Reviewing the impact of employer engagement targets

As part of Success for All (indexed at TD/TNC 72.207), the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) and Learning and Skills Council (LSC) joint strategy for building a more effective and responsive learning and skills sector, the LSC has introduced three-year development plans for further education colleges and providers. Development plans comprise a summary of strategic issues and headline improvement targets for: learner numbers; success rates; the professional qualifications of lecturers and trainers; and employer engagement. This report outlines the findings and conclusions emerging from a Learning and Skills Development Agency (LSDA) project that examined the nature and range of employer engagement in post-16 learning targets agreed in provider three-year development plans and the early impact of these targets on provision. The report also describes a typology of employer engagement and proposes a strategic framework for agreeing and reviewing the targets. The project objectives were to: (1) identify the nature of college and provider employer engagement targets, the process by which the targets are agreed, and effective practice; (2) consider the range of activities being undertaken to achieve the targets, and to classify these in relation to their expected outcomes; (3) investigate the early impact of the targets on increased employer engagement and satisfaction and on changes in provision; and (4) provide advice to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and the sector on how employer engagement is being interpreted in order to secure greater clarity in its definition. Show less