City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development / Skills & Equality / Skills & Equality

Has the development of information technology produced any negative outcomes for skills?

Taiye Aro — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 13:57:01 GMT

Has the development of information technology produced any negative outcomes for skills?

Does globalisation and competition unfairly disadvantage developing countries?

Taiye Aro — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 13:35:16 GMT

Does globalisation and competition unfairly disadvantage developing countries?

Should practitioners develop qualifications?

Taiye Aro — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 11:31:26 GMT

Do you think involving practitioners in the development of qualification will increase their appeal to employers and learners?

Yes
No

Traditional vocational qualifications vs 14-19 diplomas

Taiye Aro — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 10:55:38 GMT

Do you think traditional vocational qualification should remain an option alongside the new 14-19 diplomas & apprenticeships?

Practice vs Policy

Taiye Aro — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 09:53:36 GMT

Should practitioners be involved in the development of policy at a local, regional and national level?

Yes
No
Don't know

Inequality and the credit crunch: ameliorating the effects through skills development

Matilda Gosling — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 10:19:43 GMT

[font="Arial"][size="3"]Inequality and the credit crunch: ameliorating the effects through skills development by Matilda Gosling

Income inequality is a scourge of our times, and a policy issue that is relevant both to the developed and the developing world. Despite a strong logical case for a link between income inequality and uneven skills development, little thinking has been developed in this area – which is why CSD has focused on the issue. Our research shows a strong association, and that a better balance between the supply of skills and the demand for them can help to address the internationally important issue of income inequality.

But why is inequality a problem? Some have argued that inequality creates incentives for individuals to invest in education; if, as low-skilled workers or students, people can see that the most highly trained individuals are earning excellent money, it gives them a reason to spend time and money on skills improvement.

It has also been shown, however, that inequality affects access to education – richer people can get high quality education more easily, which compounds the problem. Inequality is also linked to higher poverty, economic insecurity and rising levels of crime.

The root causes of inequality are manifold, but there is a strong argument to be made in favour of the link between inequality and the supply and demand of skills. When there are insufficient people qualified to a particular level to meet employer demand, there are lots of vacancies and few people to fill them. Employers therefore pay more to recruit and retain staff. At the other extreme, when there are significantly more people qualified to a particular level than employers need, there are too many people for the jobs available, leading to falling salaries and high unemployment.

The ideal scenario is somewhere in between; for each given skills level, the right number of people are qualified and in the workforce to meet employer demand. This results in low income inequality (because the peaks and troughs in salary that are associated with imbalances in supply no longer exist), and also in a balance between high employment levels (good for workers) and low vacancies (good for employers).

An imagined scenario demonstrating how this works for level 2 chef qualifications can be seen in the diagram attached below.

At times of threatened global recession, the need to balance the supply and demand of skills becomes even more important. Many people are made unemployed, usually from industries in which an individual’s skills base will need updating in order to find employment elsewhere. Reskilling is as important as upskilling during these times. People at risk of unemployment need the skills to be able to move away from sectors where there are too many individuals for the numbers of jobs available, towards sectors that are expanding even in times of global turmoil, such as green energy.

Governments and businesses have a tendency to tighten the purse strings for training when there are other economic demands at play. We believe that the opposite needs to be the case to ensure long-term economic and social prosperity.

For further information, as well as references for the points made above, please see CSD’s [url=http://www.skillsdevelopment.org/PDF/CSD%20Working%20Paper%20No.1%20-%20Skills%20&%20Income%20Inequality%20MG.pdf][color="#0000FF"]Working Paper No.1, A Better Balance between the Supply and Demand of Skills: Addressing Income Inequality in China and India[/color][/url][/size][/font]

Liberal Democrat Party Conference Roundtable

Chris Gale — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 09:58:12 GMT

At the Liberal Democrats' party conference on the 16th September, The City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development hosted a round table discussion, entitled ‘Upskilling communities: vocational education, social exclusion and the local agenda’.

With the UK facing recession, and with economies around the world feeling the impact of the credit crunch and global economic downturn, skills are becoming increasingly important as a means of driving competitiveness and productivity. The Centre for Skills Development, however, believes that vocational education has a wider value: it has the power to engage people in their communities, boost their self-esteem and life chances, and give them skills that they can put to use for social as well as economic benefit. By focusing on skills development, we have the chance to improve quality of life and strengthen our communities, both at home and overseas.

Recently, the direction of the UK’s skills policy has shifted back towards empowerment at the local level, with plans to shift responsibility for vocational education to local authorities. With an urgent need to ensure that the training being provided in the UK matches the needs of the labour market and therefore leads to good jobs, local government is best placed to ensure that training provision fits with the local economic picture. Local authorities may also have best insight into specific issues affecting the success of vocational education programmes within their communities. Is this enough to harness the power of vocational education to improve the prospects of people in our most marginalised communities?

During the debate we explored the following questions in detail:

•How can we ensure that the training on offer meets the needs of learners, to attract them to enter and remain in training?
•How can we better involve local employers to ensure that training leads to good jobs? What is the role of the Sector Skills Councils and Regional Development Agencies in this regard?
•How can we engage adults in learning, particularly those who left school with few or no qualifications?
•How best can we use modern technology, as well as more traditional resources?
•How can innovative community initiatives be supported?

[b]We are now inviting other stakeholders to participate in the debate on this forum, ahead of the release of a report from the roundtable event.[/b]

Labour Party Conference Roundtable

Chris Gale — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 09:56:48 GMT

At the Labour Party Conference, on 23rd September, The City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development hosted a round table discussion, entitled ‘Re-engaging the disengaged: vocational education as a path out of social exclusion’.

The Centre for Skills Development believes that vocational education has a wider value than simply helping to build financial prosperity: it has the power to engage people in their communities, boost their self-esteem and life chances, and give them skills that they can put to use for social as well as economic benefits.

The debate focused around the following questions:

• How can disengaged members of our society be reached and brought back into training? How best can we use modern technology, as well as more traditional resources, to deliver training?
• How should Information, Advice and Guidance best be structured so as to offer a comprehensive service that meets users’ needs?
• How can Government best support varying groups and individuals who are taking the initiative for innovative schemes at community level across the country?
• Can Train to Gain by itself improve workplace-based training? Are there other ways of engaging employers? What is the role of the trade union movement?
• How can the UK deliver on social justice for all through better vocational education and training?

The event stimulated discussion around the following key areas that are testing all stakeholders engaged in skills development: the role vocational education and training can play in social improvement agendas, including the potential impact on crime and national health figures; how the UK can stay ahead of its international competitors through improved skills training; and, if targets around social and economic improvement are to be met, how perceptions of vocational education and training need to change so that it is no longer viewed as learning for the least academically able.

[b]We are now inviting other stakeholders to participate in the debate on this forum, ahead of the release of a report from the roundtable event.[/b]

Changing the UK's approach to closing the gap between rich and poor

Admin — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 16:52:52 GMT

Recent data published by The Institute of Fiscal Studies indicates that the gap between the richest and poorest families in the UK is widening, and that 100,000 more children are now living below the Governments poverty threshold. Does the UK need to change its approach to closing the gap? Could a newer, holistic approach to skills development be the answer?

On the 18th June, the City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development called on all political parties to consider the following proposals underpinned by OECD data:

- Greater freedom for colleges to respond to local demand for skills training.

- Financial incentives to form social partnerships between employers, training providers, unions and community groups that can help to articulate local needs.

- Greater flexibility of funding to allow for people to train at different levels according to local employer needs.

- Social support mechanisms for further education on a par with those available to higher education to encourage individuals to upskill or reskill.

- Research and development initiatives to enable development of skills forecasting techniques.

Where do you stand? Join the debate and give us your views.