Developing the Industrial Strategy creates a need for government focus on skills

Sustainable growth is the primary aim of the government’s planned publication of a new Industrial Strategy in the spring and is set to run in tandem with launch of a 10-year Infrastructure Strategy. Critical to achieving the ambitions of both documents will be having access to enough people with the right skills to deliver the work – and that is not simply a tap that can be turned on.

The need for more engineers is not new and research by EngineeringUK shows that demand for engineers is predicted to grow faster than for other occupations, so the situation is likely to get more challenging.

The issues around skills were one of the major barriers to growth we identified in Mott MacDonald’s submission to the government about the planned Industrial Strategy. In that we highlighted the declining numbers of graduates in relevant disciplines such as engineering but the lack of skills exists at all levels.

Since coming to power in July, the government has made some welcome announcements around skills, including the establishment of Skills England, reform of the Apprenticeships Levy and merging Job Centre Plus and the National Careers Service. We also support the idea of devolving responsibility for skills to the regions.

However, given the scale of the need right across the economy, what is proposed may not go far enough.

As a business we can work with universities to develop courses that create people with the right skills set and play our part in promoting career opportunities to school age children. But this takes time and there is a real need for government to take a long-term view, understand the timescale involved, the role it plays in creating confidence in the pipelines of work and promoting the opportunities.

Ensuring we have the people who are vital to decarbonising the energy sector, meeting housing targets and upgrading our transport and digital infrastructure requires a step-change in approach, in two ways. First, the UK needs to deliver hundreds of thousands of people with the right skills and positive attitude into the workforce each year. Second, policy needs to be developed in a way that prevents industries cannibalising one another’s staff.

In particular, we would argue that the government needs to:

• Establish a cross-departmental team headed by a senior minister that will consider the long-term infrastructure needs of the country and predict the skills that will be required to deliver. It will then need to look at the state of recruitment, employment and skills development across all sectors and develop policies to support the labour market on a pan-economy basis
• Review the national curriculum at all levels to ensure that school pupils are encouraged not only to embrace STEM subjects but also understand that jobs in engineering, construction, manufacturing and other areas are enriching and lead to successful careers
• Commission a multi-year marketing plan with industry to promote jobs in these sectors
• Harness the network of training centres, programmes and collaborations with education providers that companies already support.

Employers, particularly in the growth-driving sectors, are already investing significant sums in developing skills. Therefore, the issue is not primarily the amount being spent but the efficacy of that expenditure. To improve the situation, as a business we would urge government to help employers exchange and adopt best practice, as well as facilitate the recognition of skills and experience developed in one company or sector when they move into other areas via more portable qualifications.

The Industrial Strategy will struggle to succeed without improved digital and transport connectivity, better grid connections and a reliable, affordable and sustainable generation mix and a host of other investments in the national fabric. These investments must include educational facilities. If people cannot be educated and trained, if they cannot get to work or collaborate and if the economy does not have access to stable energy supplies, then productivity will stagnate and businesses will fail. Infrastructure is critical but skills are critical to its delivery too.

In a very direct sense, more can be done to overcome barriers to training and development of employees and others. For example, connectivity via public transport to education settings and access to high-speed broadband are both important determinants of whether individuals can take up and complete courses. We would urge councils, combined authorities and central government to keep these practical points in mind as they develop skills policies.

Success of the Infrastructure Strategy hinges on a multifaceted approach that addresses the skills gap across all levels of the workforce. It is imperative that the government, industry and educational institutions collaborate to create a sustainable pipeline of talent. This will not only support the immediate needs of the infrastructure sector and the wider economy but also position the UK for long-term growth and innovation. 

Richard Risdon has also written a thought leadership article on the need to select and support the right sectors within the Industrial Strategy for New Civil Engineer magazine.