A NEW £50m fund to help businesses develop their workforces’ skills was launched by the Government today.
The Growth and Innovation Fund is designed to help employer groups overcome barriers to growth in their sectors and industries.
Business secretary Vince Cable said: “This Government understands that to rebalance and grow our economy, we need to tackle the skills shortages that hold companies back.
“Through this fund, we will support employers that take collective action to overcome these blockages to expansion.
“By putting the employer voice at the heart of the process, we will reward inventive approaches to training that deliver real help to get business moving.”
Employer groups, such as professional bodies and trade associations, will be able to apply to the fund which will be delivered by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills and the Skills Funding Agency.
Charlie Mayfield, chairman of UKES and the John Lewis Partnership, added: “This Fund is about employers taking control of their own destinies.
“We are looking for ambitious, innovative and sustainable schemes that will tangibly improve the skills base of the sector and make a real and lasting improvement to performance.”
GIF funding will be used to support the introduction of new professional standards, the expansion of national skills academies and in joint investment programmes that bring together employer and public investment in specific training schemes.
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