Agenda and minutes

Observers

Sharon Riding - District External Relationship Manager, Cumbria and Lancashire District.

Dean Langton - Strategic Director and Head of Paid Service, Pendle Borough Council.

Also in Attendance

Dr Michele Lawty-Jones - Skills Hub Director.

Lisa Moizer - Coordinator, Lancashire Skills Hub.

Mike Neville, Democratic Services, Lancashire County Council.

Andy Walker, Head of Business Growth & Innovation, Lancashire County Council.

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting. It was noted that apologies had been received from P Holme and G Haworth.

No declarations of interest were made in respect of items on the agenda.

It was noted that the Enterprise Adviser Network celebration event would be held on the 30^th September 2016 and not the 13^th as specified in the draft Minutes.

Resolved:

1.  That the draft Minutes of the meeting held on the 27^th July 2016 are amended to show that the Enterprise Adviser Network celebration event will be held on the 30^th September, 2016.

2.  That, subject to the above amendment, the Minutes of the meeting held on the 27^th July 2016 are confirmed as an accurate record and signed by the Chair.

Michele Lawty-Jones reported that two Enterprise Coordinators would shortly be appointed and further information regarding governance associated with the Lancashire Moving on Project would be presented to the next meeting.

Michele Lawty-Jones presented a report on the development of the 'skills conclusion' which would be presented to the Area Based Review (ABR) Steering Group on the 4^th October 2016.

In considering the report the Committee made the following comments.

·  Subject to some minor amendments regarding the future/inclusive workforce, relationship with Universities, the visitor economy and advanced manufacturing the draft LEP 'skills conclusion' slide pack as presented was welcomed.

·  It was acknowledged that the timescale would mean that there was limited time to share the draft skills conclusion with the Shadow Combined Authority. However, it was acknowledged that the Working Group brought together colleagues from the LEP, Combined Authority and Local Authorities and it was suggested that Officers continue to liaise in order to ensure that the LEP and Local Authority submissions complemented each other.

·  The need to develop partnerships and build a joint capability with educational institutions and employers should be reflected in the conclusion.

·  Consideration should be given to learning from the experience of areas such as Birmingham and Manchester which had already been subject to an ABR.

·  It was suggested that membership of the Steering Group for the Lancashire ABR should be kept relatively small in order to ensure that it remains effective.

·  Members welcomed the suggestion from the Working Group of individual meetings with institutions in between Steering Groups 1 & 2, as had happened in other areas such as Liverpool.

Resolved:

1.  That the comments of the Committee, as set out above, are taken into account in finalising the draft 'skills conclusion' for the Lancashire Area Based Review.

2.  That the revised draft 'skills conclusion' is presented to the LEP Board on the 13^th September 2016 for approval.

3.  That officers liaise with colleagues preparing the submission from Local Authorities to ensure that the LEP and Local Authority submissions complement each other.

4.  That the final LEP 'skills conclusion' together with the Local Authority submission is presented to the Lancashire Area Based Review Steering Group on the 4^th October 2016, subject to comments from the LEP Board, and the Committee are kept informed of further developments.

5.  That the Working Group continue to meet throughout the review process to enable continued dialogue and provide a forum to take forward actions. The Working Group to also consult with JARDU in relation to individual meetings with institutions during the review process.

Lisa Moizer referred to the draft Apprenticeship Growth Plan which had been presented to the last meeting and thanked members of the Committee for their subsequent feedback. Having considered all the comments received the initial draft had been revised and an updated copy was presented for consideration.

In considering the report members of the Committee made the following comments

a)  It was noted that the Plan referred to the County Council and two unity Authorities but did not make reference to the developing Lancashire Combined Authority which it was felt should have an input in relation to the development of future economic growth.

b)  The Plan should reflect the need to incentivise growth in areas of demand and encourage schools, providers and industry to work together to promote those areas, especially in relation to Apprentices from outside the workforce. It was noted that Boost and ESIF programmes would help to attract people in their early 20s towards Apprenticeships.

c)  The Government target to achieve 3 million apprenticeship starts by 2020 was considered to be challenging and members of the Committee felt that the Plan should focus on the socio economic benefits for Lancashire and aim to encourage young people towards existing gaps in the workforce.

d)  It was suggested that clarity should be sought regarding Government thinking on apprenticeships in the light of changes to the Leadership and Cabinet following the result of the EU Referendum.

e)  With regard to the contribution which Lancashire could make to the Government target on apprenticeships Members of the Committee agreed that the Plan should be based on incremental growth up to 2020.

f)  It was suggested that more work was needed to raise the awareness of both young people and employers in relation to the availability of apprenticeships and that the Enterprise Adviser Network would be a useful means of achieving that.

 Resolved:

1.  That the comments of the Committee as set out above are noted and are taken into account when finalising the Apprenticeship Growth Plan.

2.  That partner organisations be consulted on the final version of the Apprenticeship Growth Plan. 

Lisa Moizer gave a presentation on the current version of the Skills and Employment Hub website which was being developed to signpost employers towards useful information.

When considering the website members of the Committee made the following comments.

·  Images on the website should reflect a broader range of opportunities across all sectors as many of the images currently used appeared to be related solely to engineering. Members of the Committee were encouraged to provide images and content for use on the website.

·  The number of webpages on the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership website regarding the Skills and Employment Hub should be reviewed and maintained with each website linking to the other.

·  It was suggested that QR Codes be embedded to enhance engagement.

·  The future content of the website would need careful handling in order to ensure that it was accurate and did not confuse employers.

·  In the future the website could be used to promote success stories and highlight areas where skills capital funding had provided new facilities, with links to the websites of the organisations concerned. The website could also include stories from Apprenticeship Ambassadors to illustrate the quality of training available and the impact which apprenticeships could have in areas such as improved productivity.

Resolved:

1.  That the progress to date, as set out in the report, and the current version of the Communications Plan are noted.

2.  That a link to the Skills and Employment |Hub website be circulated to all members of the Committee so that they can feedback on existing content,  usability and suggest any additions/amendments.

(Oral report)

Michele Lawty-Jones informed the meeting that a letter had been received from the department for Communities and Local Government confirming that any European Structural and Investment Fund projects which had been signed off before the Autumn Statement would be fully funded.

It was noted that the situation regarding longer term funding was less clear following the EU Referendum though it was expected that the Autumn Statement may well clarify the Government position with the possibility of some funding being available, though potentially for shorter term contracts.

The Committee was updated on the latest position regarding existing procurement processes and projects in the pipeline. It was reported that a decision was required on the funding currently aligned with the SFA opt in due to the two thirds allocation to existing projects resulting from the restricted delivery period. The Committee noted that a number of potential future projects could be procured once the availability of funding had been clarified.

Resolved: That the update is noted.

(Oral report)

Dean Langton updated the Committee on the latest developments regarding the Lancashire Combined Authority and reported that the Government had confirmed receipt of the Lancashire submission.

With regard to the Shadow Combined Authority it was reported that consideration was being given to the allocation of specific work areas to individual members and Mr Langton would report further at the next meeting.

Resolved: That the report is noted.

The Committee considered a report on the first year of operation of the Lancashire Skills and Employment Hub and made the following comments.

·  The Hub had been involved in a variety of activities and had made good progress in relation to the agreed success criteria.

·  It was suggested that consideration should be given to the future role of the Hub in relation to supporting the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership and the Combined Authority.

·  Any success criteria for 2016/17 should include reference to the Hub website with metrics relating to involvement and visits to the website. Consideration should also be given to providing evidence of the impact of the work of the Hub using case studies and feedback.

Resolved:

1.  That the report is noted.

2.  That arrangements be made for an informal meeting to be held after the next scheduled meeting of the Committee on the 11^th January 2017 at Runshaw College - Euxton Campus, to enable further consideration to be given to the recommendations for the Skills Hub 2016/17 success criteria and future work areas/direction for the Committee. 

•  Identification and agreement of any recommendations for consideration/approval by the LEP Board.

•  Identification and agreement of issues for inclusion in the feedback report for the LEP Board.

It was noted that the revised draft 'skills conclusion' in relation to the Lancashire Area Based Review would be presented to the LEP Board on the 13^th September, 2016 for consideration and approval.

Andy Walker reported that the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions was due to meet with representatives from five Lancashire businesses who actively recruited through Job Centre Plus and five which did not. It was noted that Joanne Pickering had volunteered to Chair the session.

It was also noted that a report on the Science and Innovation Audit was due to be completed and would be presented to the next meeting of the Committee.

The Committee briefly discussed the Apprenticeships Awards and it was agreed that work be undertaken to promote the 2017 awards in order to encourage an increase in the number of submissions from Lancashire businesses.

The next scheduled meeting will be held at 8.30am on the 17^th October 2016 at Blackpool and The Fylde College, Fleetwood Nautical Campus, Broadwater, Fleetwood, FY7 8JZ.

It was noted that the next meeting would be held at 8.30am on the 17^th October 2016 at Blackpool and The Fylde College, Fleetwood Nautical Campus, Broadwater, Fleetwood, FY7 8JZ.

The Chair informed the meeting that as she would be unable to attend the meeting due to another commitment Joanne Pickering would take the Chair.