Q. What are Sector Skills Councils?
A They are independent, UK-wide employer-led bodies, with employee representatives charged with improving the training and qualifications of the workforce in industry, business and public services. SSCs are licensed by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills Charles Clarke, in consultation with ministers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Currently there are 19 SSCs, either licensed or recommended for licence, with a further six in development, including one covering the children's workforce.
What they all have in common is that they develop national occupational standards and qualification frameworks to tackle skills shortages and improve the productivity of business and the performance of public services.
Central to this is improving the quality and relevance of what the Government terms 'public learning supply', including the development of apprenticeships and higher education.
The DfES will invest up to 4m in an SSC over its initial three-year contract to cover core work, including sector analysis, development of an action plan and work with key partners. SSCs also have access to innovation funding to supplement investment from employers.
Q. Who is going to be the SSC for early years and childcare and what will be its structure?
A. The SSC covering this sector is going to be called Skills for Care and Development. In England it will be made up of two elements: the Children, Young People and Families Workforce Council (CYPFWC) and the Adult Care Council. The DfES says the emphasis in the Green Paper Every Child Matters on developments for the children's workforce in England 'made the creation of two complementary councils a logical step'.
The two councils will be part of a five-pronged UK-wide federated structure also comprising the Northern Ireland Social Care Council, the Care Council for Wales and the Scottish Social Services Council. The councils in these three UK countries are based on their statutory regulatory bodies for the social care sector.
Paul Ennals, chief executive of the National Children's Bureau, was appointed interim chair of the CYPFWC by minister for children Margaret Hodge in June. His first tasks have been to make sure the council is representative of all the main employer groups, including local government and the private and voluntary sector, and establish a shared vision, business plan and governance model.
The governance group of the council has met twice, in July and September, to ensure that it is covering all the sectors, including early years, social care and foster carers, as well as those working with young people as personal advisers and learning mentors. The CYPFWC also has representation from the TUC and other bodies including the National Childminding Association, the National Day Nurseries Association and the Pre-School Learning Alliance.
Q. What will it be responsible for?
A. The principal driving force behind the development of an SSC covering early years and childcare is Every Child Matters and the process of integrating services. The tragic death of Victoria Climbie and the subsequent Laming Inquiry focused attention on the need to improve training for all professionals working with children and more inter-agency working to deliver services in a more joined-up way. By developing common occupational standards and training, the SSC will aim to improve co-ordination between all those working with children. It will address areas where there are problems with recruitment and retention, as well as status and morale within the professions.
A recent Government survey showed that 12.6 per cent of children's social work posts across the country remain unfilled, while 13 per cent of all social workers are agency staff. Integrating the training and qualifications frameworks will make it easier for staff in one sector to work alongside colleagues who have other specialisms, enable them to switch to other related professions and help them understand their respective roles.
A key role for the CYPFWC will be supporting the workforce who will staff the children's centres and extended schools, and working out what training and qualifications they will require. It is also considering whether, like some other SSCs, it will be involved in directly funding training and monitoring its quality.
Q. What is the children's workforce network?
A. Delays in developing a specific SSC have meant that many of those working with children are already part of existing SSCs, such as Skills for Health for those working in the health service and SkillsActive, the SSC for playworkers. Instead of dismantling and reconstituting these SSCs into one all-embracing SSC covering the two million people working with children, the Government chose to promote partnership working between them by creating the Children's Workforce Network.
The DfES describes the network as 'a UK-wide grouping of SSCs and SSC-like bodies, all with interests in the children and young people's workforce'.
The network will bring the CYPFWC, which is expected to take on a co-ordination role and chair the network, together with other SSCs, such as Skills for Health, Skills for Justice and SkillsActive.
There are also likely to be close ties with the Teacher Training Agency (TTA), which is technically not an SSC but a non-departmental public body set up by the Government, whose functions mirror those of an SSC. One option currently being considered is for formal cross-representation between the workforce council and the TTA, so that each has a representative from the other on their respective boards.
Q. What is the timetable for establishing the SSC covering the children's workforce?
A. The SSC for the children's workforce has yet to be licensed, but should be up and running by April next year. The license application is expected to be considered in November and the CYPFWC has appointed a development director who will take it forward until a chief executive is installed. The council will no longer be a shadow body but will have its own elected chair. Mr Ennals has made it clear that he will not be seeking this permanent post.
Before an SSC receives a licence from the Government, the various sectors involved work closely in the development phase with the Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA) for about six months. The timetable for obtaining a licence is managed by the training organisation, TOPSS UK. If the SSDA board are satisfied that the sectors meet all the necessary criteria then a recommendation is made to the DfES for a five-year licence.
While the SSC is in development, the early years national training organisation is still operating. It is keeping the modern apprenticeship framework under review, issuing modern apprenticeship certificates, and giving employers and new recruits advice on recruitment and training.
REACTIONS TO THE SSC
* Paul Ennals, chief executive of the National Children's Bureau and interim chair of the CYPFWC, says, 'So far we are extremely pleased with the progress being made. There is always anxiety when one talks about integration and bringing people together under a new grouping. There is anxiety that some people will not want that to happen. But there has been strong support from employers and key employee groups. Some employee groups understandably will want to wait and see what it means in practice. They will want to ensure that both the interests of social care and early years and other groups are represented in a broad-based council. But the early signs are very positive.'
* CACHE chief executive Richard Dorrance says, 'We support the proposals to set up an SSC and the separate council for England for Children, Young People and Families. We recognise that there is still a lot of work to be done, particularly on the communication channels between the SSC and other bodies with an interest in the development of the childcare and education workforce. We are looking to the council to support the professionalism of everyone working in the sector and to come up with a sustainable strategy to raise the profile of the sector with Government and parents.'
* Rosemary Murphy, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association, is a member of the shadow board of the CYPFWC. She says, 'The shadow board is working to ensure that the council is set up with a clear remit and robust business plan. It is very important that early years and childcare has a place at the table; being fully involved will be vital to achieving the long-term objective of professionalising the sector. It's an exciting time for workforce development. There are real challenges to ensure that employers from the private and voluntary sector are effectively represented when this newly-formed SSC is overwhelmingly public sector-dominated.'
* Michael Freeston, director of Training and Quality Assurance at the Pre-School Learning Alliance, says, 'The alliance will work closely with the council to ensure it meets its vision to ensure that the children and young persons' workforce plays a full part in assisting every child to fulfil their potential.
'We are particularly concerned to ensure that the qualification and training framework recognises the equal importance of children's development and education as issues surrounding their care. We look forward to supporting the introduction of accessible learning opportunities for our expanding workforce.'