UKCES

The UK Commission has been charged by government to assess the progress that is being made towards integrating employment and skills systems in Great Britain. The scope we have been given is to 'focus on integrating employment and skills systems in Great Britain, including higher education'.

The Review will look at the whole of the publicly funded employment and skills system, including higher education and considers employers looking to access a pool of skilled workforce, job seekers, those entering the labour market and those who have been in employment for many years but have not had the opportunity to develop their skills and progress within the workplace.

The document detailing the Framework for the 2010 Review and its application was published on the 16^th February 2010 and is available here.

We have launched a dedicated 2010 Review micro site

Background to the Review

In July and August 2009, we worked collaboratively with our co-sponsors and key stakeholders to agree the review approach and the headline success criteria for what a successfully integrated employment and skills system is: which is one that:

• is ambitious in its aspirations for employers and individuals as customers
• has aligned goals, behaviours and resources
• is agile to respond to the needs of individuals, communities and employers 
• is accountable to its users as customers
• is an affordable one over the full economic cycle.

With these criteria and broad approach as boundaries, in November and December 2009 we worked with policy-makers, providers, employers and individuals as well as other key regional and local bodies, through facilitated working sessions in areas across England, Scotland and Wales. During these sessions we:

• Created a baseline of activity on integration, including key enablers and barriers
• Further developed the framework against which progress towards integration will be assessed during the actual Review
• Generated ideas for the design of the 2010 Review process
• Stimulated an interest among attendees to participate in the actual Review in early 2010.

To advise on key issues that arise during the course of phase two of the 2010 Review, we established a Project Steering group. The Steering group was made up of representatives from key government departments and agencies across Great Britain, the organisations serving as co-sponsors for the five sessions and representatives from other organisations interested in the 2010 Review. The meetings were chaired by Julie Kenny CBE DL, Managing Director of Pyronix Limited and UK Commission for Employment and Skills commissioner. The Steering group was responsible for:

• Reviewing, assessing and advising on the format and structure of the five sessions, including agenda and deliverables
• Reviewing and providing feedback on the final report
• Advising and supporting the approval process for the final report
• Advising on key issues associated with phase two of the 2010 Review
• Supporting and advocating wider involvement in the 2010 Review process.

In early 2010 we published, in agreement with our co-sponsors, the final headline success criteria and framework as well as the detailed approach for collecting, assessing and reporting, click here to download the Framework for the 2010 Review. We hosted a formal launch event on 16^th February 2010. Throughout 2010, in quarterly cycles, we will work with stakeholders listed above to collaboratively collect, assess and publish evidence on progress towards integration - of the system as a whole as well as individual organisations within it. This part of the process will happen through facilitated and informal working sessions and periods of field research.

The UK Commission will serve as a catalyst, a guide and a source of support to key stakeholders. From January 2011, we will work with these key stakeholders to formally produce the final 2010 Review Report, with recommendations to government, for publication in March 2011 in line with the expectations of our grant-in-aid letter for 09/10.

For further information about this project please contact a member of the project team: Alison Richardson, Davina Gray, Thomas Bale or Woubi Assefa.