NATIONAL SKILLS ACADEMY LAYS NEW FOUNDATIONS AT PARLIAMENT LAUNCH

Phil Black - PII Editor 24/09/2009

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THE strategic alliance between Sector Skills Council to the science-based industries, Cogent SSC, and the National Skills Academy Process Industries launched a new funding stream for higher level skills at Westminster this month, supported by industrialists from the process and nuclear industries.

Hosted by Ian Stewart, MP for Eccles, the event attracted over 100 leading industrialists and sector heads who are engaged with the skills agenda.

A new £3m package of new subsidised foundation degrees will be rolled out for the chemicals, petrochemicals, polymers, bioscience and pharmaceutical sectors at universities across the UK.

Called “Working Higher” it is funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), under its Employer Engagement Fund. The project will support an Employer Champion for each part of the Sector to ensure a robust employer-led programme.

Cogent has identified higher level skills gaps across the sector in areas such as project management and innovation as well as in higher level technical skills.

Being led by the University of Hull who will host the Petrochemicals foundation degree, Manchester Metropolitan University will host the chemicals foundation degree, London Metropolitan will host the Polymers foundation degree and the University of Kent will host the Bioscience foundation degree.

The Working Higher programme aims to fill the skills gap across these vital industries. It will support people already working in sciences to develop their talents and reduce shortages of expertise in a sector where many highly experienced individuals are moving closer to retirement.

The event at the Houses of Parliament also looked into the future to predict exactly what types of employees the industries will need, especially as emerging technologies will paint a greener agenda with new skills to match.

Tom Crotty CEO of INEOS Olefins and Polymers Europe, heralded the importance of the National Skills Academy Process Industries to deliver the relevant skills products to employers through its network of training providers and links to funding streams.

“We are a highly capital intensive industry that needs the people to realise a prosperous future. At INEOS we have also had to make cutbacks in the current climate, but people development has not been one of them. You can’t stop and start apprenticeship schemes or stop maintaining graduate programmes. We must be trained and ready for growth when the upturn arrives.”

Speaking out on the need for younger people to enter the industry, he added: “We are failing our young people if we can’t persuade them of the fantastic jobs in the process industries.”

Equally, being based in Scotland, Mr Crotty spoke out of the need for the devolved assemblies outside England to support the work of the National Skills Academy Process Industries and at a wider level he appealed for further Government engagement: “We set up the Academy to be the voice of the industry and skills – now the Government needs to give the Academy some teeth.”