London has a distinct gap when it comes to advanced digital skills (ADS), with there being increased employer demand while the supply is simply not there. Tackling these kinds of ADS gaps across the country could increase annual UK GDP by around £68 billion, and the adoption of advanced digital technologies could add £520 billion to the UK economy by 2030. Earlier this month, we at BusinessLDN were delighted to launch our new report ‘Pioneering Advanced Digital Skills for All’ in response to these skills needs, and as part of our leadership of the London Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP).
In the study, we set out the actions needed to accelerate the roll out of ADS across London. The report calls for the Mayor to make ADS provision central to is new Growth Plan for London, the creation of a new public-private partnership between employers, education providers and London Government to co-create and fund programmes, and for the Government to deliver further devolution of skills funding to the Mayor so action can be targeted where it is needed.
London’s labour market is at the sharp end of a new technological revolution, driven by AI and other new technologies. The Mayor is committed to an ambitious London Growth Plan, and we need ADS to be a cornerstone of that growth plan – a point echoed by Theo Blackwell at our report launch, kindly hosted by Turner & Townsend. There is the potential for billions to be added to the capital’s and UK’s economy should the potential of ADS be harnessed. To deliver this, we recommend that the upcoming Budget devolves funding for the National Careers Service to enable greater ability to shape the service for local needs.
Attendees of the report launch heard from Guy Beaumont, Director, Digital Lead – Infrastructure, Turner & Townsend, and Theo Blackwell, Chief Digital Officer, Greater London Authority, as well as Mark Hilton and Edward Richardson, who lead BusinessLDN’s LSIP work.
The LSIP is a Department of Education funded programme which supported development of our blueprint for skills development across London, identifying areas of demand and opportunity for growth in key sectors. Launched last year, the LSIP found that the majority (54%) of London firms see ADS as the most needed over next 2 – 5 years, and that the rate of demand is not in step with supply of talent in this area. This prompted a deep dive into ADS, culminating in our report which found challenges such as issues with recruitment and retention for teachers in the sector, a low demand from younger learners, and the issue of future-proofing training in a sector which is developing at such a fast pace.
The report’s launch was attended by around 80 key stakeholders in the digital skills space, both from employer and educator backgrounds, and discussion centred around the significant unmet employer demand for people with ADS, and the ways this can be addressed through employer-educator cooperation and partnerships.
The size of the prize when it comes to ADS is significant, and so it has never been more important to tackle this skills gap now and make London the best tech city in the world.
To find out more about the LSIP or our work on Advanced Digital Skills, please visit our microsite or get in touch with Edward Richardson.