BUSINESS leaders in the South West have given strong backing to vocational education in the region but believe not enough is being done to promote the value of skills-based training.

A poll commissioned by Foundation Degrees to co-incide with the CBI conference found that 91 per cent of directors in the South West believe there is a need for industry to commit to increasing skills across the sectors by direct involvement in course provision.

However, at present, only 17 per cent of business leaders in the South West say that their company is involved in the design and delivery of vocational training.

The poll shows that nearly two-thirds (63 per cent) of company directors in the region believe that their sector is feeling the effects of skills shortages, while 42 per cent of respondents claim their own businesses have suffered directly.

Against this background, business leaders are quick to recognise the benefits of vocational qualifications: 92 per cent see a clear link between vocational training and increased profitability and say that training helps up-skill existing staff and improves staff satisfaction.

Finding innovative ways to improve staff retention is particularly pertinent in the South West, with 88 per cent of employers believing their staff are drawn to new jobs by a bigger wage packet with the same number believing that staff members leave due to being offered better opportunities for career advancement elsewhere.

To counter this, 75 per cent believe work-based learning provides excellent preparation for individuals entering the workplace.

The findings highlight a number of practical issues to be faced, in terms of companies exploiting the potential of vocational training to up-skill their staff. It emerges from the poll that, while directors view themselves as enlightened with regard to vocational education, they see the rest of their companies as less so.

Paul Davies, spokesman for Foundation Degrees, said: "The poll findings show that company directors have a crucial re-educational job to do, tackling the mental barriers that exist towards vocational education within their own organisations.

"We would encourage directors to lead from the front by championing at board level the recognition of vocational training as central to profitability and then to take measures to integrate this in their company's HR policy. Only then will they start to bridge the skills gap."

First published: November 18