Sector Skills Councils
Encyclopedia
Sector Skills Councils are state-sponsored, employer-led organisations that cover specific economic sectors in the United Kingdom
. They have four key goals:
SSCs achieve these aims by contributing to the development of National Occupational Standards
, the design and approval of Apprenticeship
frameworks, brokering Sector Skills Agreements and creating Sector Qualification Strategies. There are currently twenty-five SSCs, covering about 85 per cent of the British
workforce. SSCs are licensed by the Government through the UK Commission for Employment and Skills
(UKCES).
The Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA) was formerly responsible for funding, supporting and monitoring SSCs and for overseeing industries that fell outside an SSC footprint. From 1st April 2008, the SSDA was replaced by the UKCES and the Alliance of Sector Skills Councils comprising all 25 Sector Skills Councils (SSCs). The full extent of the Alliance’s scope will develop over time, but its core purpose is to:
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. They have four key goals:
- to reduce skills gaps and shortages
- to improve productivityProductivityProductivity is a measure of the efficiency of production. Productivity is a ratio of what is produced to what is required to produce it. Usually this ratio is in the form of an average, expressing the total output divided by the total input...
- to boost the skills of their sector workforces
- to improve learning supply.
SSCs achieve these aims by contributing to the development of National Occupational Standards
National Occupational Standards
National Occupational Standards specify UK standards of performance that people are expected to achieve in their work, and the knowledge and skills they need to perform effectively.-Definition:...
, the design and approval of Apprenticeship
Apprenticeship
Apprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a skill. Apprentices or protégés build their careers from apprenticeships...
frameworks, brokering Sector Skills Agreements and creating Sector Qualification Strategies. There are currently twenty-five SSCs, covering about 85 per cent of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
workforce. SSCs are licensed by the Government through the UK Commission for Employment and Skills
UK Commission for Employment and Skills
The UK Commission for Employment and Skills is a non-departmental public body that provides advice on skills and employment policy to the UK Government and the Devolved Administrations.-History:...
(UKCES).
The Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA) was formerly responsible for funding, supporting and monitoring SSCs and for overseeing industries that fell outside an SSC footprint. From 1st April 2008, the SSDA was replaced by the UKCES and the Alliance of Sector Skills Councils comprising all 25 Sector Skills Councils (SSCs). The full extent of the Alliance’s scope will develop over time, but its core purpose is to:
- Promote understanding of the role of SSCs within the skills system across the four home nations
- Co-ordinate policy positions and strategic work on skills with stakeholders across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
- Help build the performance capability of the Sector Skills Councils, to ensure they continue to work effectively on the employer-driven skills agenda