Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support pathways are available in (a) schools and (b) other educational establishments for students who wish to enter the warehousing sector.

The department’s skills reforms in England provide a ladder of opportunity that enables young people and adults to get good jobs and progress in their careers. The department is building a skills system that is employer focused, high quality and fit for the future, and is flexible enough to lead to more people completing high quality courses that meet employers’ needs in all sectors.

This ambitious skills agenda is backed by £3.8 billion of investment over this Parliament. The department is using this to expand and strengthen higher and further education (FE), ensuring skills training is aligned to the needs of employers to enable communities to thrive.

With this investment, the department is putting employers at the heart of the skills system, which is why the department is working with industry to shape our training offers, creating more routes into skilled employment in key economic sectors.

The department’s high quality apprenticeships support individuals of all ages in earning and learning the skills needed to start or advance a career in the warehousing sector. Through the Apprenticeships Support and Knowledge programme, the department actively promotes these opportunities in schools and FE colleges by providing a free, bespoke package of information and support to students about apprenticeships. Furthermore, the department has the funding rate for the Level 2 Supply Chain Warehouse Operative has recently increased from £3,000 to £5,000, supporting training providers to deliver high quality apprenticeships in the sector.

The Free Courses for Jobs offer, which was launched in April 2021, gives eligible adults the chance to access high value Level 3 qualification for free, which can support them to gain higher wages or a better job. This offer includes a qualification in warehousing and storage and allows eligible learners to access a high-value Level 3 qualification for free, to gain higher wages and access new job opportunities.

Skills bootcamps are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, giving people the opportunity to build up sector-specific skills, with an offer of a job interview with an employer on completion. To help address the shortage of heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers across the country, skills bootcamps in HGV driving provide more opportunities for people to train as drivers, gain their licences and launch new careers in the sector.

The Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC) is supporting schools and colleges to embed best practice in the delivery of careers information, advice, and guidance, so that young people are aware of the full range of training and careers available to them and have access to a broad range of employers and workplaces, including those in the warehousing sector. For example, CEC partner with industries and sector bodies to support them in developing their talent and skills pipeline by providing them with a clear means for them to engage with schools and colleges.

The National Careers Service (NCS) provides free, up to date, impartial information, advice and guidance on careers, skills and the Labour Market in England to all people aged 13+. In particular, those aged 13-18 can access information and advice through the NCS website, including through webchat and the telephone helpline which is supported by local community-based career advisers. The NCS website gives customers access to a range of digital tools and resources to support them. This includes ‘Explore Careers’ which provides information on a broad range of industry sectors and more than 800 job profiles. Job profiles include information regarding entry routes, skills and knowledge requirements, key tasks, and potential progression routes for each respective role. Regarding the warehousing sector, there are currently job profiles for roles such as order picker, warehouse worker, and warehouse manager. The content team regularly researches and updates content and welcomes updates from industry to ensure content is accurate and up to date.