Why investment in skills and apprenticeships is crucial for Wales’ economic growth and long-term success
With nine in ten workers needing some form of reskilling by 2030, employers, the Welsh Government, and providers will need to work together like never before to deliver the skills vital for firms and individuals to succeed.
To address skills gaps now and in the future, the historic underfunding of the FE sector must end. Giving colleges the resources and flexibility to partner with businesses will help close skills gaps, boost people’s life chances, and make our economy more competitive.
It’s time to put apprenticeships at the heart of the economic growth strategy in Wales. To give the employer’s opinion, CBI Wales has just launched our “Business of Apprenticeships” Briefing. It’s well worth reading for anyone interested in the future of apprenticeships in Wales and the challenges and opportunities that can only be tackled if government, providers, and employers join forces. The Briefing advocates for a more responsive and employer-led Welsh apprenticeship system, highlighting the need for flexibility, modernisation, and alignment with industry needs. Key recommendations include securing long-term funding, increasing employer influence over apprenticeship frameworks, and expanding modular courses to allow for more adaptable, shorter training programmes.
The Briefing calls for improved transparency in government spending, greater consistency between UK nations to reduce complexity, and enhanced sector-specific training, particularly in STEM, green industries, and digital fields like AI. It also underscores the importance of equity and accessibility, proposing financial incentives for SMEs and targeted support for underrepresented groups. Additionally, the Briefing supports the development of sustainable career pathways and lifelong learning opportunities, ensuring apprenticeships remain a viable route for both new entrants and upskilling workers.
Funding is a fundamental issue. To ensure there’s a steady flow of talent trained with the skills they need, providers need a stable and long-term funding stream and more certainty on apprenticeship demand. At the Wales level, funding transparency would give businesses the confidence to plan.
Funding cuts threaten to hamper the great work of our Further Education sector. The business and FE sectors have been deeply concerned about funding cutbacks to the Welsh apprenticeships budget. Colegau Cymru estimates the apprenticeship programme will be cut by almost one-quarter, with the loss of EU funding post-Brexit. It suggests this could mean a drop of 10,000 places in 2024/25 on the Welsh Government’s apprenticeship programme. This damaging uncertainty is not good for apprentices or businesses.
In 2021, the Welsh Government carried out a survey to evaluate the devolved apprenticeship programme. Around 73% of employers indicated that they were satisfied with the design of the apprenticeship programmes. We can do better than this, and there are opportunities for learning from all those involved in Welsh apprenticeships. Significantly, employers found the programme had a positive impact on the overall Welsh economy, as it raised the skill levels of people with few or no skills.
Sustainable growth requires investment in our people’s skills and capabilities, alongside our infrastructure, productive capacity, openness to new ideas, and embrace of innovation. We need to ‘future-proof’ the labour market to drive inclusive growth by building a skilled, productive, and healthy workforce in Wales and across the rest of the UK.
Persistent labour and skills shortages are the most pressing issue holding back economic growth. We must support the green and digital transitions. The skills people learn on training and vocational schemes are increasingly aligned with firms looking to invest in Wales. Firms looking to relocate or set up from scratch in Wales need access to a well-funded apprenticeship scheme.
We must also ensure that people from outside our big towns and cities, who do not go on to higher education, don’t miss the opportunity to gain the qualifications and training to enter the workplace with skills.
