Staffordshire Employment and Skills Strategy 2023-2030
Stakeholders from across the county have come together, recognising the importance of skills for employment in helping residents and businesses to fully experience the benefits of Staffordshire's enterprising, resilient, and inclusive economy.
Whilst we continue to concentrate on post-pandemic recovery and prepare for opportunities like devolution, we recognise an increased need to support people of all ages into work, to progress or change careers, and to ensure that businesses can access the skills and talent they need to diversify and grow.
Strategy aims and priorities
This new Employment and Skills Strategy for Staffordshire puts in place the vision and priorities to deliver our united economic vision for the Staffordshire economy and inform the development of the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) for Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire.
The strategy is needed for several reasons:
- it sets out the skills ambitions for Staffordshire to inform any future devolution deal,
- it provides the skills priorities to inform the new accountability statements required from education providers,
- it fills the vacuum with the changing nature of the LEP and the cessation of the Skills Advisory Panel,
- and forms the basis of the ask to government on future devolution and investment in skills.
The strategy will achieve a county-wide workforce that is equipped, not only to weather the storms of economic shocks such as a global pandemic but to thrive and grow in a pioneering county.
We will deliver the digital skills needed to embrace the power of technology and digital transformation in our priority sectors and the green skills needed to achieve net zero by 2050.
The priorities set out in the strategy are focus on key areas including:
- Creating an Aspirational and Active Workforce with the employability skills required by local businesses.
- Providing Inspirational Careers Advice needed to make informed career choices and have a productive and prosperous career.
- Developing Technical Skills to Drive Productivity and Growth, particularly in our priority sectors.
- Supporting Innovation and Enterprise through entrepreneurial skills development.
- Creating a Place of Learning through a strong culture of life-long learning to meet the changing needs of our economy.
What makes our strategy different?
The essence of what makes this strategy different is that it is built on partnership and shared endeavour. The stakeholders and organisations that have contributed to this strategy are committed to making our ambitions a reality.
Above all, we are committed to ensuring that Staffordshire is a place where everyone can thrive; harnessing and growing the county’s existing skills base to enable residents and businesses to make the most of future opportunities and make prosperity a reality for all.
Have your say
To ensure our residents, businesses, and partners have an opportunity to shape this important strategy before it is finalised, we are undertaking a 4-week public consultation to seek your views.
We would welcome your thoughts and comments on the priorities contained in the strategy, do you feel these are the right priorities, do you agree with the evidence and are there any other considerations.