this consultation

the Education and Training Foundation and the Association of Colleges (AoC), who are

collaborating with the Education and Training Foundation on the Taking Teaching Further

programme, emphasised the limitations they will have regarding regional and local

investment. Both organisations are keen to encourage the development of a local skills

strategy that can align with national policy and their piloted support delivery. Nationally the

Education and Training Foundation’s focus for 2019/20 will, along with T Level

preparedness, focus on supporting the development of providers to work together to develop

shared solutions (a continuation of the Outstanding Teaching and Learning Assessment

programme) and an investment in support aimed at developing the pipeline of senior

leadership, through middle management CPD activity.

Given the expectations of match funding for national investment programmes, the

development of the LIS and the role of local collaboration with industry to respond effectively

to technical reform- the Learning and Skills sector is keen to ringfence working with

employers as the key priority for New Anglia’s Learning and Skills sector skills plan.

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Vacancy Filling and Workforce Development

The Data Pack developed to support the quantitative evidence for this Skills Plan has

highlighted a range of key points that are linked to supporting the maintenance of a talented

Learning and Skills sector workforce. Significant elements for the learning and skills sector

in New Anglia cover¹⁴:

• An overall vacancy rate 11% higher than the average for New Anglia’s combined

economy and 14% higher than the England rate.

• A hard to fill vacancy rate that is 6% higher than the average for New Anglia’s

combined economy and 11% higher than the England rate.

• Employers estimating a skills underutilisation rate that is 13% higher than the

average for New Anglia’s combined economy and 11% higher than the England rate.

• Employers estimating a skills proficiency (establishments which have staff not fully

proficient) rate that is 8% higher than the average for New Anglia’s combined

economy and 12% higher than the England rate.

In contrast employer feedback (ESS 2017) taken highlights that the Learning and Skills

sector has a relatively high level of investment in training and development for the workforce.

Overall investment in training is 28% higher than the average for New Anglia’s combined

economy, with a balance between off the job and on the job delivery. This equates to 17%

more of the total Learning and Skills sector workforce receiving training compared to New

Anglia overall. It is important to note however that within FE, dual professionalism is a key

factor. Effectively a developmental focus on responding to two training goals: one based on

teaching and one based on occupation - is influencing the ESS findings. Furthermore, data

highlights that training contact time per FTE of staff for the sector is less overall than the

regional average - indicating relatively short learning hours for training take up and an overall

reduction in learning aims delivered (30% less) between 2010-2013/14.

Apprenticeships

In terms of apprenticeship delivery - learner starts for New Anglia were, up until 2017/18,

spread across the frameworks for Supporting Teaching and Learning in Schools (Level 2

and Level 3), Supporting Teaching and Learning in PE (Level 3) and Learning and

Development (Level 3). These were predominantly for classroom assistant and teaching

assistant roles at the intermediate level and for behaviour/learning support assistance as the

advanced level. Learning and Development apprenticeship take up was aimed at roles such

as Assessors, Training Development Officers and Learning Advisers. In terms of ‘Starts’ -

approximately 70% of learner starts fell within the supporting teaching and learning

framework in 2017/18, with the overall number of starts (140) significantly less than in

2015/16 (260). This coincides with a fall in learner aims achieved but also correlates with the

transition to the new standards introduced - with all framework apprenticeship starts

effectively closed from 2020 onward.¹⁵

¹⁴ See Learning and Skills Sector Data Pack- all sources 2017 Employer Skills Survey

¹⁵ See Learning and Skills Sector Data Pack—all sources ESFA Data Cube

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HE- Talent Retention

For HE, the DataPack indicates issues linked to the net outflow of learners studying

education-based qualifications at a higher level. Between 2010 and 2015 58% of New Anglia

residents who studied education at a higher level left and studied outside of New Anglia, with

the South East and South East Midlands as the two most popular study destinations. Of the

total students studying education at a higher level within New Anglia - 12% came from

outside of the area, with the neighbouring South East and Cambridgeshire being the most

popular original locations. Overall New Anglia had a negative net flow (a net outflow) of

students who studied education of -950, between 2010 and 2015. In terms of graduate

employment of the 700 students who studied education and subsequently found

employment in the area, 73% came from outside of New Anglia. Overall New Anglia had a

positive net flow of workers who studied education of 490, between 2010 and 2015.

Essentially - in terms of HE - between this period, New Anglia was reliant on importing talent

into the area to fill learning and skills jobs and experienced a significant number of its

residents ‘migrating’ - who chose to study courses within education, to other regional

destinations.¹⁶

Employment Demand & Future Forecasting

The DataPack includes an analysis of Labour Insight, a feature of the Burning Glass

vacancy database, which ‘scrapes’ vacancy data from multiple sources and presents

summary information for statistical analysis. The Labour Insight analysis uses a core

definition grouping based on Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes within the

teaching category, it therefore specifically concentrates on teaching roles across all year’s

education, including special education needs, HE professionals and school inspection.

Overall - between 2012 and 2018 27,000 teaching vacancies were posted as registered for

the New Anglia area, for all levels of teaching. For FE, the demand for teaching staff was

higher than the national average in Bury St. Edmunds and in line with the national average in

Ipswich. For the rest of New Anglia, demand was lower than the national average. Vacancy

levels have increased overall- with the rate for 2018 significantly higher than it was in 2012.

Rates have increased for HE and FE, whereas the vacancy rate for secondary education

has decreased over this timeframe. Summarising Labour Insight vacancy data highlights

that the wage rate for teachers in New Anglia is on average £1,800 lower than the national

average.¹⁷

The DataPack uses two key data models to summarise future forecast demand; these are

the East of England Forecasting Model and the Working Futures dataset (UKCES).¹⁸

Neither database considers planned intervention to stimulate economic growth as captured

through local economic development strategy and should therefore be considered

‘pessimistic’ in outlook. The forecasting highlights that up to 2024, there is no net change in

¹⁶ The data presented here is from the population of England-domiciled students who studied for a

first degree at an English higher education provider between the academic years 2010-11 and 2014-

15 inclusive. Data comes from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) Student Record, the

Education and Skills Funding Agency’s Individualised Student Record (ILR) data and the Destinations

of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) survey. Comparing separate datasets does create

challenges with direct comparison and is reliant on student home, study and employer postcodes

¹⁷ See Learning and Skills Sector Data Pack- Labour Insight- all sources

¹⁸ See Learning and Skills Sector Data Pack- Forecasting- all sources EEFM and WF (UKCES)

37 | P a g e

demand for learning and skills employment, with Working Futures tracing an overall 4%

increase in demand by 2044. There is however a significant forecast expansion demand for

higher qualified teaching professionals (OCF 7-8) of approximately 4,000. Although no net

change in demand is forecast, breaking the data down does however indicates a significant

replacement demand (2014-2024) within teaching professionals qualified at:

• QCF equivalent level 3 (A Level)- 4,000 net replacement

• QCF equivalent levels 4-6 (HE first degree)- 9,000 net replacement

• QCF 7-8 (post-graduate)- 7,500 net replacement

With 40% of the Learning and Skills sector’s workforce 45+ nationally, the replacement

demand is largely driven by planned retirement patterns. A net contraction in demand across

lower level qualified roles negates the overall impact of replacement across the higher QCF

levels.

Key Workforce Challenges- Summarised

In summary, several key challenges can be highlighted through the data analysis for the

Learning and Skills sector:

•

The sector in New Anglia experiences relatively high levels of unfilled and hard

to fill vacancies, compared to both regional and national averages. Consultation

with stakeholders highlighted specific concerns regarding filling teaching/tutor

vacancies within high demand areas such as digital, ICT, construction and

engineering. Furthermore, consultation with the regional AoC provided further

information regarding perceived shortfalls in the supply of teaching into maths and

English curricula.

•

The sector also reports organisational concerns regarding the utilisation and

level of proficiency of staff - again higher than local and national averages for all

sectors. This is despite a relatively high investment in CPD for the workforce. The

concerns relating to underutilisation and proficiency are partly driven by teaching

professionals having to respond to dual/multi-professionalism subject delivery and a

balance of responsibilities aligned with teaching and individual learner support

(SEND for example). There are limitations however in the data analysis behind the

formal surveying tools and the sector would benefit from further, collaborative,

intelligence gathering facilitated by the sector itself and shared as a New Anglia

Learning and Skills sector work organisation strategy.

•

There are structural, labour market, challenges linked to the flow of talent and

availability of suitably qualified teaching professionals in line with current and forecast

demands. A shift toward roles requiring higher qualified staff is driven by both

expansion and relatively high levels of replacement demand for the sector overall.

Pressures here however are exacerbated by a net outflow of students choosing to

pursue studying for careers in the sector, and subsequent employment, to other

regions. New Anglia therefore is reliant on the net import of professionals to the area,

with challenges focused on wage levels being below national rates for teaching and

often significantly below industry levels - a major barrier when leveraging niche

expertise from industry into teaching roles.

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Leadership and Management in the Learning and Skills Sector

Nationally, the Education and Training Foundation is taking a core focus on leadership

training for middle managers, to secure the pipeline for senior leadership roles. Their most

recent national Training Needs Analysis¹⁹ highlighted that:

• For colleges and sixth forms 67% of the workforce surveyed indicated that there was

new training and development they would like to take up, of which 29% was focused

on the development of governance, leadership and management skills.

•

81% of the FE and Sixth Form Institutions surveyed highlighted training needs for

their staff for governance, leadership and management development - the highest

category, followed by specific subject knowledge at 80%.

• For the Independent Training Provider community, again nationally, 71% of the

workforce surveyed indicated that there was new training and development they

would like to take up, of which 41% was focused on the development of governance,

leadership and management skills. Furthermore, 60% of institutions identified a

future need to train their staff in leadership and management.

Consultation performed locally with the Learning and Skills sector across New Anglia for the

development of this skills plan, corroborated the emphasis of leadership and management

development demand highlighted via the Education and Training Foundation nationally.

Locally, stakeholders felt that demand was effectively driven by a range of internal and

external factors, which included-

• Internally- an increase in effective management skills to deliver organisational

change linked to transforming operating environments, the ascendency of multi-

academy trusts and budgetary pressures caused by a reduction in pupil/learner

funding.

• Externally- effectively responding to policy changes across all stages of education,

including the reform of vocational education, a call for greater ‘whole system’

collaboration amongst educational institutions and building effective links with

industrial and community stakeholders.

In Norfolk, activity in collaborative partnerships focused on leadership recruitment and

development has been taken forward via an independent leadership review overseen by

Norfolk County Council’s Education Partnership Service.²⁰ The review highlighted a lack of

middle management wishing to make the transition to senior roles within secondary and

sixth form institutions. Within primary and secondary institutions, the overall reluctance was

partly driven by concerns of management moving further away from traditional teaching roles

and concerns relating to the impact of succession planning caused by promotion for smaller,

more rurally based schools. At a ‘whole area’ level, education institutions - across early

years, primary and secondary, expressed concerns over a ‘fragmented’ education system in

which a common purpose is lost as multi-academy trusts move further from Local Authority

influence. As a strategic partnership priority, Norfolk is now keen to develop more

¹⁹ ETF (2018) Training Needs Analysis- Colleges and Sixth Forms and Independent Training

Providers (bmg Research)

²⁰ ISOS Partnership (2017) The Future of Educational Leadership in Norfolk- Norfolk County Council

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formalised, shared collaborative leadership models, which can be grouped in to two key

areas:

1. More formalised area-based leadership collaboration aimed at addressing system

wide education leadership challenges- with themes linked to areas including

effective school governance, school attainment and performance, addressing

shortfalls in subject expertise and strengthening the response to specific learner age

related needs - for example leadership within SEND coordination and at risk of NEET

planning/action.

2. Organisation of informal peer-support partnerships looking at transformative

initiatives aimed at developing leadership within Learning and Skills; by working

externally with leaders across a palette of civic, third sector and private

industry stakeholders. These partnerships develop leadership skills in response to

key external challenges, which aim to test and innovate the role that education can

play in delivering positive change. Examples could include the role of learning and

skills in addressing social and economic exclusion across rural and coastal areas,

disadvantage experienced by young people who are long term NEET or planning a

joint response in partnership with industry to major economic development

opportunities linked to infrastructure/investment programmes.

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Supporting Careers Leadership and Delivery

The production of the national White Paper on the Industrial Strategy coincided with an

extensive re-focus on the efficacy of careers and enterprise delivery in education nationally.

Since the implementation of the new National Careers Strategy in 2017²¹ and the

establishment of the national Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC), schools and colleges

are encouraged to take a more proactive and strategic approach towards careers and

enterprise delivery in order to equip the next generation of school and college leavers with

the appropriate employability and enterprise development that employers will value. The

national policy uses the Gatsby Foundation’s key recommendations for developing careers

and enterprise activity within schools, which includes promoting more opportunity for

employer encounters for students, a greater understanding of the local labour market to

inform careers choice and responding to the needs of each student.

In line with the strategy are changes to the OFSTED inspection framework which will see

any formal inspection take direct reference to the quality of careers advice and guidance

delivered within schools and colleges. OFSTED will expect to see evidence on how

independent careers guidance is provided in schools to all year 8-13 pupils (12-18-year olds)

and that it must be provided in an impartial manner. Teaching support should feature

assured understanding of how their subject applies to the world of work and overall a range

of options should be explored covering both education or training options - including

apprenticeships and other vocational pathways. Overall, advice should promote the

students’ best interests. Gatsby recommendations are highlighted as a benchmark

framework to help schools and colleges develop a comprehensive response to the Careers

Strategy, with the CEC providing a range of resources to help plan and audit progress

against the recommendations.

The dissemination of policy and support has become more localised - with the role of local

Enterprise Coordinators and a growing network of Enterprise Advisers attached to local

schools and colleges (employer advocates volunteering their time to help schools develop

their careers and enterprise activities). In addition, New Anglia has a well organised network

of Enterprise Advisers, with an Enterprise Adviser Network (EAN) that works in partnership

with Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils, to develop a joined-up response to the National

Careers Strategy. The EAN has a focus on supporting Gatsby Recommendations as a

measure but also takes a broad focus on key issues aligned to the Careers Strategy. These

include access to and delivery of Careers Leader training (funded via DfE and controlled via

the CEC, with Suffolk County Council one of the formally approved providers) and the overall

sharing of best practice across the school and college network.

Furthermore, the strategic focus taken by Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils covers the

planning of action that includes effective provision of advice and guidance, with effective

interventions, for young people with Special Education Needs (SEND) and those that are

either at risk of or are seen to be Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET). This

includes collaboration with vulnerable groups and outreach/voluntary and community sector

activity that aims to target intervention - such as supported internships and provides

assurance of the inclusion of careers interviews in formal planning frameworks such as

Education and Healthcare Plans (EHCP).

²¹ Careers Strategy- Making the Most of Everyone’s Skills and Talents (2017), DfE

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New Anglia was one of the successful LEP areas to win a share of the extra £5 million

investment the government has ringfenced to further promote the adoption of careers and

enterprise activity linked to the national strategy- via Careers Hubs.

At this stage a process of alignment is in development between the Enterprise Adviser

Network, Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils and the New Anglia LEP - to carry forward

the planned action of the Careers Hub and ensure the strategic focus developed via the EAN

is maintained. Ultimately, partners have emphasised the importance of recognising the

Careers Hub as key added value for the coordination and delivery of the National Careers

Strategy across New Anglia; however it should not be conflated with an overarching strategic

response - the New Anglia Careers Hub will be made up of 32 local schools and colleges in

Ipswich, Norwich and along the A140 corridor, working together with universities, training

providers, employers and career professionals to improve careers education. The Hub will

also work closely with the schools and boards of the Ipswich and Norwich Opportunity

Areas, Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils’ the New Anglia Enterprise Adviser Network.

The Hub will be delivered by New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership, working with an

Operational Group that will include the Chantry Academy in Ipswich as a lead school, and

both Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils. Careers Hubs are a central part of the

Government’s Careers Strategy, published in December. The strategy aims to improve

careers education and help prepare young people for the world of work. The Government

asked The Careers & Enterprise Company to scale up a model successfully piloted in the

North East by establishing 20 Careers Hubs across the country, allocating £5 million over a

two-year period to support the Hubs.

The ambition of the New Anglia Careers Hub is for every secondary school, academy, SEND

school, PRU and FE college in the Hub to have:

• Fully achieved all eight Gatsby Benchmarks of excellent careers education by July

2020.

• Have in place a trained and accredited careers leader of senior stature in the school

or college, with time and authority to deliver effective careers education, guidance

and employer engagement for all pupils.

• To be actively engaged with the New Anglia Enterprise Adviser Network and be

matched with at least one Enterprise Adviser.

• To enable every young person to experience at least one ‘meaningful’ employer

encounter each year from year 7-13.

• To actively work towards a national quality award in careers education and guidance.

The government’s new Careers Strategy requires all schools and colleges to have a

dedicated Careers Leader from September 2018. This senior role will develop an excellent

careers programme for each school and college nationally to meet the expectations set out

in the Gatsby Benchmarks. Suffolk County Council is coordinating a Careers Leader

Training Programme, which is funded by DfE via the Careers Enterprise Company through a

grant bursary scheme. The CEC defines careers leaders’ responsibilities across four key

areas:

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• Leadership - leading the overall development of the careers strategy within the

establishment and providing the link between senior management, teaching staff and

external stakeholders.

• Management - overseeing the delivery of careers activity within the establishment.

• Coordination - overseeing the effective coordination of resources and support

services, including labour market intelligence tools and initiatives linked to employer

encounters.

• Networking- developing employer links and links with other education stakeholders.

Key Issues

Promoting Best Practice - the Careers Hub provides additional resources to promote the

delivery of careers guidance and enterprise using the Gatsby framework and building on the

activities developed via the EAN. There is however a limited area focus of the activity albeit

aligned to important broader needs and activities already in place across New Anglia

(Opportunity Areas for example). To this end there are more schools and colleges not

formally involved in the Careers Hub than those that are; it is therefore prudent to encourage

the promotion of best practice in delivery that can showcase initiatives that both inform the

Careers Hub and can be disseminated to schools and colleges across the whole of New

Anglia.

Planning Sustainability - stakeholders have raised the issue of sustainability planning as a

key strategic challenge for careers guidance delivery across New Anglia. Funding and

resources for the Careers Leader Training Programme are essentially finite, with funds either

stopping or reducing from 2020. Furthermore, there is a diverse and complex landscape of

delivery and activity in play both in within the Careers Hub direct and at a wider level: across

education business partnerships and private providers (Beacon East, ConnectEB, All

Together, the two Chambers of Commerce for New Anglia and private providers of careers

guidance support). Furthermore, there are other key established resources, for example the

“icanbea…” website and the range of action drawn together by overarching programmes

such as Suffolk’s “Raising the Bar” strategy that aims to improve the levels of education

attainment via multisector partnership working. Further activity includes the National

Collaborative Outreach Programme (NCOP), which aims to widen participation within Higher

Education through supporting HEI outreach and engagement with schools and colleges.

Locally the national NCOP activity is coordinated via the Network East Anglia Collaborative

Outreach programme (NEACO) - aiming to widen HE participation across New Anglia.

There are also concerns regarding the level of capability and qualified expertise in both

careers’ leadership activity within schools (pre-16) and the formal delivery of advice and

guidance (post-16), with the latter being of emphasis from a quality assurance perspective.

There is no audit or overarching evidence base to demonstrate whether the coverage and

capacity of careers advice and leadership is fit for purpose. In this context - ‘fit for purpose’

can be defined as a measure of achievement of the Gatsby Benchmarks, OFSTED

outcomes and destinations measures for schools and colleges. Stakeholders felt that there

was a lack of baseline and a framework to determine capability and capacity of experience

and key skills required. Providers highlighted that traditional careers leadership within

schools has been approached as an ‘add on’ alongside other leadership and teaching

responsibilities and that there was a real risk that education establishments were not ready

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for the formalisation of provision, which will be inspected within OFSTED procedures as part

of the reform.

In summary, the three key challenges in terms of addressing sustainability for effective

careers and enterprise guidance are:

• Funding and resources beyond 2020 that provide ongoing CPD for the

careers guidance community and can build on ‘operational’ initiatives such as

the New Anglia LEP Careers Hub.

• Promoting collaboration and ongoing alignment of partnership and

organisation activity against a strategic overarching focus for New Anglia,

which can create a shared vision and set of outcomes; and can maximise

efficiency through effective collaboration.

• Developing a framework of quality assurance that can consider how to

effectively baseline the capability of delivering effective careers guidance

across all years’ education and training, including provision of excellent

careers guidance specific to the needs of SEND, NEETs and other vulnerable

groups.

Taking a Strategic Approach Towards Careers Advice and Guidance for Adults-

stakeholders have raised concerns regarding the paucity of strategic focus via the National

Careers Strategy regarding advice and guidance available for adults. This affects people in

work looking to progress, move jobs and plan career changes and adults looking to enter

employment. The current localised approach is extensively focused on young people and

students, however there is a crosscutting principle evident in the collection of Skills Plans for

New Anglia which highlights the need for flexibility within the local workforce and for greater

measures to retain graduates locally. In response, stakeholders have identified that a plan of

action should be considered to promote high quality guidance for adults and identify the

routes for promoting this via existing delivery and sector-based groups.

Testing and Effective Use of Labour Market Intelligence - concerns that careers

information linked to New Anglia’s priority sectors should be shared more effectively with all

schools, colleges, universities, independent training providers and voluntary sector

organisations- to help inform career choices and learning pathways for young people and

adults. Stakeholders expressed that they were keen to work with intermediary partnerships,

including sector specific groups- to test the quality and availability of labour market

intelligence for priority sectors and stimulate more engagement with employers to meet

Gatsby target recommendations. Both careers and enterprise leads within Norfolk and

Suffolk County Councils have advocated for ongoing measures to test the relevancy,

accuracy and quality of labour market intelligence with employers and schools. Highlighting

that there should be supportive scrutiny to ensure that intelligence is fit for purpose.

The recent Area Review²² corroborated this issue, with a commitment for Norfolk and Suffolk

County Councils and the New Anglia LEP to work collaboratively to develop good quality

information on local employment, skills needs and key developments that may provide

opportunities for learners to progress. The Review also include a further commitment to

publish this widely including to schools, colleges and other learning providers to support the

²² Norfolk and Suffolk Area Review (DfE 2017)

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Appendix A- Skills Plan Development Process

The development of the Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan was developed between

October 2018 and February 2019 and involved consultation with ‘task and finish groups’

aligned to the priorities within the plan, and directly with national and local stakeholders. In

addition to this sector skills plan document, a supporting DataPack has been produced

which outlines the current workforce in the sector, trends in its skills levels and how the

sector in New Anglia compares with other areas. The DataPack also reports on the

underlying socio-economic context for the sector locally and reports on projected changes in

future skills needs and current student numbers.

To capture primary evidence through qualitative, semi-structured, interview methodology

with the key stakeholders we established a series of key themes and lines of enquiry. The

key lines represented a framework to guide the consultation process however the questions

were not prescriptive; the semi-structured approach enabled further issues to be detailed

based on the responses from the consultees.

Key Themes & Lines of Enquiry

The Learning and Skills Sector Skills Plan focuses upon the opportunities and challenges

surrounding the effective recruitment, retention and development of the sector’s workforce,

making it resilient and adaptable in response to New Anglia’s future economic priorities. The

plan concentrated on two key thematic areas:

1. Addressing Skills Gaps and Recruitment Shortfall-The oft-articulated skills

shortages for teachers, tutors and assessors - especially in terms of technical skills

which are in the highest demand by key sectors

- e.g. engineering

/ digital

technologies. Seeking to understand the current teacher / training pipeline / existing

provision and identifying creative local strategies to tackle that shortfall;

2. Building Excellence and Responsiveness through Skills- A local skills

development strategy that supports New Anglia providers to respond cohesively, and

perhaps through collaborative leadership, to the myriad of new sector and national

skills opportunities that are being identified as the post -16 skills landscape evolves.

The plan would seek to identify and articulate key needs and set out owned local

innovative strategies to respond proactively to support New Anglia's economic strategy

and the needs of New Anglia’s residents.

The key lines of enquiry covered:

• Understanding how the sector has had to respond to the skills delivery market

from a workforce development perspective over the last 12 months (as a

minimum)

• What expectations the sector faces from learners and from employers on the

skills products and services they deliver, and what this means in terms of staff

organisational design and development

• The quality of the tutor/teacher/assessor supply in relation to the type of products

on offer/sector business development aims

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List of Consultees

A series of key interviews were conducted with a mixture of stakeholders at national,

regional and local levels.

Corrienne Peasgood

City College Norwich (Skills Board Main Sponsor)

Jane Wood

WS Training (Skills Board Sponsor)

Natasha Waller

New Anglia LEP (Lead Officer)

Alan Pease

Suffolk New College

Alison Morris

Education and Training Foundation

Andy Cooper

East Norfolk Sixth Form

Anthony Winsper

NCLS (NALP Group Rep)

Calvin Goodson

Skills Edge (NALP Group Rep)

Catherine Hegarty

Develop EBP

Christine Nichols

NORSEGROUP (NALP Group Rep)

Christine Stewart

AoC East

D Tapp

West Suffolk College (NALP Group Member)

Daniel Kemp

QUBE Learning (NALP Group Rep)

David Pomfret

College of West Anglia

Diana Keyzor

Easton & Otley College

Ed Rose

City College Norwich (NALP Group Rep)

Graeme Tolley

Prince’s Trust (NALP Group Rep)

Helen Gordon

Construction Training Specialists Ltd (NALP Group Rep)

Jacqui Phipps

Suffolk County Council

Jason Parnell

Steadfast Training (NALP Group Rep)

Jenny Milsom

Suffolk ONE

Jerry White

City College Norwich

John Ambrose

Complete Careers

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John Morgan

Futures for You, Norfolk and Suffolk

Karin Porter

Norfolk County Council (NALP Group Rep)

Keith Middleton

AoC East

Lucy Walker

ESFA (NALP Group Rep)

Mark Anderson

St-Edmunds Society (NALP Group Rep)

Mark Bruhin

Beacon East

Melinda Fargo

Norfolk County Council (NALP Group Rep)

Melvyn Ruff

Norfolk County Council

Neale McArdle

Poultec Training Ltd (NALP Group Rep)

Nigel Best

New Anglia LEP

Nikos Savvas

West Suffolk College

Paul Wright

Norfolk County Council

Penny Fawcus

West Suffolk College

Rachel Bunn

East Coast College

Rachel Chapman

Matthew Project (NALP Group Rep)

Ron Storer

JTL (NALP Group Rep)

Ruth Harrison

College of West Anglia

Sarah Reynolds

Electrical Testing (NALP Group Rep)

Sharon Davies

UEA (NALP Group Rep)

Sebastian Gasse

Norfolk County Council

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