Memorandum 19
Submission from the Alliance Employment
& Skills Board
re " what the existing regional structures
of delivery are and what sub-regional strategies may be required".
1. SUMMARY
1.1 The Alliance Employment & Skills
Board (AESB) was established in December 2006 and covers the former
coalfields sub-region of North Derbyshire and North Nottinghamshire
areas. It has met 7 times to date. An Executive group, which was
formed in the summer of 2007, provides the delivery arm and meets
every six to eight weeks. The Board is led by a private sector
Chair and was established slightly in advance of the Leitch Review.
It was formed in the absence of any national or regional guidelines
about how Employment and Skills Boards should function. The Board
has contributed to national research by the Centre for Enterprise
into Employment and Skills Boards.
1.2 The strategic influence of the AESB
extends to the existing framework of Nottingham and Derbyshire
Local Area Agreements (LAAs) and the Local Enterprise Growth Initiative
(LEGI) covering the districts of Ashfield, Bolsover and Mansfield.
The AESB links up with adjoining City Region Strategies and neighbouring
Employment and Skills Boards including Derbyshire Employment and
Skills Board and Greater Nottingham Employment and Skills Board.
2. CONTEXT
2.1 The sub-region of North Derbyshire and
North Nottinghamshire still suffers from the legacy of coalfields
closures, with longstanding worklessness and low skills levels
prevailing in many of its communities.
2.2 However, the sub-region is slowly beginning
to benefit from the long period of continuous economic growth
that began in the mid-1990s with over 25 large scale construction
developments planned to take place over the next 5 years. These
include major developments taking place around the M1 at Markham
Vale with a purpose built Junction 29a and public investment in
hospitals, schools and housing. Sectors such as healthcare, logistics
and construction are forecast to continue to grow in the sub-region
and will require skilled people to work within them.
2.3 The sub-region is a mix of a rural economy
and urban centres, including Mansfield, Worksop, Chesterfield
and Newark. It has close functional ties with the cities of Nottingham
and Derby in the East Midlands, and Sheffield and Doncaster in
South Yorkshire. Many higher earners living in districts in the
sub-region commute to work in these urban centres.
2.4 Economic activity and employment rates
in the sub-region remain significantly below the East Midlands
regional average and unemployment rates are above the regional
average. Half of the 10 most deprived districts in the East Midlands
are in the sub-region.
2.5 The proportion of people claiming benefits
is higher in the sub-region than in the East Midlands as a whole,
particularly for benefits relating to ill health or disability..
"Hidden unemployed" is very significant in the sub-region
with health data suggesting residents have the highest proportion
of those reporting poor health and limiting long term illness.
This high incidence of health difficulties, especially among older
males, can be associated with the legacy of coal mining and other
heavy industry and high numbers of incapacity benefit claimants
make up the largest proportion of the "hidden unemployed."
[50]
2.6 Residents of the sub-region are less
likely to be qualified to Level 2 or to Level 4 than the East
Midlands average. However, the sub-region has the highest proportion
of people who have reached an NVQ Level 3. The average
earnings of individuals working in the sub-region are below the
regional average, with women earning just over half the pay of
men on average. Employment growth for the Alliance SSP
over the next decade is forecast to be below the regional average,
at 2.5% compared to 3.1%.
3. MEMBERSHIP
The Board has a private sector Chair and members
include the following public and private sector organisations:
— LCA Ltd (Frank Lord—Chair)
— Nottinghamshire Health and Social
Care Community Workforce Team
— Learning and Skills Council
— East Midlands Business Ltd
— Nottinghamshire County Council
— Derbyshire County Council
— Bolsover District Council
— Connexions Nottinghamshire
— Enable (representing the voluntary
and community sector)
— Collaborative Higher Education Alliance
(CHEA) Partnership
— Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Training
Networks
— Government Office for the East Midlands
— East Midlands Employment Skills and
Productivity Partnership (esp)
3.1 There is a good representation from
the private sector, particularly SMEs and the Board is working
with Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Chamber of Commerce to increase
employer representation.
3.2 The Executive Group is a small group
of mainly of public sector members but private sector members
are also invited and is chaired by a member of the Board
4. PRIORITIES
4.1 Current and planned activities of the
AESB have been mapped to support the esp priorities and LAA targets
through partner's strategic funding commitments. A sub regional
work plan was developed for 2007-2008 and updated for 2008-2009
which connects to the headline economic targets of partners and
their strategic objectives.
The four key priorities for the ASEB are:
Priority 1: To improve productivity of businesses
Priority 2: To raise employer demand for skills
Priority 3: To improve sub regional employment
and skills and reduce economic exclusion (using public procurement
as a lever)
Priority 4: To increase participation and attainment
amongst 14-19 year olds
5. ACTIVITIES
Since its establishment, the AESB has been involved
in a wide range of activities including:
— Development of website independent
of the sub-regional partnership but with links to the SSP and
other partners www.esballiance.co.uk. All meeting agendas, minutes
and key documents are available on the website. Within the website
a page has been developed to highlight and promote the Skills
Pledge.
— Development and publishing of a regular
e newsletter.
— Sponsorship of skills elements of
ASSP Partnership Conference November 2007. A further Employment
and Skills summit is planned for April 2008.
— Linking the Making the Connection
initiative to the work of the ESB and, through the Executive Group,
reporting progress against its targets for LEGI, SSP and LAA delivery.
— Identifying areas of duplication,
gaps in provision and opportunities for more collaborative working
through a Mapping Exercise undertaken in 2007. This information
has been uploaded onto a searchable database for partners accessed
through the website.
— Shaping of a funding specification
for capital funding to develop improved access to higher level
skills/education in the sub region.
— Working to examine skills support
in priority sectors for the sub-region, initially the Logistics
sector, including both 14—19 and skills support for the
economically excluded in the area, linking with the LSC's work
on Skills for Jobs. Further sectors for examination include Health
and Social Care, Leisure and Tourism/Hospitality and Construction.
— Briefing members on the European
Social Fund (ESF) Co-Financing Organisations processes. The Secretariat
has kept up to date with the ITT specifications of both LSC and
JCP partners. The Alliance SSP is an approved LSC supplier.
— Ongoing work to report Train to Gain
performance and impact in the sub-region.
— Canvassed and contributed to the
Centre for Enterprise commissioned research for central government
on existing/emerging Skills Boards.
6. AREAS OF
GREATEST STRATEGIC
IMPACT TO
DATE
— Making the Connection project. This
project was considered an excellent, tangible example of joined-up
delivery—the linking of jobs, skills and communities at
a practical level which has had a real impact. The AESB influenced
the activities of the LSC and Jobcentre Plus through this project
and changed behaviour.
— Collaborative Higher Education Alliance
(CHEA) activity This included expanding the coverage of CHEA,
widening delivery arrangements, putting a capital bid together
and raising the profile of issues around access to higher level
skills.
— Agreement on the strategic priorities
for the Alliance sub-region & commitment to a collective approach.
— Raising the profile of the Alliance
area at national and regional level.
— Bringing organisations together that
do not typically get involved in partnership working.
— Influence on NHS workforce planning
through the Skills Pledge.
7. OPERATING
STRUCTURE
7.1 A consultant provides secretariat support
to the ASEB. The AESB was funded in 2007-2008 by the Alliance
Strategic Sub-Regional Partnership (£20,000) and the Learning
and Skills Council (approx. £48,000).
7.2 There are detailed Terms of Reference
for both the Board and the Executive Group and Nolan principles
are observed. The delivery plan is clearly set out and progress
monitored. Monitoring to date has tended to focus on processes
and activities rather than outcomes and impact. This is to be
expected given the Board is relatively new, however in future
the Board is seeking to measure its impact and strategic added
value.
8. FUTURE WORK
8.1 Both the lack of national and regional
guidance to date for Employment & Skills Boards and the impact
of the Sub National Review create uncertainty for the future of
the AESB. In the case of the latter, it is highly likely that
the lack of support for structures that operate across county
administrative boundaries will impact on the Board, with its cross
North Derbyshire and North Nottinghamshire representation and
remit.
8.2 However, whilst there is a lack of clarity
at present Board members feel it is important to carry forward
the momentum created to date and focus on the employment and skills
priorities facing the sub-region. The issues remain to be addressed
and there is a strong commitment from Board members to the strategic
priorities and the delivery plan for 2008-09 that they have signed
up to.
April 2008
50 emda (2006). Back
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