Nicky Morgan, Member of Parliament for Loughborough, has teamed up with Loughborough College Chief Executive John Doherty to raise awareness of the fabulous work the College does in delivering top quality education for students and the benefits it brings to our local economy.
Nicky met with John as part of the #LoveOurColleges campaign to emphasise the need for fair funding for further education in the national spending review, due to take place later this year.
Nicky said “Investing in our colleges isn’t just the right thing to do to ensure that people of all ages can get on in life – it represents an important economic investment too.
“The Government has a clear Industrial Strategy for boosting productivity by backing businesses in their efforts to create good jobs and increase earning power; a key strand of that strategy has to be in developing essential skills.
“New research published by the Association of Colleges shows the UK’s future economic success can be significantly boosted by ensuring that colleges are in a position to teach the skills that our economy needs.”
The Employer Skills Survey shows an increase in the density of vacancies they are struggling to fill whilst a recent survey of SMEs showed that 51% are finding it more difficult to employees with the right skills, compared to five years ago, and almost six in ten say that finding skilled candidates is the biggest concern about the future of their business. In the Leicester and Leicestershire Business Skills Survey 2017 nearly a quarter (23%) of businesses reported having skills shortage vacancies.
Rated Good overall and Outstanding for apprenticeships by Ofsted and awarded Silver in the Teaching Excellence Framework, Loughborough College’s close working relationship with employers and industry partners was highlighted as a key strength in both.
John said: “Investing in education and training, whether that’s for young people reaching working age or adults throughout their working lives and beyond, has a huge impact on learners, their families, communities and the economy.
“At Loughborough College it’s a key focus for us to develop courses which support the skills needed in the region - and that is why we currently work with employers from more than 600 large, medium and small businesses across a range of sectors.”
These include advanced engineering and manufacturing, logistics and distribution, care services, catering and hospitality, digital industries, education and childcare, service industries, finance and accounting, health and science and sport as well as a number of public sector organisations.
“Our pioneering Space Engineering programmes have been developed in partnership with the National Space Academy and our new Nuclear Technician Apprenticeship programme meets the specific business needs of Cavendish Nuclear. We’re also aiming to help close the local and regional Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) skills gap through a collaborative partnership community of regional stakeholders, employers, education providers and government agencies.
“We are the lead college supporting Loughborough University’s Maths Education Centre in its project to improve maths and English delivery in secondary schools and the College takes an active lead in supporting the Loughborough Learning Alliance to improve the quality of teaching and leadership within primary schools.
“We’ll continue to work with Nicky Morgan as part of the #LoveOurColleges campaign to raise awareness of the vital role of Loughborough College - and of colleges across the country - in transforming lives, driving regional growth and ensuring our economy can compete on a global stage.”