Sector Skills

Sector Skills Councils are UK-wide, employer-led organisations which are licensed by the Department for Employment and Skills to cover a specific sector. As part of Skills for Care and Development (the Sector Skills Council for the Social Care, Children and Young People’s workforce) we have four key goals:

• to reduce skills gaps and shortages
• improve productivity, business and public service performance
• increase opportunities to boost the skills and productivity of everyone in the sector's workforce
• improve learning supply including apprenticeships, higher education and National Occupational Standards (NOS).

As the Sector Skills Council for the Social Care and Children’s Services Workforce in NI, NISCC is leading on the development of a Sector Skills Agreement (SSA) for the sector. The SSA will be developed in five stages and details how employers, training providers and stakeholders will work together to address skills gaps and deliver appropriate training for the social care and the childcare and early years sector. The SSA will map out exactly what skills employers need the workforce to have and how these skills will be supplied – both now and in the future. They are about getting the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time. 

There are five stages in developing the Sector Skills Agreement. 

Stage 1 - An assessment is made of the sector to determine short-term, medium-term and long-term skills needs and to map out the factors for change in the sector.

Stage 2 - Current training provision across all levels is reviewed to measure its range, nature and employer relevance.

Stage 3 - The main gaps and weaknesses in workforce development are analysed and priorities are agreed.

Stage 4 - A review is conducted into the scope for collaborative action – engaging employers to invest in skills development to support improved business performance – and an assessment is made into what employers are likely to sign up to.

Stage 5 - The final outcome is an agreement of how the SSC and employers will work with key funding partners to secure the necessary supply of training.

Reports are produced for each development stage of the SSA. They are submitted as part of the UK report for SfC&D to the Sector Skills Development Agency for review. NI reports are also reviewed by the Department of Employment and Learning. Completed reports will soon be available to download below.

If you require more information about the Sector Skills Agreement development, contact Veronica Callaghan (NISCC Professional Adviser).

top