Skills: how we stopped damaging omission
1 min read
Government rhetoric hails manufacturing as the saviour of the UK economy. But this all depends on having a workforce with the necessary skills. With the introduction of the Specification of Apprenticeship Standards (SASE) for England, I questioned whether the government understood our industry's needs at all.
SASE was designed to bring consistency and boost employer confidence in the quality of apprenticeship qualifications but in its original guise, Performing Engineering Operations (PEO) NVQ Level 2, was no longer part of the revised framework.
With the industry up in arms over the potentially damaging consequences of this omission, Semta acted quickly to protect our future. This vital element of training, which equips learners with the necessary skills in health & safety and basic engineering, is crucial to anyone working in advanced manufacturing. Semta joined forces with the National Apprenticeship Service and EAL to remedy the situation.
Together, Semta and the National Apprenticeship Service have ensured that these crucial skills can be achieved through the completion of a Level 2 Industrial Applications Framework. Successful candidates can then progress onto an Advanced Apprenticeship confident that they have the basic skills they need to perform effectively. With EAL responding quickly to build its qualifications around these changes, industry can once again rest assured that they will be adequately catered for.
However, this is tangible evidence that for the advanced skills sectors the government must wise up to the skills needs of the engineering and manufacturing sectors.
The hands-on experience and practical knowledge, which is integral to advanced skills apprenticeships and highly regarded by employers, was fundamentally threatened by SASE. But I trust that this is not a sign of things to come. On the positive side the incident demonstrates that with driving forces such as Semta, NAS and EAL understanding the complexity of engineering and manufacturing apprenticeships, issues such as these can quickly be addressed and rectified."
