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Local Employment and Skills Boards

Support for the development of Local Employment and Skills Boards was first mooted in The Leitch Review of Skills in 2006 and since then has been encouraged in successive government policies, most notably in the Review of Sub National Economic Development and Regeneration in 2007.

The network of Employment and Skills Boards in the South West has been developing since that time and they are at various stages of development. Although all Boards are or will be established in line with the needs and existing governance structures in their areas there are some commonalities amongst them:

- They all have a strong link to their respective Sub Regional Economic Strategy and Local Area Agreement and Multi Area Agreement Targets;

-They offer leadership - Focusing resources and delivery in line with need (economy, employers, individuals);

- They have an integrated approach to employment and skills;

- Most (if not all) have as priorities:
o Workforce development including higher level skills to support the transition to a high value economy;
o Tackling worklessness; and
o Supporting young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs); and

- Their structure is employer led and with all key partners involved.

A matrix detailing the network of Local Employment and Skills Boards including their stage of development, scope/remit, coverage and structure is available to download on the right hand side of the page.

The Regional Employment and Skills Partnership and Local Employment and Skills Boards

To assist in sharing good practice and in establishing a positive relationship between the Regional Employment and Skills Partnership and Local Employment and Skills Boards, a joint meeting was held in April 2008. The summary note of the event can be downloaded.

A follow up event was held in February 2009 to help share good practice and to discuss and establish the ongoing relationships at regional and sub regional level. The event included four key sessions:
1. Where Are We Now?
o This included an update on the development of Employment and Skills Boards in the region with input from three Boards at different stages of development;

2. Action for the Future 1
o  Workshop discussions on key issues raised by Local ESBs such as tackling worklessness, sector operations and employer engagement;

3. Current and Future Challenges
o  Highlighting known current and future challenges for Boards including the current economic downturn and changes in governance structures for skills; and

4. Action for the Future 2 – Small group discussion on action and future relationships given the challenges being faced.

The full event programme along with presentations and papers can be downloaded from the section on the right.