Councillor Cresswell (Cabinet Member for Education, Skills and Apprenticeships) introduced the report and highlighted:

a)    The Skills for Plymouth Plan had been developed in 2020/21 and the report showed the progress made across a number of measures, but a refresh was required;

b)    There had been a reduction in the number of NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) young people, although the language had changed to ‘Seeking Education, Employment and Training’ (SEET);

c)    There had been an increase in the number of SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabled) young people in employment and training from 72% in January 2023 to 90.4% in December 2024;

d)    Gaps had begun to close in attainment rates at both GCSE and A-Level with Plymouth achievements getting closer to the national average;

e)    Plymouth’s unemployment was lower than the national average by 1%;

f)     Skills Launchpad Plymouth had supported almost 1000 young people and over 900 adults, furthest from the labour market, with almost 500 having entered employment and over 350 into training;

g)    On Course South West had supported over 5,000 adults and young people in 2023/24;

h)    It was important to refresh the Skills for Plymouth Plan to ensure it incorporated and aligned with the latest developments in the city, including the new Plymouth Economic Strategy, the MOD (Ministry of Defence) investment, and the formation of the Growth Alliance Plymouth, and the Council would work with partners to do so.

Tina Brinkworth (Head of Skills and Post 16) added:

i)     It was important that people had the skills they needed now and in the future to access employment and progress their careers, as well as ensuring that employers and individuals invested in skills and lifelong learning, and that employers had the right skills to grow their businesses;

j)     The refresh would be done in close partnership with the Plymouth Employment and Skills Board which was made up of organisations from the business community, employer representation groups, and higher education institutions;

k)    There would be 15,000 new jobs in the city within the next 10 years across all sectors but particularly in construction and engineering;

l)     Plymouth currently had 7,000 unique vacancies advertised monthly and this was growing each month, there was a considerable amount of movement of people across businesses;

m)  The model being used was ‘Demand, Supply and Pipeline’;

                      i.        Demand was business need;

                     ii.        Supply was education providers;

                    iii.        Pipeline was future generations;

n)    12-18 months previous, one in 10 young people were NEET, but at the time of the meeting that was only one in 20;

o)    There was more work to do with care leavers, young carers and those in the criminal justice system, but a program was in place and the team were working hard to ensure it included the right support and interventions.

Tom Lavis (CEO of YMCA Plymouth and Discovery College) added:

p)    Discovery College had been working closely with partners as part of the Plymouth Education Partnership Alliance;

q)    NEET/SEET levels in Plymouth had been above the national average before this work and Discovery College had worked as a partner to improve this;

r)    Discovery College supported young people aged 16 to 19 who had disengaged from the education system by providing them with opportunities to re-enter education and access pathways for future progression;

s)     SEN (Special Educational Needs) had been a recent focus for Discovery College as these young people were some that were the furthest from employment;

                      i.        A pilot supported internship program had been trialled last year with this group in partnership with China Fleet Country Club and Plymouth Active Leisure to give the young people opportunities at mainstream recreational facilities;

                     ii.        They needed more 1:1 support and guidance;

                    iii.        These internships had been successful and the program was being expanded into tourism and hospitality and this was an area where there was a labour shortage, but also landscaping as being outdoors whilst working was a real benefit to most SEN young people;

t)     Welcomed Panel members to visit Discovery College.

Supported by Toby Hall (Funding and Partnership Manager), in response to questions the following was discussed:

u)    The team used data from modelling but also from the local business community to build intelligence which was shared with providers as well as at the Employment Skills Board, but the process was able to adapt as required, for example with monthly meetings beginning with strategic partners across the city to discuss skills and demand;

v)    The team valued the voice of young people and worked with a subgroup of the SEND Employment Forum as well as with schools and through significant outreach as part of the pipeline element;

w)   It was important to inspire the next generation and raise their aspirations;

x)    It was important that the schools program had diverse representation from employers across the city;

y)    Skills Launchpad Live was an annual event run by Discovery College on behalf of Plymouth City Council, which was the largest showcase of careers across the South West, and teams ensure it had diverse representation;

z)    There was a diverse range of mentors in the mentorship program;

aa)  Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) was an important annual event;

bb)Primary School children needed to be engaged with so they could be aware of the opportunities available to them at an early age and this was being done in part through the National Marine Park Schools program;

cc)  Discovery College had a very limited marketing budget, but most of the young people they worked with came through referrals;

dd)There were over 2,000 apprenticeship starters each year in Plymouth with 16% of all school and college leavers going into an apprenticeship, compared to just 10% nationally;

ee)There had been a shift into offering more level three, four and five apprenticeships and a shift to more flexibility from providers, which made apprenticeships easier to access;

ff)    There were some supportive national reforms that would allow more flexibility around the apprenticeship levy;

gg)  There was a gap in supported apprenticeships for SEND young people, but the team were working with partners to increase the spaces available;

hh)The program at Discovery College was aimed at 16-19 year olds as that had been the skills gap identified, and young people with EHCP’s (Education, Health and Care Plan) up to the age of 25, but there was support for people aged 19+ through On Course South West;

ii)    One in four learners declared a learning disability, high need learners had increased from 3.4% to 6.8% in the last year and there had been a significant increase in young people with EHCP’s;

jj)    30% of learners were from ethnic minorities, 60% of were from wards of deprivation, and 70% of courses were delivered in community spaces;

kk)Funding was increasing, as were audiences;

ll)    Connect to Work hoped to be in contract shortly, and would support 650 people into paid employment from vulnerable backgrounds such as care experience, young carers and those from the criminal justice system;

mm)   Information would be provided on the industries people went into once they had completed their apprenticeships

nn)      Businesses in Plymouth were focused on encouraging people into “blue” jobs;

oo)     It was important to get into schools and explain the opportunities available so children could ‘be what they could see’;

pp)      It was important to ensure that educators knew about the training and employment opportunities available in the city so that they could share this with students;

qq)      Upcoming Government changes suggested a more flexible approach to education, rather than a focus on just university degrees or apprenticeships;

rr)       The team focused on working with years five, six, seven and eight before they chose subjects to study for GCSE and further;

ss)       There was more space in Plymouth for vocational qualifications at schools, similar to what was run at UTC Plymouth which fed students straight into engineering roles or Scott Medical School which did the same for medicine roles;

tt)        Career Southwest which had been commissioned to do Plymouth careers advice and guidance was closing down, but the staff were being moved into the team at Plymouth City Council and so the work could be connected up and they would be able to better embed outreach work into schools;

uu)      Manchester had developed a bachelorette specific to the needs of the city with the inclusion of media and IT, which could be adapted for Plymouth where it would, for example, include marine.

The Panel agreed to note the report.