New research reveals dip in N/SVQ registrations in Q3 2011
21/12/2011 Enginuity
- Semta urges employers to invest in skills in 2012 -Semta, the Sector Skills Council for science, engineering and manufacturing technologies, has today released new figures on the number of National/Scottish Vocational Qualification (N/SVQ) registrations in the third quarter (1st July - 30th September) of 2011. The data shows a 2 per cent decline in the number of N/SVQ registrations compared to the same period last year from 14,182 to 13,933.
But with Semta data showing businesses in its sectors need to upskill 363,000 of the current technical workforce and to recruit and train 96,300 engineers, scientists and technologists by 2016, the Sector Skills Council is urging employers to invest in training in the year ahead. The biggest decline was in Level 3 registrations which fell 9% from 3,098 to 2,874.
Philip Whiteman, chief executive of Semta, said: "It's vital that businesses understand the importance of upskilling to grow and compete on a global level in 2012 and we would encourage all businesses in our sectors to review their training plans for the year ahead.
"Higher level training is important to ensure we have the right future talent in key growth sectors such as engineering and manufacturing - a fact that is well understood by the government. Semta plans to help sector employers take advantage of the government's newly announced £250 million fund for businesses to design, develop and purchase so we urge employers to get in touch and use Semta's expertise to get a real return on training investment."
Semta recently secured £5 million of UK Commission for Employment and Skills Investment to support three work streams which will develop high impact skills and sustainable solutions for sector companies.
The three work streams will focus on supply chain companies and SMEs to increase and improve their investment in existing workforce skills and new talent through the recruitment of apprentices and graduates.
Semta has also teamed up with leading employers and the National Apprenticeship Service to launch the Apprenticeship Ambition - a plan designed to take the number of advanced and higher level apprenticeship registrations from 8,000 to 16,000 by 2016 by tackling the barriers to apprenticeship uptake.
As part of the plan, Semta now offers an Apprenticeship Service helping to manage the total process of training an apprentice, from recruitment, to training plan development, funding and training provider sourcing.
To find out more about the Apprenticeship Service, or to ask about training funding and support options, visit www.semta.org.uk or contact Semta Customer Services on 0845 643 9001, email customerservices@semta.org.uk .
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