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Chapter 1 - The Strategic Context of Skills in Scotland
Towards a more successful Scotland
1. The Scottish Government has a single Purpose - to create a more successful country where all of Scotland can flourish through increasing sustainable economic growth. Higher sustainable economic growth is the key which can unlock Scotland's full potential and create benefits for all our people.
2. The Government Economic Strategy sets out a clear and achievable way forward that will deliver the purpose and secure Scottish success over the long term. Our vision for success is described and measured in four parts which support and reinforce each other -
- The Government's Purpose and its associated targets
- Five Strategic Objectives that describe where we will focus our actions
- 15 National Outcomes that describe what the Government wants to achieve
- 45 National Indicators that enable us to track progress
3. The relationship between the purpose, target, strategic objectives and national outcomes and indicators is shown in the following diagram of Scotland's National Performance Framework.
NATIONAL PERFORMANCE FRAMEWORK
4. A challenging set of high level Purpose Targets that include specific benchmarks will track progress in boosting Scotland's economic performance and ensure that the benefits of higher growth are sustainable and shared by all of Scotland.
5. We have aligned the Scottish Government around five Strategic Objectives that underpin our Purpose and describe the kind of Scotland we want to live in - a Scotland that is Wealthier and Fairer, Smarter, Healthier, Safer and Stronger and Greener.
6. Success for Scotland lies in focusing all of Government and public services on the achievement of our Purpose. By working together across all of these strategic objectives, we can increase sustainable economic growth so that all of Scotland can flourish.
7. The Strategic Objectives are described in more detail in the following diagram.
5 STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES
8. Fifteen National Outcomes describe what the Government wants to achieve over the next ten years, articulating more fully this Government's Purpose. They help to sharpen the focus of government, enable our priorities to be clearly understood and provide a clear structure for delivery. By achieving these outcomes together, we will make Scotland a better place to live and a more prosperous and successful country.
9. Forty-five National Indicators enable us to track progress towards the achievement of our National Outcomes and ultimately the delivery of the Purpose. Indicators have been carefully chosen to demonstrate progress towards the achievement of a more successful and prosperous Scotland.
10. The Scottish Government has established new relationships with Local Authorities, national agencies, trade unions and employers. Single Outcome Agreements with Local Authorities demonstrate how they will contribute towards achieving sustainable economic growth and the national outcomes.
The Role of Learning and Skills in Driving Economic Growth
11. The introduction of the right to request time off for training has the potential to stimulate greater economic growth in Scotland. Learning, skills and well-being are a critical component to economic growth and in turn economic growth will help reduce inequalities between individuals and reduce the disparity between the different regions in Scotland. The Government Economic Strategy commits to removing any barriers that stand in the way of individuals participating in skills development and realising their potential in the workplace.
12. This right will be a universal right for all employees and the Scottish Government will encourage employees to take advantage of it. Research by FutureSkills Scotland indicates that not all employees receive training and, often those who do, already have higher level skills. The introduction of the right to request time off for training could help increase workplace training by stimulating a better dialogue between all employees and their employers, which focuses on identifying training that brings benefits to both.
13. In Scotland figures show that 65% of employers trained their employees in the last 12 months. To achieve the successful Scotland we aspire to requires this percentage to increase. A better dialogue between employer and employee has the potential to drive forward real culture change in skills development in the workplace.
Skills for Scotland
14. We set out our vision for a smarter Scotland in our lifelong skills strategy, Skills for Scotland, which describes what needs to be done to develop a cohesive lifelong learning system centred on the individual but responsive to employer needs. Skills for Scotland focuses on three key areas:
- Individual development
A lifelong learning system centred on the individual but responsive to employer needs where all individuals are encouraged and supported to participate in learning.
- Economic Pull
A Scotland where employers demand high skills and are able to fully utilise the skills of their employees.
- Cohesive Structures
A lifelong learning system that values all types of learning, where all those involved in developing and delivering learning work together to provide individuals with the right support and guidance.
15. The introduction of the right for employees to request time off for training fits well with Skills for Scotland's focus on increasing the skills of individuals that in turn support business growth.
16. Skills for Scotland highlights the skills challenges that Scotland faces, in particular the disconnect between our high skills profile and our economic growth rate. Scotland outperforms the rest of the UK on skills, yet our level of economic growth lags behind. It is therefore not enough to simply increase the skills levels of individuals - we need to ensure that these skills are used effectively in the workplace. The introduction of the right to request time off for training has the potential to address these issues by engaging both employer and employee in a discussion about what skills are required and how new and existing skills are being put to use.
17. In Scotland, while we have high levels of participation in education and training, there is still a significant minority who have few or no qualifications. Research has highlighted that 25% lack even basic skills of literacy and numeracy. The introduction of the right for employees to request time off for training could encourage more individuals to engage in education and training and benefit from increased confidence, fuller participation in the workplace and higher wages.
18. The Scottish Government hopes that the right to request time off to train will establish a fruitful, ongoing dialogue between employer and employee which will focus on identifying learning and training opportunities that meet the needs of both the individual and the business. We want to support a culture of lifelong learning in Scottish workplaces where -
- employers and employees see the mutual benefits of training,
- ongoing skills development and effective use of employees' skills is positively embraced, and
- individuals and businesses have the knowledge and skills to flourish.
Supporting individuals
19. The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that employees have the right support to enable them to access education and training and we have put in place a number of measures to enable individuals to train in a variety of ways and settings, recognising that different options suit different people.
20. Earlier this year the Scottish Government introduced a range of measures to support individuals in the workplace. For employees earning £18,000 or less who wish to undertake a course of higher education on a part-time basis, we introduced a £500 part-time fee grant through ILA (Individual Learning Accounts) Scotland. This new grant, which replaces the previous loans system, will support 20,000 students a year. We have also increased the amount of funding allocated to provide hardship funds to institutions by £1 million annually. This additional discretionary support will enable institutions to provide more flexible support for part-time students and can be used for study costs, travel and childcare costs. We will also continue to provide fee support for students on low incomes through the Scottish Funding Council's part-time fee waiver scheme.
21.ILA Scotland supports a range of learning opportunities. We have reduced the minimum age to 16 - allowing more individuals to access funding. We have increased the range of courses that are eligible for ILA funding to include work related courses, meaning individuals who identify suitable training with their employers will have financial support to undertake their training where the employer is unable to provide funding. For employees who earn £18,000 or less, this provides access of up to £200 per year towards the cost of learning or training.
22.ILA Scotland can now be used for workplace literacy and numeracy programmes which are delivered in conjunction with an employer. This is in addition to the free literacy and numeracy programmes that are delivered in the community. We hope this will encourage employers and employees to work together to address the basic skills needs of those in the workplace.
23. Individuals need access to up-to-date high quality information, advice and guidance that enables them to make informed decisions about the type of training that best meets their needs. This is one of the reasons we established Skills Development Scotland which brought together Careers Scotland, the Scottish University for Industry, and most of the skills and training elements of Scottish Enterprise and the Highlands and Islands Enterprise.
24. Unions have an important role in supporting and providing advice on skills development to individuals in the workplace. The Scottish Government is providing £1.4 million per year to enable Scottish Union Learning to further develop the network of union learning representatives. We expect that union learning representatives will play an important role in helping employees to make the most of their new right to request time off to train, both by helping them to identify appropriate training and accompanying employees when they meet with their employer.
Supporting employers
25. Skills Development Scotland plays an important role in supporting workforce development through the funding of skills interventions and by providing advice and guidance on training issues to small businesses. The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that skills interventions meet the needs of employers, and we have tasked Skills Development Scotland with improving the quality of its skills interventions. They are in the process of considering what type of skills interventions are required for Scotland now and in the future.
26. Skills Development Scotland will continue to deliver the legacy services of lds4business to small and medium-sized businesses, those that are often least likely to train their employees. Previously lds4business provided access to expert advisers who help employers assess the skills needs of their business, sources training to meet business pressures and offers a range of free resources such as online training packages. To offer advice on what support is available to small businesses in relation to the new right for employees to request time off to train, Skills Development Scotland will establish a dedicated helpline based around the inherited expertise of the lds4business service.
27. The Scottish Government has re-focused Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise to better assist Scottish business to innovate and grow. As part of this process, the management of the Business Gateway contracts has been transferred to Local Authorities and their role will be to ensure a more responsive and joined up business development service which will make business support more accessible at local level.
28. Earlier this year, we introduced the Small Business Bonus Scheme, which will substantially reduce business rates for all businesses with premises with a combined rateable value of £15,000 or less. This relief will be available to all non-domestic ratepayers whatever their business activity, provided they meet the eligibility criteria. Once the Small Business Bonus is fully implemented, it will benefit up to 150,000 business properties, potentially saving small businesses around £165 million per year.
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