New Skills for Green Jobs: UK country findings Jo Pye & Chris Evans Marchmont Observatory & Partners College of Social Sciences & International Studies.

New Skills for Green Jobs:UK country findings

Jo Pye & Chris Evans

Marchmont Observatory & Partners

College of Social Sciences & International Studies

University of Exeter

The Europe 2020 Strategy

Aims to stimulate economic growth at a time of global recession and support development of greener economies in Europe. It calls for:•building a more competitive low-carbon economy that makes efficient, sustainable use of resources •protecting the environment, reducing emissions and preventing biodiversity loss •capitalising on Europe's leadership in developing new green technologies and production methods•inclusive growth, specifically “raising Europe’s employment rate – more and better jobs, especially for women, young people and older workers”.

UK GovernmentClimate Change Act 2008

• Legally binding targets: Green house gas emissions reduced by 80% by 2050, CO2 emissions reduced by 26%

• Carbon budgeting system: 5 year caps on emissions• Committee on Climate Change: Monitor annual progress• Include Aviation and Shipping emissions• Have regard for the impact of domestic action on climate

change• Further measures: Introduce powers and legislation on

biofuels, household waste, Green Deal• Risk Assessment: Every 5 years

Government’s Low Carbon Plan

• Britain powered by cleaner energy• More efficient energy use in homes and businesses• Secure energy supplies and stable energy prices• Jobs and growth benefits from a move to a low carbon

economy• Government departments working together• Overarching plan for: Energy generation, Transport and the

Built Environment• Principles:

– Whole government approach to climate change– Setting legal and market frameworks– Inclusive- all society to cut emissions– Prevent unnecessary costs and share burden– Acting sustainably (with balance between benefits, impacts,

costs, targets)– UK to demonstrate our commitment to other countries

Selected UK policies: 2008-2010

• Renewable Energy Strategy, 2009• The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan: national strategy for

climate and energy• The Future of EU Competitiveness: from economic

recovery to sustainable growth• The UK low carbon industrial strategy• Sustainable Development Action Plan• Building a low carbon economy – unlocking innovation and

skills• Investing in a low carbon Britain• New industries, new jobs• EU 2020 Strategy

Coalition Government: recent policies

•The Energy Act 2011 - supporting the UK’s transition to low-carbon energy and international action on climate change. Three policy objectives: the ‘Green Deal’; enhancing energy security; facilitating investment in low carbon energy supplies.

•Department of Energy and Climate Change Microgeneration Strategy – plans to improve technology, skills and advice to consumers, communities, small business and the public sector (eg Microgeneration Certification Scheme or MCS)

•Enabling the transition to a green economy

•Low carbon review

•Skills for a Green Economy evidence report

UK Skills for a Green Economy recommendations

• New ‘skills for a green economy’ grouping of Sector Skills Councils

• Improve information, advice and guidance on green economy careers and skills

• Improve the quality of green skills provision in further education

• Raise awareness of the green economy through Unionlearn to support workforce learning

• Support STEM skills for the green economy• Fund up to 1,000 Green Deal Apprenticeships,

subject to take-up by businesses

Low carbon and environmental goods and services sectors

• Renewable energy – hydro, wave and tidal, biomass, wind, geothermal, solar

• Sustainable construction – energy management, building technology, smart buildings

• Waste management – management and disposal, recovery and recycling, materials processing, energy from waste

• Sustainable transport – alternative fuels, efficiency improvements, vehicles, mass transit

Sector Skills Councils with ‘green footprints’

• Cogent (oil and gas) – has assessed gender balance in engineering and technology provision (only 12% female)

• Energy & Utility Skills – low carbon skills with green skills, renewables, sustainability

• AssetSkills – ‘greening’ of asset /facilities management; National Occupational Standards and home energy standards

• SummitSkills – National Skills Academy for Environmental Technologies to drive MCS qualifications towards new 2012 EU installation requirements

• Construction Skills – developing training to support the Green Deal Quality Mark under ‘Cut The Carbon’ initiative, installer / energy advisor qualifications, Apprenticeships; gender

Scale of Challenge

Why train in renewables?

The Renewables Training Network says:

•Research showing a requirement to train up to 36,000 mature entrants in the next decade*•Headcount in large wind increased threefold between 2007 & 2010•Only 15 -20% are “novices”.•Bottleneck in transition training will escalate wage costs

Low Carbon Construction Action Plan

• Demonstrating the benefits and opportunities of low carbon construction through leadership and cooperation across the private and public sectors 

• Creating greater clarity in a complex landscape, enabling the industry to better understand the opportunities that will be available to them in the future.

• Ensuring that we have the right framework of incentives and interventions to enable the market to flourish and the right levels of skills, research and innovation to enable and support growth

The delivery of the Low Carbon Construction Action Plan will be overseen by the Green Construction Board.

DEFRA

EU

GOVT

DECC

BIS

GREEN REFURB RETROFIT

GREEN COUNCIL GREEN CONSTRUCTION BOARD

GREEN DEAL

GREEN DEAL STRATEGIC ALLIANCE

ASSET

SUMMITCSKILLS

What is the Green Deal?

• A Collaborative Approach to the Green Deal and the Low Carbon Agenda

• Range of measures, such as insulation, heating or lighting, to be installed in people’s homes and businesses at no upfront cost

• Green Deal is based on the principle that some energy efficiency related changes to properties pay for themselves

• 14 million of the UK's 27 million homes expected to benefit. It also predicts that it will create 100,000 jobs by 2015

• Energy saving measures recommended for properties will need to be both appropriate to the construction of the property and correctly installed

• A competent property assessment and installation workforce is therefore essential

• A common Code of Practice (CoP)

Character of relationships To fund To prescribe To control

State Privy Council

Learning And Skills Council (LSC)

Higher Education Funding Council For England (HEFCE)

SSC, (NTO) CITB

FE Colleges, private training

providers

Industry

Professional Institutions

Charters

Universities

The structure of learning in the UK

Women and ethnic minorities in building occupations post 2000

Women : 10.2% construction, 0.3% manual trades•Painters and decorators 3%•Floor and wall tilers 1.4%•Carpenters and joiners 1% •Women make up 3% of all construction trainees•Women make up 7% of all construction trainees in further education colleges

Male workers dominate the industry in manual occupations where they constitute 99.7% of the private-sector workforce

UK country report findings

• There has been an interruption in UK public policy development to support the green economy between spring 2010 and 2011

• Many of the initial proposals have not been enacted by the new Government or unevenly so. As a result, the UK can point to only a few headline ‘flagship’ initiatives.

• The recent economic troubles have come at a price to the green economy, with the new government giving greater emphasis on financial measures to bring the UK back into recovery.

• Recent announcements such as the incoming Green Deal Programme do not support the green economy, but are mainly a fiscal instrument to encourage contributions by private householders.

• This lack of policy commitment from centre is disappointing given both the need to shift to a low carbon economy – but good practice examples show that, despite the lack of clear policy intent and financial support, developments and initiatives are blossoming.

www.cskills.org/cutcarbon

Recent initiatives