31st January 2007

 

David Lloyd

Education and Skills Select Committee
House of Commons
7 Millbank
London  SW1P 3JA

 

 

Dear Sir,

 

Written Evidence to The House of Commons Education and Skills Committee

 

We welcome the opportunity to contribute to the Education and Skills Committee inquiry into skills.

 

Remploy's evidence is focused around post sixteen skills training, the sustainable employability needs of disabled and multiple disadvantaged people in this group and the skill requirements of employers.

 

Remploy is the leading specialist employment services group that focuses on enabling disabled people to maximise their potential through gaining and retaining sustainable employment. We enable individuals to maximise their transferable skills, helping them be more employable and to find sustainable employment with mainstream employers. Last year we helped over 4,300 disabled people and individuals with a long term health condition, to obtain new jobs.

 

We look forward to further discussion in this area.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Bob Warner

Chief Executive

Remploy Ltd

Siskin Drive

Coventry

CV3 4FJ
Post-16 Skills Training

 

National Policy/Issues

Are the Government's priorities for skills broadly correct - for example, the focus on first 'level 2' qualifications?

Need for Level 1 Qualifications

The priorities are correct in broad terms, though we are concerned by the focus on all routes leading to a Level 2 or Level 3 qualification. Over 40% of disabled people aged 19 lack a level 2 qualification, compared with 23% of non-disabled 19 year olds and nearly 50% of disabled people have no qualifications at all. For many learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (LLDD), achievement of a Level 2 qualification may be beyond their capabilities, though employment is a realistic outcome.

 

It is estimated that 45% of LLDD learners are participating in a programme at Level 1 or below. If this provision was focused on achieving employment supported by on-going work-based learning provision as a recognised outcome rather than future progression to a Level 2 qualification, more employment outcomes could be achieved.

 

For many learners currently at level 1 or below, they are already near to or at their maximum potential.

Recognition of outcomes that are directly linked to employability or independent living, perhaps currently delivered via non-accredited learning, would encourage fresh and creative approaches to learning for this community of learners.

 

The Department for Education and Skills proposal on The Foundation Learning Tier (FLT) are welcome and should meet the needs of significant numbers of people with learning and other disabilities, whose capacity may not lead them to Level 2 and above, and this must be clearly articulated. Within the FLT, we strongly advocate moving forward quickly with the development of sector-specific Validated Progression Pathways as a meaningful and focussed way of linking learning into employment. We strongly urge that in the development of Foundation Learning Tier, the DfES considers input from "expert" supported employment agencies, such as Remploy, be sought in order to properly represent the employability skills needs by employers for learners at this level..

 

We are concerned that many disabled people acquire those disabilities later in life. There are substantial numbers of disabled people, on Incapacity Benefit who may have a level 2 qualifications, as their impairment, or health condition excludes them from certain types of work. Many of these individuals need re-training in order to return to work, or seek redeployment. This group is in most need of funded learning, but are excluded due to past experience. We call for a review of the definition of priority learners to take such issues into account in order to address the issue of worklessness.

How do other targets, such as the '50% into HE' fit with the wider skills agenda?

Access to education for disabled learners

Access to education for many disabled learners is an issue, either due to personal circumstances - often lacking the confidence to move into further, or higher education; or environmental circumstances, with inaccessible college buildings, or local transport preventing disabled people taking part in the learning process.

 

Once in further education adults with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (LLDD learners) often do not progress into either Higher Education or employment. This may be through gaps in their education, where circumstances meant access to learning was denied at an earlier stage, or 'The revolving door', where many LLDD learners re-register year after year to take up courses, rather than making the transition to higher education or employment.

 

Both FE and HE targets must take account of the skills needed by the labour market, since the links between skills and employment must be strengthened in order to address the issues facing the UK labour market. There is little benefit in equipping learners with skills or qualifications that will not enhance their sustainable employability, accepting there is a need for supporting independent living and recreational learning. Job outcomes need to be considered as a core learner outcome.

 

Access To HE For Disabled People

At all levels of education disabled learners are less likely to make the transition into paid employment. Information produced by the Disability Rights Commission, demonstrate that as disabled learners progress upwards through levels of qualification, the differential transition rates between disabled and non-disabled learners is reduced. The reality, is only 7% of graduates who complete HE courses in 2004 actually declared some kind of disability. Given 20% of the population are estimated to have a disability; it is of concern that such a low proportion of graduates are disabled. It is critical that more disabled people are provided with the opportunity to access Higher Education.

 

What is the extent of joined-up working between Government departments, particularly, the DfES and the Department for Work and Pensions?

Agencies and Government departments often pull in different directions. Disabled young people may have to liaise with agencies accountable to the DfES and DWP, whilst linking to support services from the Health & Social Services. Collectively, this adds up to a wealth of support, though is disconnected and at times conflicting.

 

There is still a much greater need for DfES, DWP and their respective agencies to work together.

 

To illustrate this point we would like to focus on the issue of transition into education from employment.

LSC seems to focus on qualifications, whilst Jobcentre Plus concentrates on short term job outcomes. This needs to change and a focus put on building sustainable employability, which requires a different approach to funding and a move away from potential silos.

 

Support during transition, either from compulsory education, or FE / HE colleges needs improving, given transitions are critical periods. It is a point when many young people are vulnerable and may fall out of the system, particularly when moving from education into employment. Disabled people are vulnerable at these points of transition. The system does not connect adequately between sixth forms, colleges, Universities, employment and work-based learning. Too many silos exist and no single organisation exists to provide such support for LLDD learners and young people with disabilities.

 

We would strongly advocate the FE and HS system be supported by a single specialist brokering service which links directly to supported employment to provide inclusive and integrated employment solutions for individuals. Such a model is illustrated in the diagram. We believe this service would not only support more transition into employment for LLDD learners, but would deliver substantial year-on-year costs savings on budgets as LLDD learners are progressed from high-cost learning support to a low-cost but highly effective model (The LSC has announced that the LLDD population currently costs around £1.5Bn annually to support).

 

 

Supply Side

Does the LSC need to be the subject of further reform?

Reform needs to continue, along the lines mentioned in our response to 'joined-up working between Government departments,' with more flexibility in the system to allow the development of innovative programmes and the recognition that job outcomes are of equal importance to achievement of qualifications. This approach may blur the funding lines between the LSC and Jobcentre Plus, but it is incumbent upon both to ensure this learner population is not marginalised. The precedent for the LSC to recognise Job Entry as a recognised outcome is already set within the 'Entry 2 Employment' programme and we would like this extended.

 

We are very much in support of the direction of travel announced by the LSC in the recent strategy for LLDD learners -"Learning for Living and Work". We would like to see this strategy implemented more quickly.

Do we need to consider any further structural reforms in terms of which institutions provide what kind of learning?

Greater consideration must be given to the access needs of disabled people and disadvantaged groups, many of whom either feel excluded from the learning process, or trapped unable to progress to sustainable employment.

 

Structural reform is needed to bring Government agencies and providers closer together to continue the learner progression that is critical to LSC strategy. We believe there are real and tangible links between job vacancies and LLDD learners.

 

Remploys specialist disability brokering service is designed to centre on the candidate at every stage of their learning journey, providing a seamless service of support, provision and opportunity and that will take the LLDD learner into the workplace. Remploy facilitates the bringing together of services and agencies, within an employer-led context, with the focus on supporting more disabled people in the transition from education into sustained employment.

 

 

Demand side - Employers

What should a 'demand-led' system really look like?

Learning providers need to analyse the employment market and work back, identifying the skills gaps in local businesses and develop learning opportunities that enable disabled people to develop the skills required for sustainable employability in the labour market. This is the best way to meet the needs of the individual disabled candidate as it increases the chances of a successful employment outcome that utilises the individual's skills and abilities.

 

Remploy works in partnership with over 3,000 businesses at a local and national level and has developed a modular vocational skills development programme. The programme enables disabled candidates to build local, sector specific knowledge and fundamental work skills to improve their employability and increase their chance of gaining local employment. The work with disabled candidates is supported by local employers, who often provide input and encourage candidates to apply for positions at the end of the programme.

 

Local employers keep Remploy informed of their skills requirements, which enable us to modify, or tailor programmes to meet local needs.

Demand side - Learners

What is the typical experience of someone looking for skills training?

The needs and aspirations of many disabled learners are not being met as their education does not lead to employment, or advancement to higher education, rather a continual recycling on different courses, with no strategy, plan or goal.

What information, advice and guidance is available to potential learners?

There appear to be few organisations with the skills and experience to suitably represent and advise on local labour market opportunities for disabled learners, provide advice on which provision best meets the learner's individual needs, and then facilitate the individual's transition either into learning or beyond, with suitable referral to specialist agencies.

 

Unless a provider specialises in this area, they will struggle to give expert advice. Remploy's proposition for a specialist brokering service that delivers inclusion solutions would respond to each of these areas of concern. At all times, the service would be seeking to maximise local partnerships and balance representation of the employer with the individual needs of the learner.

 

In recent Remploy market research disabled people were asked about a brokerage concept - working with people with a disability, or health condition, learning providers, and employers to ensure learning leads to real job opportunities, 86% responded that they thought the idea was either a "good" or "very good" idea.