Alliance of Sector Skills Councils

The Alliance of Sector Skills Councils

The Alliance was established on the 1 April 2008, and it comprises 21 licensed UK Sector Skills Councils (SSCs), the employer driven organisations that together articulate the voice of employers of 85% of the UK's workforce on skills issues.  It's core purpose is to

  • act as the collective voice of the Sector Skills Councils
  • promote understanding of the role of SSCs within the skills system across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
  • co-ordinate policy positions and strategic work on skills with stakeholders across the four home nations
  • help build the performance capability of the SSCs, to ensure they continue to work effectively on the employer driven skills agenda

Sector Skills Councils

Each Sector Skills Council will agree priorities and targets with its employers and partners to address four key goals:

  • reducing skills gaps and shortages
  • improving productivity, business and public service performance
  • increasing opportunities to boost the skills and productivity of everyone in the sector’s workforce, including action on equal opportunities
  • improving learning supply, including apprenticeships, higher education and national occupational standards

A total of 21 Sector Skills Councils have been granted a license to operate by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills. Sectoral Development Branch is fully involved at all stages of the licensing process ensuring that NI interests are represented.

Sectoral Development Branch is committed to working with the Alliance and SSCs in the three main areas of:

  • skills forecasting
  • development of occupational standards
  • development of modern apprenticeships frameworks.

Visit the Alliance for Sector Skills Councils website external link  for more information on the Alliance or go to the individual websites of the SSC by following the links on the table below:

Sector Skills Councils Business Area
Asset Skills external link Property, housing, cleaning services, parking and facilities management
IMI external link The retail motor industry
Cogent external link Bioscience, Chemical, nuclear, oil and gas, petroleum and polymer industries
Construction Skills external link Construction
Creative and Cultural Skills external link Craft, cultural heritage, design, literature, music, visual and performing arts
Energy and Utility Skills external link Electricity, gas, waste management and water industries
E-Skills NI external link Information technology, telecommunications and contact centres
Financial Skills Partnership external link Financial services finance and accounting sectors
Go Skills external link Formally merges with People 1st on 4 July 2011 See People 1st for more details
Improve Ltd external link Food and drink manufacturing and processing
Lantra external link Environmental and land-based industries
People 1st external link and GoSkills formally merged on 4 July 2011 Hospitality, leisure, passenger transport, travel and tourism
ProSkills external link Process and manufacturing industry
external linkEMTA Science, engineering and manufacturing technologies (including Composities)
SkillsActive external link Active leisure, Learning and Well-being
Skills for Care and Development external link Early years, children and young people's services, social work and social care for adults and children
Skills for Health external link The health sector across the UK
Skills for Justice external link Community safety, courts,tribunals and prosecution, custodial care, fire and rescue, forensic science, law enforcement, offender management and support, policing, victim, survivor and witness support, youth justice and the children's workforce. Legal services joined the footprint in 2010/201, justice, court services, customs
Skills for Logistics external link Freight logistics industry, and Wholesale
Skillset external link Broadcast, film, video, interactive media, photo imaging, publishing and advertising.  Fashion and Textiles (from 1 April 2010)
Skillsmart Retail external link Retail
SummitSkills external link Building services engineering