Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to facilitate collaboration between colleges and employers.

The introduction of the new Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIP) will forge closer and more dynamic relationships between employers and colleges as they work together to meet an area’s technical skills needs.

The eight LSIP Trailblazers engaged a range of employers and skills providers, helping to forge relationships and networks that had not previously existed. We are making good progress on the next stage of rolling out LSIP across the country, and we expect to designate the first tranche of employer representative bodies to lead on the development of the plans in the early autumn.

The rollout of LSIP will build on the excellent provider and employer collaboration that has been built upon through apprenticeships, T Levels and our other skills reforms.