United Kingdom
Access to training
Key points
- Throughout the last decade, people with no qualifications have been around three times less likely to receive job-related training than those with some qualifications.
- The less qualifications a person has, the less likely they are to receive job-related training. For example, around 10% of employees with no qualifications report that they have received job-related training in the last three months. By contrast, among those with a higher educational qualification, the proportion receiving job-related training rises to almost 40%.
- This pattern is reflected in the proportions receiving training according to the nature of their occupation. So among those in elementary occupations, plant and machine operatives, and those engaged in skilled trades, less than 20% have received job-related training in the past three months. By contrast, among those in professional occupations, the proportion is around 40%.
- Access to training differs significantly by industry, with by far the best access being in the public sector.
Graph 1: Over time
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Graph 2: By level of qualification
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Graph 3: By occupation
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Graph 4: By industry
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Why this indicator was originally chosen
For those over 25 with no qualifications, the chances of repeated or long term unemployment, and of being low paid are considerable. Work related training and gaining new qualifications are both means of reducing the chances of such negative outcomes. The value of training and qualifications is clear: for lone parents, for example, even those with quite modest qualifications averaged 20% more in hourly earnings than those with no qualifications at all. How Education and Training Make Work Pay for Lone Mothers, DfEE, 1997.
This indicator examines the inequality in access to training between those with and without qualifications.
Definitions and data sources
The first graph shows the proportion of employees who have received some job-related training in the previous three months, with the data shown separately for those with some previous qualifications and those without. The qualifications include both academic and vocational qualifications and both current qualifications (e.g. GCSEs) and qualifications which have been awarded in the past (e.g. O levels).
The second graph shows a breakdown by the level of the employees' highest qualification. Department for Children, Schools and Families (formerly DfES) equivalence scales have been used to translate vocational qualifications into their academic equivalents.
The third graph shows a breakdown by occupation group. Note that the major occupations under the title 'personal service' are related to healthcare and childcare services. Those under 'elementary' relate to routine occupations.
The fourth graph shows a breakdown by broad industry group.
The data source for all the graphs is the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and relates to the United Kingdom. The figures for each year are the average for the four quarters of the relevant year. To improve their statistical reliability, the data for the second, third and fourth graphs is the average for the latest three years. The training includes that paid for by employers and by employees themselves.
Overall adequacy of the indicator: medium. The LFS is a well-established, quarterly government survey, designed to be representative of the population as a whole. But a single, undifferentiated notion of 'training,' without reference to its length or nature, lessens the value of the indicator.
External links
See 2002 DfES report entitled Learning and training at work.
Relevant 2007 Public Service Agreements
Overall aim: Improve the skills of the population, on the way to ensuring a world-class skills base by 2020
Lead department
Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills.
Official national targets
597,000 people of working age to achieve a first level 1 or above literacy qualification, and 390,000 to achieve a first entry level 3 or above numeracy qualification.
79% of working age adults qualified to at least full Level 2.
56% of working age adults qualified to at least full level 3.
130,000 apprentices to complete the full apprenticeship framework in 2010/11.
36% of working age adults qualified to Level 4 and above by 2014, with an interim milestone of 34% by 2011.
Increase participation in Higher Education towards 50% of those aged 18 to 30 with growth of at least a percentage point every two years to the academic year 2010/11.
Previous 2004 targets
Increase the number of adults with the skills required for employability and progression to higher levels of training through:
- improving the basic skill levels of 2.25 million adults between the launch of Skills for Life in 2001 and 2010, with a milestone of 1.5 million in 2007; and
- reducing by at least 40% the number of adults in the UK workforce who lack NVQ2 or equivalent qualifications by 2010. Working towards this, one million adults already in the workforce to achieve level 2 between 2003 and 2006.
The numbers
Graph 1
| Year | with no qualifications | with qualifications |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 8% | 28% |
| 1998 | 8% | 29% |
| 1999 | 9% | 29% |
| 2000 | 10% | 31% |
| 2001 | 11% | 31% |
| 2002 | 11% | 32% |
| 2003 | 11% | 31% |
| 2004 | 10% | 31% |
| 2005 | 11% | 31% |
| 2006 | 11% | 30% |
| 2007 | 9% | 29% |
Graph 2
| Year | All working-age adults | Higher education | A-level or equivalent | GCSE grades A*-C | GCSE below grade C | No qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 25% | 40% | 24% | 26% | 19% | 8% |
| 1998 | 26% | 40% | 25% | 26% | 20% | 8% |
| 1999 | 27% | 41% | 26% | 27% | 19% | 9% |
| 2000 | 28% | 42% | 27% | 28% | 21% | 10% |
| 2001 | 29% | 43% | 28% | 28% | 21% | 11% |
| 2002 | 29% | 42% | 28% | 28% | 23% | 11% |
| 2003 | 29% | 41% | 27% | 27% | 22% | 11% |
| 2004 | 29% | 40% | 27% | 27% | 22% | 10% |
| 2005 | 29% | 40% | 28% | 26% | 21% | 11% |
| 2006 | 28% | 38% | 27% | 25% | 20% | 11% |
| 2007 | 27% | 37% | 26% | 25% | 20% | 9% |
Graph 3
| Elementary | 17% |
|---|---|
| Plant & Machine | 14% |
| Sales & Customer Service | 23% |
| Personal service | 41% |
| Skilled Trades | 18% |
| Administrative & Secretarial | 25% |
| Associate Professional | 39% |
| Professional | 43% |
| Management | 26% |
Graph 4
| Agriculture & fishing | 12% |
|---|---|
| Energy and water | 32% |
| Manufacturing | 19% |
| Construction | 19% |
| Distribution, hotels & restaurants | 20% |
| Transport and communication | 20% |
| Banking, finance & insurance | 28% |
| Public admin, education and health | 43% |
| Other services | 24% |