Lack of money is hitting training

Efforts by employers to train workers in readiness for an economic upturn are being thwarted by an acute shortage of funding in the Government’s biggest skills programme, a new report warned today.

Many firms could not start training any more staff on the Train for Gain scheme until at least next April, the Association of Learning Providers (ALP) said.

Many employers were not able to access new publicly-funded training provision for an entire 12–month period at a critical time for the economy, the association warned.

The ALP said it was receiving regular reports from angry employers who were becoming completely disillusioned about seeking government support for their training programmes after being wooed by a multi-million-pound advertising campaign.

Sectors hit by the funding shortage included construction, engineering and childcare, said the report.

Graham Hoyle, chief executive of ALP, said: “After months of talking, the situation now needs resolving urgently.

“With businesses needing to be competitive to fight their way out of the recession, it seems strange, and potentially damaging to the economy, that many can go a whole year without being able to start workers on the government’s flagship training scheme.

“Proposed solutions, which don’t require extra money, are on the table and we urge the government to start implementing them immediately.”