Science and TechnologyWritten evidence submitted by Semta

About Semta

1. Semta is the Sector Skills Council (SSC) for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies. We are licensed by government to address the sector’s skills needs, providing expert support to companies of all sizes to improve their performance and growth. Semta’s combined subsectors employ 1.33 million people in nearly 122,000 establishments across the United Kingdom.

Evidence

Does the current engineering skills base meet the needs of employers?

2. Higher level skills are vital to the success of Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering employers (AME). Semta’s employers have clearly articulated in their 2010 Skills Assessment (Semta 2010) a need to move up the value chain to skills at level 4 and above for themselves and their UK-based supply chains in order to remain globally competitive and innovative.

The main drivers for future skills requirements in these sectors are:

the introduction of new technologies or equipment;

new legislative or regulatory requirements;

development of new products and services,

the introduction of new working practices; and

increased competitive pressure.

3. Managers, craft and professional occupations are the most likely to be affected by the need to acquire new skills or knowledge. In 2009, there were over 8,000 higher-level vacancies in the AME sectors in England. A recent survey1 found that 31% of high tech manufacturing firms “had recruited people from outside the UK owing to a lack of suitably qualified people from within the UK”. Overall 9% of establishments in the AME sectors in England reported higher-level skills gaps in their workforce compared to 7% of establishments for all sectors in England. This equates to over 51,000 people in total with higher-level skills gaps in the AME sectors in England.

4. In addition to these skills gaps, the UK’s workforce is ageing and this ageing workforce is an added factor to the growing evidence that the sector needs more young people to join the AME industries via Apprenticeships. 14% of the AME sectors’ workforce, in England, are over 60 years old, compared to 12% of the workforce in all sectors. The number of young people entering the AME sectors has been an issue for a number of years. Only 8% of its workforce in England is aged 16–24 compared with 14% in all sectors in England.

5. If the AME sectors are to achieve world class standards there is a need to raise the overall current skills aspirations across the industries. Currently, 38% of the current workforce in core higher-level technical occupations is under-qualified for the role being performed. Therefore there is a potential upskilling requirement to NVQ Level 4 and above for around 111,000 people across core technical occupations, comprising:

45,000 Managers.

42,000 Professional Engineers.

24,000 Technicians.

6. These needs are in addition to the annual requirement for training over 7,000 new recruits across higher-level technical occupations into AME sectors in England.

7. Skills gaps and shortages are a key barrier to closing the 15% productivity gap with the UK’s main competitors. Apprenticeships are well respected as a brand by employers in the AME sectors with a range of provision being available predominately at levels 2 and 3. Semta has developed a new Higher Apprenticeship at levels 4 and 6 leading to Incorporated Engineer status which aims to help address progression to higher level skills.

Do employers in the engineering sector prefer an academic or a vocational profile?

8. To meet growing employer demand for higher level skills, the current range and style of pathways leading into higher education and the qualifications being offered need to be maintained and expanded, particularly the applied and vocational routes such as Higher Apprenticeships and Diplomas. The value of these routes for employers lies not only in the technical skills developed, but also the employability skills such as team work, communication and innovative thinking skills. Employers not only want proficiency in core engineering disciplinary knowledge (maths, physics and chemistry) but also the ability to apply this knowledge to real engineering situations.

9. Semta was awarded Pathfinder Funding by the National Apprenticeship Service to lead the development of a new higher apprenticeship framework in Advanced Manufacturing (AMHA), which was issued in 2012. Semta’s aim was to develop a flexible, employer-led framework to support the development of higher level skills in new and existing technology areas.

10. The AMHA operates at levels 4 and 6. The need for level 5 provision for SMEs is currently being tested. The Level 6 framework includes a range of options such as a full Bachelor of Engineering degree. It is based on a variety of pathways to accommodate the needs of different sectors. It allows greater focus on higher level technical skills- as opposed to leadership/supervisory skills. The framework also links to professional accreditation.

11. Semta welcomes the establishment of University Technical Colleges (UTC’s). If structured well and teachers are given the requisite professional development in work-based teaching in Engineering, they could be an important vehicle for producing the high quality skilled people our sectors need. Semta is actively building links with UTCs such as the Black Country UTC based in Walsall and the WMG Academy for Young Engineers at Warwick.

12. It is also important to recognise that employer demand is neither homogenous nor static. There is a great deal of variation, not only between small and large employers, but within and between sectors and sub-sectors and size of company.

How do the approaches taken by the Devolved Administrations to produce a technically skilled workforce differ to the current approach in England? What are the strengths/weakness of the different approaches?

Devolved Administration	Approach	Strengths	Weaknesses
Wales	Apprenticeships: Pathway to Apprenticeship—introduced in 2009:	Support for SSCs Welsh Government support industry needs by working with Sector Skills Councils, using the SSC to provide options and solutions to skills issues for example the Sector Priority fund provides a route to pilot new ways of delivering for industry eg Semta TMT project piloted the development of the provider network to deliver short courses developed jointly by the employer and the provider, these programmes were recognised either by unit certificates or the Quality assured Life Long Learning pillar of the Credit and Qualifications Framework for Wales. Sector Panels Welsh Government have set up Sector Panels for their priority Sectors, made up and chaired by employers who provide advice and support to Welsh Government on issues affecting business including skills.	Timescales for funding decisions can be long however steps to overcome this are being adopted.
	—Provided training for young people who were not employed but had the potential to be an apprentice in the sector (Min Grade C GCSE in Maths, English & Science)  —Covered Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification which met the Level 2 Apprenticeship frame work requirements plus a project  —Five weeks true work experience with an employer with a view to providing an apprenticeship at the end of the work experience process  —Over 900 young people have been trained with over 80% carrying on with engineering either with an apprenticeship or further education.
	http://wales.gov.uk/topics/educationandskills/skillsandtraining/apprenticeships/pathway/;jsessionid=082BPW3BQ9qXn5hBBgwYD9SYQG59tTwKxLdMy0sYgjc4Jdxdfgdl!-1822353977?lang=en
	Young Recruits programme—introduced in 2009 this programme subsidises the wages of the apprentice for 12 months if they do not normally recruit apprentices http://wales.gov.uk/topics/educationandskills/skillsandtraining/apprenticeships/youngrecruitsprogramme/?lang=en
	Shared Apprenticeship—This pilot programme completes in September. It has provided support for 90 apprentices placing them with small companies (hosts) who are then supported by other companies by providing the breadth of training which a single SME couldn’t provide. Going forward the training providers were asked to bid for places at the latest tendering round. http://wales.gov.uk/topics/educationandskills/skillsandtraining/apprenticeships/shared/?lang=en
	Updating the skilled workforce: Work Force Development Programme This programme supports employers by appointing an independent training advisor to work with the employer to develop a skills action plan and to source funding support to deliver the action plan. The advisor also has an option to apply for discretionary funding if other sources of funding cannot be found this is part funded by Welsh Government and the employer. http://wales.gov.uk/topics/educationandskills/skillsandtraining/freeskillsreview/;jsessionid=GNgLPW4CYQbhpLvyk9G2sLF5YJlPSdlvrggDw5dw6YjjljMv19JL!-1822353977?lang=en
	Jobs Growth Wales: The programme caters for young people that are job ready but have had difficulty securing employment. It provides unemployed young people aged 16–24, with a job opportunity for a six month period paid at national minimum wage. Participants will be paid at or above the national minimum wage for a minimum of 25 hours per week. Young people will be employed for the duration of the programme and the jobs created must be additional to, and not replace, positions that would otherwise be filled. http://wales.gov.uk/topics/educationandskills/skillsandtraining/jobsgrowthwales/?lang=en
	Skills Growth Wales: The scheme aims to assist 200 companies create over 3,000 jobs over a three years. To be eligible for support companies must demonstrate that they have a credible growth plan which will lead to the creation of employment opportunities within their company. The plan could include a new market, new products, new services, new contracts or planned investment. Approved companies will be able to access funding up to an average of £2,500 per individual for training that will directly help bring about the growth. There is also a requirement to take up accredited training programmes or modules that lead to qualifications. http://wales.gov.uk/topics/educationandskills/skillsandtraining/skillsgrowth/?lang=en
Scotland	Support for Employers in Scotland via Skills Development Scotland ScotAction ScotAction is the Scottish Government’s skills support package for leading Scotland out of recession and on to economic growth. It is an integrated package combining new and improved measures to help individuals and businesses through the recession and will provide skills assistance—including wage subsidies in some circumstances—for training for work, training in work and training from work to work to help Scottish people and businesses survive the downturn and thrive when the economy starts to recover. Types of intervention include: Employer Recruitment Initiative Available to employers who offer Modern Apprenticeships (MAs) to young people who may otherwise find it difficult to secure a job or MA can receive up to £2,000 towards their training costs. To qualify for this incentive, businesses must employ an individual who has been unemployed or faced barriers in the past. Adopt an Apprentice This scheme helps deliver on the Scottish Government’s guarantee to apprentices to find them alternative employment so that they can complete their Modern Apprenticeship (MA). The scheme gives an employer £2,000 lump sum payment to help with wage costs of taking on a redundant apprentice for at least 12 months. Safeguard an Apprentice (applied only to Construction and Engineering sectors) Following consultation with sector skills representatives, the Safeguard an Apprentice programme is coming to an end last December while support through Adopt an Apprentice continues. The Safeguard programme, part funded by the European Social Fund (ESF), was introduced in November 2009. It was set up to support construction and engineering businesses unable to continue to employ their Modern Apprentices during the acute phase of the economic downturn. Funding was provided in order to allow the apprenticeships to be completed. Following a steady reduction in demand, the programme closed in December 2011. Programmes such as MAs, the Adopt an Apprentice scheme and Flexible Training Opportunities continue to respond to employer needs as articulated through industry bodies. Flexible Training Opportunities The Flexible Training Opportunities (FTO) fund gives businesses the opportunity to apply for up to £5,000 towards employee training costs. SDS will refund up to 50% for training courses up to a maximum of £5,000 per business. The training can be allocated to any number of employees up to a maximum of 10. For example, a business can opt to put 10 employees on courses with a value of £500 each, or alternatively, put one employee through 10 courses, with all variations in between. Low Carbon Skills Fund This is available to employers adopting processes around carbon reduction, renewable energy and/or energy efficiency. There is potential for receiving 50% of training costs. Employers employing <250 can apply for up to £12,500 towards training costs—based on up to 25 training courses costing a maximum of £500 each. www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk Modern Apprenticeships The Scottish Government has made a pledge to create 25,000 Modern Apprenticeships place in each year of the life of this Parliament (125,000) in total. Engineering is supported well (both in terms of numbers and financial commitment) through MAs by the Scottish Government. Currently, the Government is out to consultation on creation of Professional and Technical Apprenticeships (which will sit at SCQF level 8 and above) Accelerated Modern Apprenticeship in Engineering Semta (through funding from Skills Development Scotland and the Scottish Funding Council) developed and piloted and Accelerated MA in Engineering. The AMA is aimed at older employees who have experience of engineering (eg semi-skilled or unskilled but experienced workers). The programme was piloted with BAE Systems and Babcock Engineering Services and their respective training providers. The programme proved successful and 12 candidates went through an MA in approximately 18 months.	There are fewer agencies to deal with. Most funding for Skills Related initiatives will be channelled through Skills Development Scotland, most workforce development will be channelled through Scottish Enterprise and colleges/University is through the Scottish Funding Council.	The Scottish Government and its agencies have identified five key economic (industry) sectors and engineering is not seen as one of them. The Scottish Government view Engineering as an “enabling” sector as it sits across a range of sectors. However, this does cause some concern with employers in the sector as there is a belief that if you are identified as a key industry sector then you would be viewed more favourably by the Government agencies.
Northern Ireland	The Skills Strategy—“Success through Skills—Transforming Futures” The Department for Employment and Learning launched “Success through Skills—Transforming Futures”, the updated and revised Skills Strategy for Northern Ireland, at its Annual Skills conference on 25 May. The Strategy looks at the current skills base, examines the skills we will need in future to grow the Northern Ireland economy and highlights areas for action. This document is a ten year strategy which sets out the long term direction of travel by highlighting four strategic goals. On 6 March 2012, the Employer Engagement Plan was published. There are several programmes within Success Through Skills: Training for Success Training for Success is designed for young people aged 16–18 (up to 24 years for those requiring additional support) and provides training to give them the tools and skills they need to get a job. This training provides young people with relevant qualifications as well as the required personal and behaviourial skills to progress into work. This programme is part financed by the European Social Fund. Programme-Led Apprenticeships It is acknowledged that the present economic situation has made it increasingly difficult for would-be apprentices to find paid-for employment whilst completing their training. The Programme-Led Apprenticeships (PLA) initiative is an intervention measure during these times. What is PLA? PLA gives 16 and 17 year old school leavers (and up to 24 years for those requiring additional support) the opportunity to gain a full apprenticeship qualification in a chosen skill area. They access this through a combination of in-house directed training and work-based learning placement opportunities with an industry-appropriate employer. The PLA provision is running parallel to the “employer-led” ApprenticeshipsNI programme. Steps to Work (StW) Steps to Work (StW) offers a number of different choices around work related activities that can be fitted to suit applicants needs when it comes to finding employment What are the Benefits?	Support for SSCs There is increasing positive engagement with SSC’s in NI. The collaborative network also engages closely with Colleges and Universities.	Employers have indicated that the image of engineering apprenticeships has been impaired with the introduction of “Programme led apprenticeships”. Apprenticeship recruitment should be placed with employer led organisations offering employed status.
	—Personalised advice and guidance to help make the right choices.  —Help to find and remain in work.  —Re-training while remaining on benefit plus receive a weekly Training Bonus.  —The opportunity to gain a recognised qualification.  —The opportunity to improve existing skills.  —Opportunities for work experience.
	Who is eligible? Anyone over 18-years-old, lone parents aged 16 and over, who is not working or working less than 16 hours each week is eligible. You will be able to participate in StW if you are claiming benefit or if you are not working and not claiming benefit. Apprenticeships NI This is an employer led programme with no age restrictions and was introduced in September 2007 to replace the Modern Apprenticeship programme within Jobskills. Apprentices will be employed and earn a wage from day one. They will work alongside experienced staff to gain nationally recognised qualifications within the ApprenticeshipsNI framework. Apprentices work a minimum of 21 hours per week, 80% of this with their employer and the remaining 20% off the job with a Training Supplier. These are contracted by the Department for Employment and Learning, (DEL) and they usually provide the knowledge and skills while the employer provides the hands on practical experience. Specialist organisations can provide additional support if required. There are two ApprenticeshipsNI programmes, level 2 and level 3. These are standalone programmes and progression, if appropriate is encouraged from level 2 to level 3. A framework which has been developed by DEL and the appropriate Sector Skills Council (SSC) determines the outcomes for each apprenticeship.

Could the Government and others do more to raise the status of technical subjects?

13. Semta recommends that the government considers its approach to 14–19 education, particularly at the incentives it provides to schools and colleges to offer STEM subjects and to students to study them (particularly the league tables scoring system).

14. We provide further comment and background information below on the Diploma in Engineering to support our view that it is a rigorous and fit for purpose qualification valued by employers and the broader engineering community alike.

15. Some would argue that engineering needs to be promoted from as early as age 11 upwards if future skills needs are to be met. We would certainly support further work to promote engineering and STEM subjects more generally at the secondary level. The work of organisations such as STEMNET, using an extensive support base drawn from the engineering community, should continue to be supported. We believe that it is the “structural” reforms (league table performance lists, funding incentives etc) within the system which are needed alongside the “hearts and minds” promotion if a true sea-change is to occur.

What impact will recent changes relating to engineering qualifications in England have on the uptake of technical subjects and the skills base needed by the engineering sector?

16. The recent downgrading of the Engineering Diploma and other vocational qualifications such as the Young Apprenticeship (YA), including the Performing Engineering Operations qualification (PEO) from five GCSE’s to one GCSE will have a negative impact on the uptake of STEM subjects in particular and to the skills base needed in the immediate future.

17. These changes will not only affect perceptions of the qualifications and of engineering as a rewarding career, but also the progression opportunities for students to move onto apprenticeships. For example, the removal of funding for the YA programme for Engineering has had a big impact on engineering skills progression. Some 80%–90% of YA learners went onto post 16 apprenticeships in engineering. They were highly sought after by employers because of the skills they had mastered through the PEO qualification and the time they had spent gaining work experience in the employer’s premises. The PEO qualification is a competency skills-based qualification that ensures learners gain basic engineering skills in a safe, sheltered environment.

18. The downgrading of GCSE equivalence for other engineering qualifications will also impact progression opportunities for young learners into engineering. Many learners achieved the PEO outside of the YA programme as well as other vocational QCF qualifications from Edexcel, EAL and City & Guilds. Several thousand learners in total each year would have achieved these qualifications. These QCF qualifications are components of post 16 apprenticeships, which provided the progression opportunity at the end of Key Stage 4. Many awarding bodies are having to produce “schools versions” ie non QCF qualifications for engineering, to be included in the 2014 Key Stage 4 performance tables. This will remove opportunities for skills progression and cause potential confusion in the market for employers as there will be two versions of very similar qualifications but on different frameworks. This modification is not possible for the PEO qualification to make it suitable for key stage 4 performance tables and therefore schools will not offer it.

19. Semta recommends an exemption for the PEO qualification so that it can be included in the 2014 Key Stage 4 performance tables, even if it can only be allocated a single GCSE equivalence. This exemption has already been granted for important qualifications in other disciplines such as science. Semta also recommends that the new “schools versions” of engineering qualifications are carefully marketed and identified as having limited progression opportunities for gaining genuine engineering skills.

20. In addition, Semta believes it is important for the committee to understand the background to the development of the Engineering Diploma and the time and commitment from our employers and the broader engineering community alike to create a qualification, which would build on best practice from design and technology courses and the GCSE in Engineering.

21. Semta led the development of the Statement of Content of the Diploma in Engineering during the period 2005–07. This development process involved around 600 large and small employers including Rolls Royce, JCB, Toyota, NPower, Centrica, Vodafone, Shell, and key engineering community stakeholders including Engineering Specialist Schools, Head Teachers Network, the Royal Academy of Engineering, Engineering Professors Council, Engineering Council UK, Engineering Subject Centre, University and Colleges Admissions Service, Engineering Employers Federation, the Dyson Foundation, New Engineering Foundation, the Design and Technology Association and professional institutions such as Institution of Mechanical Engineers, and the Institute of Engineering and Technology.

22. The statement of content had the support of all those involved in the development process and the key awarding bodies. At its heart was an agreed concept of applied learning which would bridge the gap between vocational and academic learning. A consensus was built across the engineering community stakeholders that the Engineering Diploma would apply “academic concepts and theories…to engineering situations and organisations”.

23. The thematic structure of the content centred on the following 4 themes, with maths and physics embedded in each:

The Engineered World.

Discovering Engineering Technology.

Engineering the future.

Analytical Methods for Engineering (Level 3).

This was done to:

provide a school curriculum offer that was an improvement on traditional craft competence routes and which would also enable progression to professional levels;

provide a relational learning experience for widening participation and diversity and enable the delivery of an inclusive curriculum which could be delivered flexibly for local context.

24. This proved to be particularly successful in the first few years of delivery where the average female participation rate was higher than the current rates for female engineers and in some consortia as high as 35%. In 2009–10 there were 5,500 learners on L1 and L2 eng diploma.

25. Semta and the Engineering Diploma Development Partnership Steering Group (EDDP) were very concerned to ensure that the content developed was fit for purpose for entry into engineering degree courses. Semta established a Higher Education Working Group, comprising engineering admissions tutors from Russell Group universities such as Cambridge, Manchester and Loughborough as well as representatives from the full spectrum of higher education institutions offering engineering courses. The purpose of this group was to critically review and input to content development, particularly mathematics and physics, to ensure it would be fit for purpose for entry into engineering degree courses.

26. This group agreed that the content of the Diploma at level 3 needed to cover the key theoretical underpinning concepts in ‘A’ level Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry, but acknowledged that many learners having the triple sciences, going onto engineering degree courses, lacked the ability to apply that theory to engineering problems. In response, the Group helped develop a topic in the principal learning on analytical methods for engineering (Advanced Diploma, Level 3) which would give learners the opportunity to integrate and apply mathematical, physics and chemistry concepts to a number of engineering areas such as manufacturing, energy generation/processing, engineering systems, and mechanical engineering.

27. Many in the engineering community believed that additional mathematics material (beyond the principal learning) should also be available for those students studying the Advanced Diploma in Engineering to help prepare them for progression onto engineering degree courses. It was also recognised that teachers in schools and colleges needed more real engineering examples to underpin the essential mathematics and to excite interest in engineering. In response, the engineering and maths communities formed a Maths Task Group in May 2007 comprising:

Engineering Professors Council (EPC).

The Higher Education Academy: Engineering Subject Centre.

The Royal Academy of Engineering.

Institute of Mathematics and its Application (IMA).

Engineering Diploma Development Partnership (EDDP).

Engineering Council UK (ECuk).

Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI).

University of Cambridge.

National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching Mathematics (NCETM).

28. The task group developed a specialist mathematics qualification, (Level 3 Certificate in Mathematics for Engineering (H860) accredited by OCR) available for any Level 3 learner wishing to develop his or her mathematical skills and knowledge beyond those already incorporated in the principal learning, through problems set in real life engineering contexts. The qualification is 180 GLH in size, and attracts 90 UCAS Tariff points (50% more than any other 180GLH unit) at grade A. This learning needs to be considered in conjunction with the 60 GLH Mathematics unit within the Advanced Diploma, giving 240GLH of intensive, engineering-specific mathematics study.

29. The Engineering Diploma was specifically developed to provide students with an exciting and broad learning experience about engineering disciplines and the impact they have on their lives. Students following the programme are more able to appreciate its social and technological construct and make informed choices about their future careers. Enabling the entry of under represented groups and particularly women into professions which are traditionally and predominantly male is economically vital. It is estimated the value to the UK economy could be £15–23 billion or 1.3%–2.0% of Gross Domestic Product (Kiwana et al. 2011). The UK is failing to keep pace with the world demand for engineers and recognition that the “traditional” view of engineering and the source of engineers needs to be countered. (Inspiring Women Engineers http://www.raeng.org.uk/news/publications/list/reports/Inspiring_Women_Engineers.pdf).

30. Devaluing the engineering diploma removes at a stroke the opportunities it could have delivered in terms of providing an inclusive and innovative curricula that would serve the needs of students and engineering industry across the UK.

6. What more should be done to attract and retain a more diverse technically skilled workforce?

31. We refer the committee to the arguments presented above. We recommend that the government remove current barriers to progression onto apprenticeships and consider incentives valuing inclusive and innovative curricula which will appeal to male and female learners from a diverse range of backgrounds

Recommendation

32. Semta recommends that government:

considers incentives to schools and colleges to offer STEM subjects and to students to study them (re-visit the league tables scoring system);

removes current barriers to progression onto apprenticeships; and provides an exemption for the PEO qualification so that it can be included in the 2014 Key Stage 4 performance tables;

provides incentives to schools which value inclusive and innovative curricula which will appeal to male and female learners from a diverse range of backgrounds backgrounds.

References:

2010 Skills Assessment (Semta 2010).

Business Register Employment Survey (BRES) 2010.

Inter-Departmental Business Register (IDBR) 2010.

National Employer Skills Survey (NESS) 2009.

Labour Force Survey (LFS) 2010.

14–19 Specialised Diploma, Statement of Content for Engineering Line of Learning, Semta, June 2006.

Semta/IER Engineering Employment Forecasting Model 2009.

Kiwana, L., Kumar, A and Randerson, N. 2011. An Investigation into why the UK has the lowest proportion of female engineers in the EU. Engineering UK.

June 2012