Education

Skills the new paradigm

Othman — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 10:55:37 +0000

On the 21st of June 2021, I wrote my editorial “will we face redundancies or resignations” which you can read here: https://biz4biz.org/will-we-face-redundancies-or-resignations-with-the-removal-of-furlough/

Since this article, much of what I predicted has come to pass and as expected a major recession is now on the horizon with inflation exceeding the official level of 11 per cent and is probably closer to 20 per cent in the real world.

We have all heard about the energy crisis and the impact of the war in Ukraine on gas pricing. The truth is that successive governments over the past 25 years have all failed to take effective action in delivering our infrastructure for energy, believing that the long grass is the best place for any decision. Scared to consider nuclear, following Chernobyl and Fukushima melt downs and concerned about fossil fuel impact on the climate the best decision to make, was no decision at all and here we are facing the worst of all worlds in energy independency terms.

Simply announcing a desire to build eight nuclear power stations may be an excellent step in at least “a” direction. None of us want to spend our evenings sat in the dark as we did in the 1970’s or be unable to heat our homes or cook food. This is a basic need that we all have, and Governments are responsible for providing this support to the very fabric of our lives, but how?

We are reliant on either Chinese, French or American technology to build nuclear power stations and we hear that Rolls Royce might also have the technological know-how. I am sure you have an opinion on which one you would support. But here we are with various businesses experiencing major staff shortages and where is the labour coming from to build such projects?

The pandemic has forced many to consider their quality of life and the state created the right strategy in supporting businesses at the appropriate time but many older workers unhappy with the early mornings and the late evenings way of life, started to experience the importance of “time” versus “work”. Many employees embraced the home working options the pandemic provided and many now see this as the only way that their employment will be structured in the future. This as I predicted last year has placed employers under pressure to consider change and has likely encouraged manual workers who were unable to take advantage of home working to consider new careers that can.

We have in the UK a rich tapestry of different people from various backgrounds that make our society equally rich in capability and unfortunately the Blair government particularly with their mantra that everyone should go to university, has demonstrated a basic misconception that every form of employment requires someone with a degree. It’s great today to see that Universities are now offering Degree Apprenticeships which firstly mean students are freed from Student loans and secondly enables the qualifications provided to harmonise with the employer’s needs. But what about the Vocational Skills required? I have written about the unfairness of Maths and English GCSE’s preventing apprenticeships here https://biz4biz.org/is-it-schools-or-the-system-of-qualification-failing-our-children/ and I am delighted to see the announcement by the Skills Minister Alex Burghart that this has now been taken into account where he states

“We are changing English and Maths requirements for those Level 2 apprentices who start with the lowest level of prior attainment in English and Maths. People who start a L2 apprenticeship without L1 English and Maths will no longer need to automatically attempt L2 English and Maths tests to complete their apprenticeship. It will mean that thousands of L2 apprentices can focus on securing a L1 English and Maths qualification with only those who are ready to take the Level 2 tests attempting them.”

This is truly a bold step in exactly the right direction to engage more people in Apprenticeships, but what are we able to deliver in our Schools and Colleges that would make a fundamental difference to the skills base that we need, following the decisions made by workers leaving their roles, post pandemic. Personally, I believe we should start by attracting the Skilled operative that has decided to retire early and encourage them into our classrooms to help train those that are starting out. The Skilled technician still has a role in training others, and we need a scheme to attract these people into the training workplace. We already have the courses available to help them understand the teaching process, but we need incentives to capture their skills for the greater good.

We also need a very clear understanding of the actual skills required across the country where there will be a serious shortage and a clear programme of resupplying the workforce with these skills such that we do not experience a prolonged shortage. I feel that we will need to see the re-emergence of Skills Training Centres across the regions to make further inroads into these. We also require a recognition by government that the cost of provision of vocational skills is often 2 to 3 times greater than a classroom-based qualification, so that Colleges are encouraged to promote these courses and recover the cost for doing so.

We have the opportunity with Ministers willing to recognise change and we have the perfect narrative around the concept of “Levelling Up”. Now is the time to make a difference.

About the Author
Adrian Hawkins OBE was awarded his honour by the Queen in the 2021 New Years Day Honours list for his services to business. A lifetime businessman, Adrian Chairs biz4Biz a business support organisation which he founded 11 years ago to create a business network in the Home Counties. Adrian is also the Managing Director of Welding World, Chairman of the Hertfordshire LEP Skills and Employment Board and Chairman of the Stevenage Development Board. Adrian has 40 years’ experience in the world of business.

Is it Schools or the system of qualification failing our children?

Othman — Mon, 25 Oct 2021 19:28:29 +0000

It is wonderful to see a greater emphasis placed on the concept of apprenticeships once more. Engaging an employer in the final years of a child’s education has many benefits. Firstly, it provides a new “master” and a new “environment” for the student at the same time as the motivation of an income. Secondly much of the subject matter will be focused on the employment giving the whole exercise of learning a new purpose. Thirdly it has been proven that Apprenticeships create dedicated employees who often remain very loyal to their employer creating a much more stable relationship to the long-term benefit of both employer and employee.

I remember opening my first welder training studio in North Hertfordshire College in 2011 when John Hayes MP was a Skills Minister, and he kindly attended our opening ceremony. Following the speeches, I went to talk to the students who had enrolled on a Weldability Sif Welder training course and to this day I am still choked by the memory of a conversation with one particular young Student who said, “when I was at school my teacher told me that I would be nothing in the future, but I can weld, and I want to thank you mister”. I am also reminded of another person I have had the pleasure to meet during my career in the welding industry who left school with just two CSE’s, who became a high quality welder and in his 40’s became the Welding Engineer for Rolls Royce and secured a PhD in Metallurgy and now works as a University lecturer, a story that demonstrates we are all capable of learning, but not always at the same speed or therefore at the same point in our lives.

I remember my education in the 60’s and 70’s and the opportunities the school system afforded to me then. At the very beginning of the Comprehensive movement, pupils were offered the opportunity to take both CSE’s or GCE’s and both would be considered by employers as a mark of achievement in relevant subjects and often those with CSE’s went into Apprenticeships and those with GCE’s usually went on to A levels and University. Everyone achieved something.

An apprentice learning skills at college

When you recognise the national average level of achievement in English and Maths is regularly missed by about one third of our children, this presents a problem for those Students not achieving GCSE qualifications in those subjects. Why is this a problem? It is absolutely vital that a student has demonstrated competence in English and Maths to even be considered for an Apprenticeship and indeed Employers tend only to interview Students that have already achieved these qualifications, leaving the “forgotten third” seeking further education in order that they might pass a functional skills test in maths and English later. One must ask why, after 12 years schooling, all children are not securing a higher level of pass rates in these subjects and is it the schools failing the student or the system of qualification?

I am not suggesting a reduction in standards or any additional examinations, merely an improvement in opportunity. For example, a separation in the GCSE paper to include mathematics divided as follows would enable a pass mark to be achieved more frequently by separating Rudimentary Mathematics ‐ Arithmetic ‐ Geometry from say Analytical Mathematics ‐ Algebra & Algorithmic Equations – Calculus. In terms of qualifications required in English, this might be separated similarly at GCSE, the literature component is arguably too heavy, as what employers really want to assess is reading, writing and cognition skills – rather than a propensity for creative writing or an appreciation of stories.

Like many people that care about their society I care that social mobility exists and is promoted as a viable option for everyone. I genuinely believe that academic snobbery is holding back the life chances of some of our children as clearly everyone wants a chance to leave their school gates with a level of optimism about their future and we are sadly labelling young people as failures at a very influential point in their lives. I am pleased to see the prospect of higher grades in GCSE qualifications equal higher salaries during life as has been recently demonstrated, but the “forgotten third” also need to obtain gainful employment often in very important vocational careers, most of which might just require both maths and English at a very basic level. Would it be beyond the capability of the school system to consider a two-tier qualification in these two subjects that results in providing some recognition of knowledge in English and maths?

As employers see the relevance of modern-day apprenticeships once more in securing loyal employees in a restricted labour market, we need to reward vocational aptitude just as much as academic competence and I truly feel we are failing young people so sadly in this way. If this Government is truly serious about levelling up lifetime opportunities for all, it clearly must start in our Schools and recognise that this problem exists to the detriment of our society.
Career decisions need to be decided in earlier life and Employers are now expected to engage with Schools and Colleges which I applaud, so let’s not see this great opportunity go to waste.

I urge the Government to spare a thought for those that we are leaving behind and my thanks to Alex Burghart MP our new Skills Minister for taking the time to discuss this issue with me at our recent Generation Hitchin event, organised by the Hertfordshire LEP.

Students studying at university

#LevellingUp @biz4Biz @weldingworld @education

Skills can make all the difference!

Othman — Thu, 01 Jul 2021 10:32:13 +0000

In terms of long-term employment and a lifetime of success, the right skills can make all the difference!

Proud to be born in the UK’s first new town, I have had first-hand experience of witnessing what was a post war paradigm of urbanisation from scratch. A Government experiment in creating a “land fit for heroes” and providing opportunity and homes to those willing to relocate, Stevenage will reach the grand old age of 75 years in 2022 and will still be upright and bright despite her age and attitude, born in a different era where centralised retail and bus journeys were a joy to behold at a time of very low car and home ownership.

Following my appointment as Chairman, the Stevenage Development Board received a £37.5 million government Towns Fund grant in March 2021, from our successful bid to change the future dynamic of Stevenage which you can see here. We start in Stevenage with the real benefit of Airbus building 25% of the world’s satellites now in orbit around the world; the largest Cell and Gene therapy cluster outside of the USA; and the largest construction project outside of the channel tunnel being established by GSK.

The government has already invested £120 million in the Bioscience Park and Catapult; fully supported by the Hertfordshire LEP. In my past capacity as Deputy Chair of the Hertfordshire LEP and current Chair of the LEP’s Skills and Employment Board, I have had the real opportunity to examine the performance of the towns in Hertfordshire mapped against both Employment Opportunity and Skills Delivery, and to identify the following interesting facts:

Employment – we are very fortunate to have on the Stevenage Development Board representatives from active Stevenage-based organisations such as MBDA, AIRBUS, GSK, Stevenage Bioscience, the Cell and Gene Catapult, the Wine Society, Herts LEP, the North Herts College and University of Hertfordshire, WENTA, Consumer Advice, the Hertfordshire LEP, Stevenage Borough Council and Herts County Council – each providing, in their own way, real career opportunities and relatively high salaries. In fact, during Covid, Stevenage had the lowest furlough rate amongst Herts based employers. Residents however endure lower rates of pay than the average pay scale delivered by Stevenage employers and consequently this infers that many Stevenage residents are leaving the Town each day, joining the traffic on the A1M to venture away from Stevenage for employment. In the age of Climate change this is not beneficial to us all.

Skills – many parties included in the delivery of education and skills have mentioned that there is little aspiration amongst the residents of North Herts to develop their skills above a level 2, yet local employers are seeking skills of level 3 and above to support their organisations and are encouraging workers to travel to Stevenage from all over Hertfordshire and beyond, exacerbating air pollution and climate change issues further. The issue therefore is how do we inspire residents to see the real employment opportunities in Stevenage and engage with the plethora of top-quality STEM employers on their doorstep?

The Opportunity – Working with Airbus and their Mars Rover facility, we have been extremely fortunate in securing a £1.5 million grant from the Hertfordshire LEP to create the STEM Discovery Centre in Stevenage https://stemdiscoverycentre.co.uk and have so far entertained 14,000 school children with the delights of space technology, who have visited the centre in the three years leading up to the Covid pandemic to marvel at the Mars Rover and mock lunar surface. We now want to extend this to the advanced engineering, life sciences, cell and gene therapy sciences now actively being developed and delivered in Stevenage. We hope to encourage residents of the Town to visit this facility and encourage their children to aspire to a career in the STEM sectors locally.

With the Towns Fund allocation now agreed, we have set aside £5 million for a new STEM training facility : the “Stevenage Innovation and Technology Centre”, or SITECH, to train residents of North Herts into careers with local employers and more recently our University and FE college organisations have reached the last group stage in a bid for an Institute of Technology which will deliver qualifications at levels 3, 4 and 5 with the support of our major local, world leading organisations. With their help, we hopefully will convince Government that Hertfordshire is the right place for an Institute of Technology and win this bid to deliver an even broader range of qualifications and opportunities.

There has never been a better time to seriously consider improving your skills whatever age you are. The Covid pandemic has focussed all our minds on survival and what the future holds and it’s time to think how we can develop our prospects. The Government is set on boosting the Nations skills with a lifetime skills guarantee and whilst they have supported our homesteads with the furlough arrangements during Covid, we need to think how life might have been different if only we had been incentivised to use this time for training and development.
Add to this the opportunities that will abound post Brexit as the country changes its modus operandi to take on the supply to further countries worldwide who delight at British made goods – the products of a trusted democracy – there is a realistic chance of significantly improving your life chances and those of your family.

The world of education and skills delivery is becoming ever more interesting with the arrival of augmented reality and the availability at home of a faster range of tablets and PCs. Covid distancing has hastened the arrival and delivery of online learning by institutions, forced to find other ways to reach their students during the pandemic, which makes the world of learning and skills development more convenient without the usual availability and time constraints.

Now is the time to identify the rising stars in industry running world-class businesses close to home that can provide real career prospects in newly defined fast-growing markets and make a choice as to how your skills could develop. Alternatively, the company that currently provides your employment will have likely proven their commitment to you during the pandemic and will probably want to boost their future by investing in skills development of their own staff – so it could be a great time for that discussion with your current employer.

Remember in terms of long-term employment and a lifetime of success, the right skills can make all the difference!

#CreateMeaning @biz4Biz @weldingworld #skills #biz4biz

About the Author

Adrian Hawkins OBE was awarded his honour by the Queen in the 2021 New Years Day Honours list for his services to business. A lifetime businessman, Adrian Chairs biz4Biz a business support organisation in Herts, Beds and Bucks which he founded 10 years ago to create a business network in the Home Counties. Adrian is also the Managing Director of Welding World, Chairman of the Hertfordshire LEP Skills and Employment Board and Chairman of the Stevenage Development Board. Adrian has 40 years’ experience in the world of business.

Apprenticeship Levy – the unwelcome change

Othman — Fri, 16 Oct 2020 18:46:25 +0000

Misconceptions surrounding apprenticeships are beginning to change, albeit slowly. A 2018 survey carried out by The Sutton Trust revealed 64% of young people are more interested in undertaking an apprenticeship than studying for a degree – up 9% from four years prior. One of the leading assumptions is that apprenticeships provide lower-quality career prospects than other higher education options and it is pleasing to see this stereotype is beginning to be eradicated.

By now our readers – and the rest of the UK – are more than familiar with the growing problem of a countrywide skills and productivity gap. The engineering sector alone needs to attract an extra 186,000 skilled workers per year until 2024 in order to keep up with current demand.

The growing availability of apprenticeships is thanks, in part, to the Apprenticeship Levy, which came into effect in April 2017. The Apprenticeship Levy is a 0.5% tax on all employers with a pay bill of over £3 million, which is used to fund apprenticeship training in the UK.

It has been widely agreed that this scheme has massively impacted apprenticeships as a whole and given employers the scope to create the more expensive and higher-skilled apprenticeships that are desperately needed to fill the void in the current workforce. As a result, over 40,000 specifically skilled, experienced and qualified workers have made their way into employee starved sectors. This has provided an even more noticeable benefit in those traditionally difficult-to-fill roles where employees who study under real-world professionals end up with legitimate experience and are consequently better qualified than those trained solely in the classroom.

A Change in Apprenticeships
It therefore has come as quite a shock to learn that the Association of Employment and Learning Providers has proposed the withdrawal of levy funding for higher-level apprenticeships in favour of supporting ‘school leaver’ apprentices. While this move will hopefully succeed in helping those without GCSEs or equivalent onto the ladder, the true skills shortages are around levels 4-7: Highly skilled workers who will increase productivity and therefore high wage economy. As University Vocational Awards Council member, Adrian Anderson asks: “will the UK suffer because of fewer Level 2 business administration, customer service or retail apprentices?”

It is difficult to disagree that the AELP’s approach breaks down when applied to the public sector. We can’t expect the NHS to spend on registered nursing degree apprenticeships while contributing to levy funds that will in turn be spent on supporting the development of low level retail assistances for small private businesses – that may or may not even lead to full and long term employment.

While Ofsted argues that the focus should be on 16-18 year olds without level two qualifications, the wider ramifications of this need to be considered more carefully. In the public sector, degree apprenticeships can be used to coax more women and BAME (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnicities) through the police station doors to help the force better reflect the communities they serve – as well as advancing careers of low-level hospital workers, developing the personnel for which the NHS is desperately crying out.

If Ofsted, instead, focussed on the improvement of school standards, the AELP would not need to pick up the pieces with Level 2 apprenticeships for pupils who have been failed by the school systems.

Speech Chef – why writing a speech is like cooking a meal

Othman — Tue, 17 Mar 2020 12:51:53 +0000

On 5 March 2020 Wayne Pike and Bob Ferguson came to offer a three-course meal and explain why writing a great speech is like cooking an excellent meal.

We would like to thank everyone who came to yet another wonderful biz4Biz event at the beginning of March and hope the event was enjoyed by all, including the members who experienced this evening as part of their membership package. Cousins Wayne Pike and Bob Ferguson created an exciting night of discovery, providing food, education and entertainment!

The evening was kindly hosted by North Herts College Hitchin where the catering students lent their cooking skills to create a meal designed by Wayne Pike and Stewart Dunlop, Deputy Head of catering at the college. The students also worked front of house serving the food and drink. It was a great opportunity for them to experience a busy restaurant style service.

Wayne is the Executive Divisional Chef for Young’s Brewery. He is constantly developing food for the company’s chain of restaurants and bistros. Part of his role is to develop trainee chefs for Youngs.
Bob is a three times UK and Ireland Speech Champion who represented the UK at the World Public Speaking Championships in 2002. He is a professional speaker and a public speaking coach.

We are sure that the biz4Biz members and friends enjoyed a fun night with great food and hopefully learned some tips for planning the perfect meal and a great speech.

The takeaway

When you plan a great meal, it needs to start with an appetiser to excite the diners about what is to come. The main course must satisfy them and give them a feeling of fulfilment and yet wanting some more. The desert is the perfect way to end leaving the diner happy and contented.

A great speech is just the same

Your opening should hook the audience and tease them with what is about to come. The body should build the feeling of complete understanding and a desire to learn more. Finally, your conclusion must send them home on a hight – which we hope the evening did!