LTE Group supports ‘Mind the Skills Gap’ day of action

With a million vacancies in the UK workforce, LTE Group backs national campaign to properly fund further education providers to deliver skills needed for economic growth.

The LTE Group is today backing a national campaign to return real-terms, per-student funding to 2010 levels to enable FE providers to deliver the high-quality technical education needed to address the UK’s skills shortages.

With nearly 1 million vacancies in the UK economy, many businesses are struggling to fill important posts reducing their ability to grow and impacting the health of the local and national economy.

The ‘Mind the Skills Gap’ day of action, organised by the Future Skills Coalition and supported by a number of organisations including the Association of Colleges and the Association of Employment and Learning Providers, aims to highlight the important role the further education sector plays in giving people the skills they need to enter these often specialised jobs. 
The campaign has outlined three priorities to tackle the 1 million vacancies currently held by UK employers: a right to lifelong learning; fair, accessible and effective funding; and a national strategy to support local, inclusive growth.

The campaign’s call for increased funding for the further education sector comes ahead of the Chancellor’s Spring Budget and as college funding levels remain below what they were in 2010 in real terms, according to figures from the Institute for Fiscal Studies. Funding cuts mean spending per 16-18 student in 2024-25 will be around 5% lower than 2010-11 levels; for adult students, the funding rate stands 22% below 2009–10 levels.  

Commenting on the LTE Group’s support for the campaign, Chief Executive John Thornhill said: “From technical education to apprenticeships and from prison education to online professional development, LTE Group works with people of all backgrounds, many of whom are the furthest away from the labour market, to help them develop the skills that will connect them with economic opportunity.

"The need for what we do has never been greater: over three-quarters of employers say skills shortages are causing reduced output, profitability or growth. Further education providers are the key to addressing these shortages, and work closely with employers to meet the needs of regional economies.

"However post-16 education funding is way behind what is needed to boost economic growth. Investment in skills gives instant and long-term returns through higher productivity. We are ready and willing to play our part in driving national and regional economic growth.”

The LTE Group was represented at a campaign event in Parliament on Wednesday (1 March) which was attended by education and training leaders as well as MPs and peers.

More details on the day of action can be found here on the AoC website.