Helping your association navigate the education and skills landscape
A skilled workforce is at the heart of every successful association and business, and attracting and developing the right workforce can be a challenge.
Getting involved with the education and skills system can be part of the solution, even for small associations. Recruitment for example, becomes streamlined because you’ve engaged early with the next generation of talent. And your existing workforce can gain from flexible upskilling or reskilling options revealing new opportunities for your association to grow.
That said, we know that education and skills in England has changed and can be complex to understand, which is where Education Landscape: A guide for Employers comes in.
Did you know:
- Small and medium sized businesses make up 99% of registered businesses in the UK
- TAFs 2023 benchmarking survey recorded 47% of associations as being either small or very small associations
- 4 out of 5 small and medium sized businesses have recruitment concerns, and more than half fear there is a lack of candidates with the right knowledge and skills
A national commitment to small associations and small businesses
We’re committed to helping trade associations find the education and skills landscape easier to navigate. That’s why we’re sharing Education landscape: A Guide for Employers, which has been developed in partnership with organisations including the Federation of Small Businesses, CBI, British Chamber of Commerce, and IoD to help associations across England. The Guide includes a clear, short overview of the education and landscape system, and concise information about the education and skills opportunities that associations and businesses can engage with, and the benefits these offer. There are links to further information for the options you want to prioritise.
The Education Landscape has already proven successful with TAF Member: the Electrical Contractors’ Association, who share their experience below:
Case Study: Electrical Contractors’ Association and the Education Landscape
“Education Landscape approached me at a TAF event to offer help to our Members to navigate the plethora of new courses and qualifications. It is particularly important for our SME Members to have access to up to date information about training courses to guide them when recruiting for their business needs.”
Did you know?
‘Education Landscape: A Guide for Employers’ is adaptable and can be personalised for your own association – see below:
Download the Education Landscape: A Guide for Employers
- Editable Guide Cover (Download and insert your associations’ logo to be added to the guide)
- Editable Index Cover (Download and insert your associations’ logo to be added to the index)
- Case Study Template (Download and insert your own case study)
- Case Study Template Guidance (How to insert your own case study)
Jenifer Burden, Gatsby Director of Programmes explains, “Whether it’s careers fairs, industry placements for older students, apprenticeships, or shorter programmes to support upskilling for employees, the need for education, businesses and associations to collaborate has never been stronger. For a smaller business or association however, the breadth and variety of the opportunities can be hard to keep up with, especially for those without dedicated Human Resources or Learning and Development teams.
“This is why we are working with trusted business support organisations to provide small businesses and associations with a clear starting point. The Education Landscape guide explains how SMEs and smaller associations can get involved with education and skills and shares the benefits that small business owners have experienced.
“By being involved, business support organisations are working closely with SMEs, widening the career opportunities for young people and nurturing the critical role businesses and associations play in building and developing their skilled workforce.”