Unlocking Our Potential: Skills, Employability, Enterprise and Growth, 30 th January 2013

1. Unlocking Our Potential: Skills, Employability, Enterprise and Growth, 30th January 2013 ‘Encouraging Growth in the Local Market’ Presentation by Stephen Catchpole Managing Director of Tees Valley Unlimited

2. Content • Introduction to Tees Valley economy and Tees Valley Unlimited – the Local Enterprise Partnership. • TVU’s Policy Background • Delivering Economic Growth and Prosperity • Importance of Skills • Key Challenges • New Approaches/Ways of Working • Lessons Learnt

3. Introduction to Tees Valley Economy and Tees Valley Unlimited - the Local Enterprise Partnership • Industrial heartland • Twin problems of insufficient private sector jobs and an over reliance on the public sector. • High levels of unemployment particularly • young people. • Tees Valley Unlimited (TVU) - public/private partnership - funded by five local authorities - remit to drive forward economic growth

4. TVU’s Policy Background • Economic Strategy - Statement of Ambition - Delivery through Business Plan • Drives all activities - Enterprise Zone - Regional Growth Fund - Growing Places Fund - Sector Plans - Investment Plan - City Deal Application • Vision

5. Delivering Economic Growth and Prosperity • Build on existing strengths • Attract new complementary sectors • Attract new foreign inward investment • Build relationships with businesses/ business representative organisations • Exploit opportunities - RGF successes - Access to Finance/ Financial Incentives - Supply Chain work - Simplified planning procedures

6. Importance of Skills • Correlation between skills, wage levels, economic prosperity • Low skills restricts opportunity at individual and community levels • Employers looking for higher level of skill even for entry level jobs • Work readiness just as important as skills in many cases • Concentration on levels 3 and 4 only marginalises huge numbers particularly those in work

7. Key Challenges • Employer led but real issue of identification of needs/numbers/timescale • Provider led but real issue of failure to meet • changing needs of economy quickly enough • Need first class data & know how to use it • Need to ‘over provide’ certain skills • but uneconomic to do so • Need to engage small businesses in • training initiatives

8. Key Challenges cont • Need to target young people at early enough age to make a difference • Need to engage with • teachers and parents • Need to reconnect schools • with ‘local’ employers • Need to upgrade existing • work forces’ skills

9. New Approaches/Ways of Working • Employer Engagement - RGF bid - EOP bid - Over provision • Provider Engagement - HE - FE Colleges - Private Providers

10. New Approaches/Ways of Working cont • Role of LEP - Economic Information - Facilitator - City Deal • Innovative Initiatives - Cadetships - Skills Event - Tax incentives for employers to engage with schools - Young Persons Guarantee - STEM Academy - Increased Apprenticeships (Foundation for Growth) - Digital City - Lesson Plans - Videos

11. “A really fantastic event that has enabled our whole year 10 cohort to receive some hands on experience ... getting 154 students to engage in this type of learning can be trying – this wasn’t.” “It was much better than gathering leaflets and forms from the various stands. The majority of our students really enjoyed the event and came back with lots of information and ideas to support their career choices.”

12. Lessons Learnt • Its not easy!! • Understand your economy and stakeholders/partners • Build solid relationships • Articulate a shared goal recognising that each participant may achieve a different benefit from the goal • To influence youngsters the message must be in language/terms they can relate to • The message must be deliverable • Innovation works – don’t be afraid to try new approaches • Be ambitious, pragmatic and fleet of foot