Succeeding as a place, succeeding as a country

We will use unique integrated partnerships to be a testbed for the development of rapid pathways into careers for the future.

We will:

• explore decision-making improvements that ensure funding is distributed to the most appropriate locations at the local level
• support the existing workforce to re/up/multiskill to access new opportunities and a range of jobs, with a strong focus on digital
• attract and retain young people, providing them with the aspiration and skills to work and live in the county, and strengthening links between schools and flagship global assets
• ensure there is a strong talent pipeline to support future growth sectors
• offer accelerated training in qualifications linked to shortage areas, such as engineering, nursing and social care, and film by building on innovative initiatives such as the accelerated courses pioneered at the University of Buckingham
• create good quality, entry-level positions with progression opportunities
• support leadership and management training for senior executives and employers in order to ensure future scale up and growth of our businesses

A devolved and expanded Adult Education Budget, with resources and powers, will enable accelerated additional training to meet local demand.

Work with government to streamline the approach for local delivery of national employment programmes such as Kickstart.

A devolved and reformed Apprenticeship Levy will ensure that it is responsive to micro and SME business needs, and will support future jobs growth, particularly in the green economy. We will explore establishing a county-wide Apprenticeship Training Agency with a Buckinghamshire Skills Fund providing bursaries and loans and brokering apprenticeship with SMEs.

This will enable a quick and agile response to changing priorities based on the provision of real-time data. Buckinghamshire will act as a pilot for models, systems and projects to be rolled out in other places. For instance, a pilot agreement with the department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and across government on shared data would assist employment support and job matching.