An action plan to arm a new generation of Islanders with the skills needed to drive the industries of tomorrow looks set to be agreed by the Isle of Wight Council next week.
The Isle of Wight Skills Plan sets out a clear roadmap for equipping people with the skills they need to support economic growth across the Island in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Framework for employers and educators
The plan will provide a framework for local employers and educators to help make sure training and education are matched to the skills demands of local industries and sectors.
A Cabinet report to go before councillors next Thursday (16th December) also recommends setting up a ‘skills board’, including representation from key stakeholders, to oversee the plan and ensure a coordinated approach.
Jones-Evans: Series of priorities and actions to help grow the skills base
Cllr Julie Jones-Evans, Cabinet member for regeneration, said the future for a prosperous Island was dependent on people having the relevant skills to both encourage inward investment and enable local businesses to thrive.
She said,
“Our Regeneration Strategy sets out our ambition to make the Island a great place to grow up, live, work and visit and central to this is the need to ensure we have the skills and education available to meet the current and future skills needs of all sectors.
“This means working together with employers and educators to help them to identify and address some of the key challenges that stand in the way of this ambition.
“The Isle of Wight Skills Plan suggests a series of priorities and actions to help grow the skills base of the Island, give young people high quality career opportunities and help adults to train and upskill throughout their working lives. Raising the median wage on the Island is a key priority.”
Care and hospitality crisis
Against a backdrop of increased youth unemployment due to Covid and a high demand for staff in key sectors such as care and hospitality, the report recognises the importance of addressing the skills mismatch across the jobs market.
There are already many successful programmes operating across the Island to promote skills and employability and to support vulnerable young people and adults at risk of social and economic exclusion, and these are also highlighted in the report.
Andre: Avoiding risk of duplication and gaps in provision
Cllr Debbie Andre, Cabinet member for education and lifelong skills, said the council had a key role to play in working as an intermediary between education providers in the public and private sectors and Island businesses.
She said,
“We identified a need to draw up a skills plan that accurately brought together the range of organisations engaged and active in this area to avoid the risk of duplication and gaps in provision and to match the demand for the particular skillsets needed. In establishing a ‘skills board’, we will create a strong mechanism in order to achieve this.
“In addition, the plan seeks to ensure we have the skills in our workforce not only to meet the challenges of our traditionally important sectors such as tourism, hospitality and care, but also to provide the foundation for new opportunities in the growing green economy and high value businesses such as information technology and the knowledge economy in general.”
Read the Cabinet report in full on the IWC Website.
News shared by Isle of Wight council press office, in their own words. Ed
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