Free job skills training given green light for people earning £30k or less

People in the West Midlands earning £30,000 a year or less can now take advantage of free Level 3 job training.

The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) has given the generous training offer the green light as part of a new far-reaching package of measures to improve people’s skills and qualifications so they can get into work or land a better job.

The annual wage limit was agreed at £30,000 as this is the average salary in the West Midlands.

The package comes following a consultation by the WMCA earlier this year with regional stakeholders - including local authorities, colleges, training providers, universities and the voluntary sector..

Improving the region’s qualification levels is key to delivering the WMCA’s ambitions for a healthier, happier, better connected and more prosperous West Midlands.

Recent research showed that adults who boost their skills and gain new qualifications are more likely to be employed, earn more, and are less likely to need to claim benefits than those without.

A Level 3 qualification is equivalent to an advanced technical certificate or diploma, or two A levels.

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands and WMCA Chair, said “We remain committed to opening up opportunities for local people right across our region - boosting their own career prospects at the same time as boosting economic growth and business productivity. That’s why we’re so keen to increase the proportion of our residents qualified to Level 3.

“Our regional economy increasingly requires high level skills so it’s important  we meet that need and support our further educationE colleges to deliver those very skills.

“Over the past five years, we’ve increased our investment in higher level skills and now - following this latest consultation - we’re creating our most comprehensive approach yet by offering new learners Level 3 training free of charge if they’re earning less than £30,000.

“Now we want to raise awareness of what’s on offer for the benefit of young people, existing staff members working on their professional development or indeed any local person eligible for this initiative. Together, we can and will change lives for the better.”

Across the region, job vacancies that require a level 3 qualification pay on average £4,000 per year more than those that don’t. Yet while qualification levels in the region are increasing, they remain lower than the national average, with just 54.9% of residents qualified to level 3 or above, compared with 61.5% nationally.

Alongside this, the WMCA will also increase funding for 19-23-year-olds in full-time study to better prepare them for the jobs of the future and help tackle youth unemployment. In addition the package will see increased investment  in the professional development of staff delivering further education and employment support and the  roll out of a regional campaign to encourage more adults to take part in learning and training.

Since the devolution of skills funding in 2019, the WMCA has already increased investment in level 3 training from £4.4m to £37m a year – achieved through a combination of re-prioritizing the existing Adult Education Budget, and securing new funds for the region, including £15m for skills bootcamps in 2022/23 and £6m of funding for the Free Courses for Jobs programme.

Cllr George Duggins, WMCA portfolio lead for skills and productivity and leader of Coventry City Council, said "It is very encouraging to be able to showcase the WMCA’s strong efforts to improve the training offer for residents. Around one in ten adults in the WMCA area have no formal qualifications and we must do all we can to support them to improve their credentials and get them on the right path to better employment.

“Making positive steps to ensure training remains affordable for all is also incredibly vital as residents on lower-than average incomes should not be priced out of opportunities to upskill or retrain.”

For more information the WMCA’s Level 3 training offer, please visit:  https://www.wmca.org.uk/what-we-do/productivity-and-skills/funding-for-level-3-qualifications/