Changes to skills funding

What does this mean for the future of your business?
Social care continues to undergo radical change. At a time of cutbacks and transformation a key challenge for employers is to ensure that they continue to invest in the learning and development of their workforce. Current government policy states that future funding for skills will be based on principles of 'fairness', 'shared responsibility' and 'greater freedoms'.

• Fairness indicates that funding is likely to be aimed at those in greatest need - the unemployed or those needing support with literacy and numeracy.
• Shared responsibility indicates those that benefit from the learning will need to contribute - meaning that both learners and employers will take on an increasing responsibility for the cost of skills development.
• Greater freedoms indicates that the learning on offer should reflect local needs giving employers and providers the opportunity to decide what is required locally.

Learning and development comes in many forms - from formal qualifications to informal learning such as coaching, mentoring, or peer support in the workplace.

The challenges of reduced funding means that employers need to think about combining different, flexible ways of learning that both supports their business needs and continues to meet the needs of people who use their services.

As skills funding is further reduced employers will need to consider a variety of models to ensure that workforce development remains a priority. Investing in staff is an investment in service quality making the biggest difference to people who use services.