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Manufacturing Forum

The Manufacturing Forum was established at the end of 2004 with an initial two year term. Its remit is to ensure the effective evolution of the Government’s Manufacturing Strategy (published 2002), and its Action Plan (published 2004) that set out the main actions over the next two years for Government, Industry, trade unions, Regional Development Agencies and others to support the UK manufacturing sector.

The Forum is chaired by Stephen Timms and the membership is made up of senior figures from industry, business representative organisations (such as the CBI and EEF), trade unions, academia, RDAs, and Government departments including HMT and DfES.

In its initial two year term the Forum has:

• Driven forward the proposal and development of a National Manufacturing Skills Academy, as part of DfES’s programme to establish a framework of sector skills academies;

• Investigated UK manufacturing’s investment performance, including underlying trends and possible barriers and constraints.

• Undertaken research on the potential benefits for the manufacturing sector of social clauses in public procurement contracts. Social clauses in public contracts prioritise social needs in the procurement process – for instance, the need to train, provide training, or to give jobs to the long-term unemployed in the local community.

• Taken forward a research project on gaining a better understanding of modern manufacturing.

Key Contact

Stuart Barthropp

Telephone: 0207 215 1898

E-mail: stuart.barthropp@berr.gsi.gov.uk