New Anglia Skills Advisory Panel Meeting

23rd September 2021

Via Microsoft Teams

MINUTES OF MEETING

In attendance:

Catherine Richards, East Norfolk 6th Form

(CR)

Claire Cullens, New Anglia LEP Board and

SAP Chair (CC)

Clarke Willis, Swallow Barns (CW)

Corrienne Peasgood, City College Norwich

(CP)

David Gartland, Abbeygate 6th Form (DG)

David Pomfret, College of West Anglia

(DP)

Glen Todd, New Anglia LEP (GT)

Jan Feeney, Norfolk County Council (JF)

Jason Parnell, Steadfast Training (JP)

Julia Nix, DWP (JN)

Karin Porter, Norfolk County Council (KP)

Lucy Walker, ESFA (LW)

Michael Gray, Suffolk County Council (MG)

Natasha Waller, New Anglia LEP (NW)

Nova Fairbank, Norfolk Chamber of

Commerce (NF)

Richard Bridgman, Warren Services (RB)

Seb Gasse, NCC (SG)

Stuart Smith, People with Energy (SS)

Tom Brown, Green Light Trust (TB)

Viv Gillespie, Suffolk New College (VG)

Yvonne Mason, The Mason Trust (YM)

Visitors:

Cate Carmichael, Suffolk County Council

Public Health (CCa)

Ed Shorthouse, New Anglia LEP (ES)

Laraine Moody, West Suffolk College (LM)

Lisa Roberts, New Anglia LEP (LR)

Richard Balls, New Anglia LEP (RBa)

Simon Papworth, New Anglia LEP (SP)

Apologies:

Adrian Orr, Suffolk County Council (AO)

Ben Miller, Independent (BM)

Christine Futter, Norfolk and Suffolk Care

Support (CF)

Chris Gribble, Writers’ Centre Norwich

(CG)

Cllr Rachel Hood, Suffolk County Council

(RH)

Cllr Stuart Clancy, Norfolk County Council

(SC)

Dayle Bayliss, Dayle Bayliss Associates

(DB)

Guy Hazlehurst, EDF (GH)

Helen Langton (Professor), University of

Suffolk (HL)

Karen Gibson, Norfolk County Council (KG)

Nikos Savvas, West Suffolk College (NS)

Paul Simon, Suffolk Chamber of

Commerce (PS)

Peter Basford, BDO Group (PB)

Richard Self, agricultural representative

(RS)

Stuart Rimmer, East Coast College (SR)

Tom Humphries, Norfolk County Council

(TH)

Tracey Cox, ESFA (TC)

Vince Muspratt, Norfolk County Council

(VP)

Item 1: Welcome and Minutes

Claire Cullens welcomed everyone to the meeting and particularly our guests Lisa Roberts

(New Anglia LEP) and Cate Carmichael (Suffolk County Council Public Health).

The minutes were reviewed and approved. All actions had been followed up.

Item 2: Renewal Plan – an overview

CC reminded members of the relevance of the Champion groups and the reason for today’s

workshops. The Renewal Plan is an opportunity to bring stakeholders together to look at the

future.

CC stressed that it isn’t essential to develop new initiatives unless there is a real need. It is

more important to focus and build on what we have.

LR explained that the Renewal Plan is being developed because so much has changed in

recent months including Covid, Brexit and climate change. We need to review and reset our

priorities. The evolving plan will consolidate the Economic Strategy, Local Industrial Strategy

and Restart documents.

It should offer potential for Norfolk and Suffolk at both county and district levels plus

continue to support our 3 strategic opportunities. Skills is integral to this.

Engagement is taking place throughout September, drafting in October and sharing back to

the SAP and others in November.

SP reminded members of some of the key data around skills and employment. He shared

some of the predictions around company failures increasing and thus a further spike in

unemployment. Currently unemployment is not as high as was originally predicted but

government support is likely to be masking the reality.

GVA in Norfolk and Suffolk continues to be a long way below both the UK and regional

averages. There are also far fewer people gaining level 4+ qualifications than the national

average. However, there is still not a high demand for level 4 jobs so the increase needs to

go hand in hand. STEM is also in demand.

Since 2020, the allocation of National Insurance numbers for people from abroad has

dropped significantly.

The posting of green jobs has increased rapidly and wages are rising.

LR explained that there would be a data report underlying the Renewal Plan so evidence will

be widely available for partners. This would be useful for future planning and funding bids.

ACTION: ES to look at tracking GVA/Productivity against different regions historically and if

there are any change in job titles to reflect the new green economy.

Item 3: Workshops – Review of objectives

SAP members were split in 3 and reviewed the insights & trends, opportunities, challenges,

aims and actions for each objective. (Notes from each group circulated with minutes).

Item 4: Next Steps

CC expressed the need for us to address the gaps caused by Covid.

ACTION: Skills team to look at how we can drive forward the SAP meetings in the light of the

discussions and will bring to the November meeting.

Item 5: 5% Club

JN introduced SAP members to the 5% club which have the ethos of creating shared

prosperity for learning and earning. They are keen to regionalise their offer and would like

this to happen in Norfolk and Suffolk. This will involve a £500 membership fee and in return

there will be a more thorough auditing and reporting process, benchmarking businesses

against peers.

RB is talking to employers about sponsoring a local offer. YM is researching what local

businesses already working with the 5% club and mapping these again the NCC/ECC Youth

Pledge ESF projects.

There was some discussion around additional bureaucracy, added value and potential impact

on the existing Youth Pledge ESF projects (+ve & -ve).

ACTION: RB & RBa to look to produce a case study for promotion.

Item 6: AOB

RBa alerted members to the series of Clean Growth podcasts that the LEP had produced and

our 10 year birthday celebration video.

Next meeting: November 18th from 10am.