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This study, based on Cohorts 9 and 10 of the England and Wales Youth Cohort Study (YCS), addresses a number of questions, including: (1) How many students work part-time in Years 12 and 13, and how many hours do they spend in jobs and on their studies? (2) What factors increase the probability of students taking part-time jobs? (3) What kinds of jobs do they do, and how much do they earn? and (4) What impact does part-time employment have on examination results? The extent of part-time employment amongst young people in full time education, both at age 16/17 and age 17/18, is described. Patterns of part-time employment amongst students in different types of courses, as well as the factors that increased theprobability of part-time employment from perspectives of gender, Year 11 results, ethnicity, home background and region, are looked at and a statistical model is fitted to disentangle the impact of these variables. The labour market for students aged 16/17 is analysed, providing information on occupational and industrial structure and wage levels and comparing the student labour market with that of 16/17 year olds who were not in full-time education. Further statistical models that explore the impact of part-time employment on examination results and/or vocational qualifications in Years 12 and 13 are presented. The final section highlights the main findings from the analyses and discusses their relevance to educational policy. Show less

The objectives of the Workforce Training in England 2006 survey were to collect information from employers about: the volume, type and pattern of employer-provided training; the motivations for training and the impact it has had; the barriers to undertaking any or more training; the use of external training providers and levels of satisfaction with them; awareness of government programmes and initiatives connected with training, and levels of involvement with them. The survey consists of 4,002 interviews undertaken with employers in England. All sizes and sectors were included. A multi-stage sampling strategy was used taking into account establishment size, industry sector and region. Findings include: overall, three fifths of employers (61 per cent) reported that they had provided some employees at the location with training over the previous 12 months; size is a key determinant of the likelihood of training being provided; three fifths (61 per cent) of all employees have received training in the last 12 months; managers, professionals and associate professionals were more likely to have been provided with training by their employer than other occupational groups; health and safety and job specific skills training were the most likely types of training to be provided by employers that train (79 per cent and 76 per cent respectively); two thirds of employers that train had also provided induction training (67 per cent); half had funded or arranged training to develop management and leadership skills (49 per cent) and a similar proportion had sought to develop interpersonal skills through training (47 per cent); basic skills training had been arranged by one in eight employers that train (12 per cent, equivalent to 7 per cent of all employers), and this was most commonly training in numeracy (5 per cent of all employers), literacy (5 per cent) or English language (3 per cent); the most common method used to deliver training is via in-house staff at the trainee’s usual workstation (71 per cent of employers that train use this method); training delivered off-site by external providers (59 per cent) and using external providers or in-house staff to deliver a taught course on-site (68 per cent) were also common methods among establishments funding or arranging training; and almost two thirds of employers that train (65 per cent) relied on staff to participate in some form of self-learning (including e-learning).

Excerpts from published introduction and summary of findings. Show less

This report provides the first systematic review and analysis of the participation of women in information technology, electronics and communications (ITEC)-related courses and careers internationally. The research focuses on six countries: the United Kingdom (UK), the United States of America (USA), Canada, Ireland, Taiwan and Spain. It is based on empirical data, available literature and interviews with key players (ITEC experts, employer representatives, and members of industry specific professional bodies) in the six countries. The research provides a comprehensive analysis of the position of women in ITEC-related courses, compares and contrasts patterns in the participation of women in the UK with those in the other countries, and identifies lessons for education and employment policy and practices that could improve the situation for women in the UK. The findings indicate a disparity between the participation and position of men and women in ITEC-related courses and careers in all six countries. In addition, given the relative proportions of men and women in the graduate population and in the workforce, the gender gap is much wider than it should be. Show less

This longitudinal research study reports on the experiences of young people with special education needs (SEN) two years after they have completed statutory schooling. The study aimed to provide an overview of the experiences, achievements and attitudes of young people with SEN during their post-16 transitions and beyond and to identify strengths, weaknesses and barriers to further and higher education, training, employment and independent living. Key findings indicate that: most young people were likely to report that their parents were most helpful to them in their post-16 transitions; most young people had gained a level one equivalent qualification from school; young people in work were mainly engaged in elementary occupations and were not involved in any work-related or government-supported training; examples of relatively smooth transitions appeared to be the exception rather than the rule; and most parents believed that education had given their child greater confidence and taught them subjects that were work-related. Show less

Pseudo cohorts are 'artificially created data sets constructed from repeated cross-sections'. They enable analysis of the extent to which the growth in qualifications held by the population is a result of skill upgrading as individuals age, and to what extent it is caused by new, more highly educated cohorts entering the workforce to replace older, less well-qualified workers. This report details such an analysis undertaken for the UK, France, Germany and the US. The analysis considers three cohorts: the first is aged 19-21 in 1985, and is then observed again in 1991 when its members are aged 25-27, and in 1997, when they are aged 31-33; the second cohort is constructed so that its members are aged 19-21 in 1991, 25-27 in 1997 and 31-33 in 2003; and the third cohort created is aged 19-21 in 1997, and 25-27 in 2003. The report considers the results for the UK and then compares those in the other countries. The report concludes that, although the education level of young people in the UK is rising (both within and between cohorts), gains are only being made in some respects on the other countries in terms of closing the skills gap. Show less

In June 2003, the UK government will publish a national Skills Strategy and Delivery Plan. The strategy will establish a broad agenda for raising skill levels amongst young people and adults in close cooperation with employers to ensure that their skill needs are satisfied. The strategy will describe the roles and responsibilities of employers, individuals and government in skills development, including the government’s role in providing institutional, qualifications and quality frameworks. The aim of the strategy is to create a more demand-led learning system and it will include: a comprehensive approach to promoting participation in learning through better advice and rendering learning more attractive and accessible to learners of all ages; the government’s approach to engaging employers across all areas of skills development; adult workforce development, especially in relation to the delivery plan for the new Level 2 target for adults, i.e. to reduce by at least 40% the number of adults in the workforce without a Level 2 or equivalent qualification by 2010; and the outcomes of the review of the funding of adult learning. This evidence paper summarises the key statistical and research evidence on the nature of the skill challenge that the strategy will address and on the rationale for government intervention to meet the challenge. The paper aims to explain the rationale and evidence underpinning the progress report published in conjunction with this paper. The key messages are that skills play an important role in increasing productivity and providing a route to stable employment for workers. Workforce skills are lower in the UK than in other countries with the cause being a mixture of supply and demand factors. There is a particular need for the government to help adults who have not achieved a level 2 qualification, therefore lacking the skills required for ongoing employability.

The companion report, ‘Developing a national skills strategy and delivery plan: progress report’ is indexed at TD/TNC 73.358. ‘Funding adult learning: technical paper’ is indexed at TD/TNC 73.360. Show less

This paper contains a joint Department for Education and Skills (DfES) and Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) interpretation of the evidence on the role of skills in the labour market and their impact on productivity. It represents the evidence base where DfES and DWP priorities overlap, focusing on those with low skills and how to improve their employability for sustained employment that provides opportunities for progression. The contents are: Executive summary; The UK’s international performance on employment and productivity; The role of qualifications and skills in the labour market; General evidence on the link between skills and productivity; Improving employment and skills levels of those with no or low qualifications or skills; The future supply of, and demand for, skills; Conclusion; References. Show less

The Department for Education and Skills (DfES) compile and produce statistical publications covering a broad range of topics in education and training in the United Kingdom. Each monthly issue of Statistical First Release (SFR) lists the schedule of statistical publications for the next six months and provides a provisional program for the following six months. SFRs contain key information on a variety of issues including youth training and employment, employment policy outcomes, work-based training, qualifications, adult education, and education and training participation. Many of these statistics form part of National Statistics, which is a quality marker applied to some UK official statistics that are produced in accordance with the ‘Framework for National Statistics’ and comply with the principles embodied in the ‘National Statistics Code of Practice’. Show less

This eighth edition of ‘Education and training statistics for the United Kingdom’ uses over 50 tables to provide an integrated overview of statistics on education and training in the UK. It covers: expenditure; schools; post-compulsory education and training; qualifications and destinations; population; and international comparisons. Key facts reported under ‘Post-compulsory education and training’ include: in 2001/02, 72% of 16 year olds and 58% of 17 year olds were in post-compulsory education either at school or in full-time further education; there were 47,300 new starts on Advanced Modern Apprenticeship schemes (AMAs) in England in 2002/3; the average number of learners on AMAs in 2002/3 was 108,300, representing almost two-fifths of the average year for the total number of learners on work-based learning for young people; people with high levels of qualifications were much more likely than those with low or no qualifications to have received job-related training; the economically inactive tend to receive job-related training of a longer duration than that received by employees; and a further education college or university is the most common location for off-the-job training. Show less

The Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) is an allowance paid to young people between the ages of 16 and 19 from lower-income families to support their participation, retention and achievement in post-16 education. This report investigates young people’s labour market experiences in order to assess the effect of two years of post-16 education on their initial position, and subsequent progression within the labour market. It has drawn on data from the large scale surveys of young people that have formed part of the evaluation of the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) pilots. The data compare the employment and training trajectories of two groups of EMA eligible young people when they were 19 years old: (1) those who had entered the labour market at the end of Year 11 and who remained in employment or training until the age of 19; and (2) those who had completed two years in post-16 education and then entered the labour market at 18. The final section of the report looks at young people who were not in education, employment or training (NEET), investigating both the length of time for which those who were NEET at the age of 19 had been so, and the circumstances at 19 of young people who had been NEET at 18 following two years in compulsory education. Key findings indicate that: young people who had spent two years in post-16 education before entering the labour market at 18 were generally in a better position than those who had entered the labour market immediately after compulsory education and were much more likely to be in managerial, professional and associated professional and technical jobs; nearly a third of young people who had left school at 16 were in skilled trade occupations at 19 and had accessed training in sectors such as engineering and construction, where skill shortages are known to exist; as far as participation in government supported training was concerned, there was a clear difference between 16-year old and 18-year old labour market entrants, with a significantly larger proportion of 16-year old school leavers accessing the labour market through this route; a number of young people who had left education at 18 had spent one year in employment before resuming their studies at the age of 19; young people who had entered work with no training had the highest turnover rates; among young people who had accessed the labour market at 18, the largest proportion of young people who became NEET at 19, came from the jobs without training category; and the majority of young people who were NEET at age 18, following two years in full-time education, had left the NEET group at the age of 19. Show less