New Report Celebrates a Year of Progress and Major Changes in the South Yorkshire Skills System

Significant headway has been made over the past year when it comes to tackling South Yorkshire’s pressing skills challenges, according to a new, detailed report on the subject.

Taking stock of the most notable developments from the past twelve months, the South Yorkshire LSIP Progress Report assesses how far our region has come since the publishing of its Local Skills Improvement Plan in August 2023, and also considers what interventions should be prioritised next.

For context, South Yorkshire was one of 38 areas across the country to produce an LSIP last year. Funded by the Department for Education (DfE) — and informed by extensive consultation with businesses, colleges, private training providers and various other stakeholders —each of these documents explored how productivity levels could be bolstered within the region in question, and made a series of practical recommendations for partners to follow.

Specifically, the plans focussed on identifying any improvements that could be made to the relevant skills system, to help it better meet the needs of local businesses and to equip residents with the expertise that is most coveted by employers. For example, the South Yorkshire LSIP looked at what more could be done to nurture a tech-savvy workforce in the region, by placing an emphasis on digital skills provision.

With twelve months having now elapsed—  and a lot of great activity taking place in that timespan— it is safe to say that South Yorkshire has come a long way since its LSIP was published, and many of the associated recommendations have already been brought to life. Which is why a new report has just been released: summarising all of the progress to date; highlighting the biggest achievements from the past year; giving an update on all work that is currently ongoing; and outlining some emerging priorities for the future of the LSIP project.

Reflecting on this, the respective Chief Execs for the Doncaster, Sheffield and Barnsley & Rotherham Chambers of Commerce (who led the LSIP’s development) issued the following joint statement:

“It is incredibly heartening to see just how much has been accomplished over the past year as we have moved from the insight-gathering stage of the project into real, tangible delivery. From our perspective we have been very busy trying to get the ball rolling with a number of interventions that we think will make a big impact in the region, but we are pleased that our partners have taken the recommendations to heart as well; spearheading some big changes of their own.  

“As detailed in the progress report, notable milestones to date include the introduction of Knowledge and Skills Exchange Sessions — bimonthly teach-ins, run by the Chambers, that are designed to give business advisors a comprehensive understanding of our skills ecosystem— an ambitious new South Yorkshire Skills Strategy — that is itself closely aligned with the LSIP — and the enormously successful South Yorkshire Apprenticeship Hub — a freely available service that was pitched in our plan and is now helping businesses access promising talent on their doorstep.

 “Meanwhile, we are pleased to reveal that a number of exciting developments are currently in the pipeline relating to things like: improving digital literacy across our region; addressing longstanding trainer shortages; and equipping middle managers with the skills they need to do their jobs more effectively.  Work is well underway in regards to each of these and we cannot wait to see the benefits they will yield for South Yorkshire, its business communities and its residents once they are fully realised

“Finally, the report also gives an exciting indication of where we might be heading next. Suggested priorities that are high up on the list include: creating better pathways for veterans, ex-offenders, older workers and others who are further from the labour market; extending career advice services; and improving work readiness. Suffice it to say, we are eager for the region to get tackling these and are hopeful that we will be able to sustain the momentum that has gotten us this far.”

Reacting to the findings of the progress report (as well as those for the other LSIPs around the country), The Rt Hon Baroness Smith of Malvern, Minister of State for Skills, added: “I welcome the publication of the Local Skills Improvement Plan Progress Report for South Yorkshire.

“These reports set out progress made on meeting the skills needs of local employers. As well as being a valuable source of information for local skills deliverers, employers and stakeholders, the reports along with the LSIPs themselves, will provide important intelligence for the newly established Skills England.”

The South Yorkshire Local Skills Improvement Plan Progress Report can be read here. Meanwhile, for more information about the various facets of the LSIP project itself — and the ongoing activity that is taking place right now to transform our region’s skills system —  visit the dedicated webpage.