Note: this publication may not reflect verbatim delivery by Minister Murphy.
Introduction
Ceann Comhairle, In February I set out my strategic objectives for the economy – Good Jobs, productivity, regional balance, and net zero.
All four of these objectives are underpinned by skills.
The Department has therefore been recalibrating its skills agenda in line with these objectives.
Before the Assembly goes into recess I would like to update Members on some of this work.
Context
Our skills eco-system has many strengths:
• Excellent Universities and University Colleges, as well as a modern college infrastructure.
• Strong collaboration between industry and our further and higher education institutions.
• Successful higher level apprenticeships.
• And a pioneering Assured Skills model.
However, in 2022 employers found 13,700 vacancies difficult to fill due to a lack of applicants with the required skills, qualifications and/or experience.
This is more than double the 2019 figure.
Between 2013/14 and 2022/23 enrolments in colleges fell from 180,825 to 117,305 (35%).
The financial constraints imposed upon the Executive led to the creation of the MaSN cap.
This restricts the number of full-time undergraduates attending Queen’s and Ulster universities, although it does not apply to students from abroad.
Brexit has reduced our access to EU workers and deprived us of ESF funding, which supported thousands of economically inactive people into work.
The proportion of people aged 25 to 64 participating in education and training has fallen from 18% in 2016 to 16% in 2022, the lowest rate in these islands.
Skills Fund
Ceann Comhairle, When my Department received its budget in April I created a ring fenced fund of up to £12m for skills interventions.
I will use this to fund various initiatives.
Members will be aware that in March the British Government ended its funding for Skill Up.
This was an excellent programme. It offered a range of accredited qualifications, all the way through from Level 1 to Level 7.
Courses were free and primarily online. And over 300 subject areas were available, including Green Technologies, Digital, Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering, and Health and Life Sciences.
In order to continue this good work, £6m will be used to fund a new Skill Up programme.
A further £1m will fund Skills Focus and Innovate Us, both of which are delivered by Further Education colleges.
Skills Focus provides tailored training to businesses with fewer than 250 employees.
InnovateUs helps businesses with fewer than 50 employees, to acquire the skills necessary to engage in innovation.
I have also allocated £800k to fund green skills development. This will include new training courses and apprenticeship content.
£740k will support pathways into the childcare sector, supporting supply of workers into this critically important sector.
I will also use £500k of the fund this year to launch a new Public Sector apprenticeship scheme.
£479k to support industry upskilling in partnership with our trade unions.
Funding is also available to support women into STEM roles, graduates with additional needs, and a productivity booster scheme.
The Executive only has a one-year budget from London. However I intend to maintain a significant level of investment in skills funding over the next 3 years.
Colleges
Ceann Comhairle, the Skills Barometer identifies technical and vocational qualifications as our primary shortage.
This contributes very significantly to our stubbornly low productivity.
It is vital to grow college enrollments. As a first step I have provided additional funding to colleges so that they can improve lecturers’ pay.
My Department will work with colleges and trade unions to provide parity with teachers. And I will soon commission a review of colleges which will help us realise their huge economic potential.
Universities and University Colleges
While our greatest shortage is at Further Education colleges, I am also concerned with the restrictions on higher education student numbers. I have therefore been working with officials to identify additional resources to increase student numbers and to increase MaSN.
While for some studying elsewhere is a positive choice, I want to ensure that everyone who wants to study here, can do so.
Regional balance is one of my four objectives and that is why I have put such a strong focus on delivering the Executive’s commitment to expand Ulster University’s Magee campus to 10,000 students.
This is my top priority.
Today I am announcing that I am making funding available for an initial increase of around 500 undergraduate students at Magee. This funding will support students already recruited over and above the MaSN cap by Ulster University, as well as students starting in September.
Following discussions with the Department of Health, 30 of these additional places will be for Allied Health Professionals – helping to address the crisis facing our health service.
This announcement is only the start.
The independent Magee Taskforce will produce an action plan to deliver 10,000 students.
Working together we will deliver this commitment as quickly as possible, and in a way that maximises the economic and social benefits for the North-West.
Another priority is ensuring that a university education is more accessible to those from under-represented backgrounds.
I want to support growth in this area across all our higher education institutions and my Department is working with Queen’s, the Open University, St. Mary’s and Stranmillis University Colleges to ensure there are more places for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
As a first step, I am pleased to confirm that funding will be made available for an additional 50 places at Queens from this September for students from under-represented backgrounds.
After consultation with the Minister of Education, I am also reinstating funding for both Stranmillis and St Mary’s University College that was cut last year, allowing them to continue to recruit students into their teacher education programmes and ensuring we have teachers trained in the North, in our curriculum and in our schools.
My officials are also in discussion with the Department of Education around ways in which we can provide more flexibility in the way we manage student numbers at these institutions which will help strengthen their financial sustainability.
Research in our Higher Education Institutions contributes to the growth of our knowledge economy and helps us to attract talent.
I therefore intend to provide additional funding from September for research, including for PhDs in economically relevant subjects.
QUB will receive funding for 35 additional places this September.
UU will receive funding for 16 additional PhDs at Magee.
This will cost approximately £1.3m this year.
This builds on the additional £3.3m for research I have already allocated to our universities this year, the doubling of the Higher Education Innovation Fund which supports the universities to translate research in real world impact, and a 50% increase in the Connected Programme which sees FE Colleges and Universities working with small businesses to support innovation.
All these initiatives will increase the productivity of our economy.
Apprenticeship Challenge Fund
There are now over 13,000 apprentices.
I want to encourage more uptake into apprenticeship programmes from known inclusion gaps, including women and disabled people.
Therefore in the autumn, my department will launch an Apprenticeship Inclusion Challenge Fund. This Fund will support innovative solutions to our known inclusion challenges through collaboration with the education, business and community sectors.
Focus on SEN
Whilst my Department has a range of provision and supports for young people with special educational needs delivered through Further Education Colleges, Universities and across our vocational training provision, there are significant gaps in provision.
I have therefore asked officials to review the current provision and to provide me with recommendations to improve support for young people with special educational needs.
I have also asked my officials to examine legislative protections and bring back advice as soon as possible. It is my hope that practical supports and legislative protections can be strengthened in this mandate. This will require collaboration across Departments.
Increasing all-Ireland student mobility
While I am keen to ensure that as many as possible of our young people who want to study in the North can do so, I also want to ensure there are fewer barriers to the movement of students on this island.
From next year postgraduates from the North studying in the South will be able to access a tuition fee loan.
I intend to ensure part time students can also be supported. And we are ensuring that knowledge about the application process for universities in the south is strengthened in schools and through careers advice.
The Irish Government has been proactive in providing funding for the expansion of Magee and has also improved cross-border mobility by reviewing A-level grade equivalencies.
There is certainly more work to be done, but I am encouraged by the promising engagement to date and I intend to build on it to make further progress.
I have recently reached out to my counterpart, Minister Patrick O’Donovan TD, with a view to continuing that dialogue and continue to remove barriers to cross-border study.
I also want to see apprenticeship programmes across the island supporting the movement of apprentices across both jurisdictions.
Further Education colleges, given their geographical spread, actively build and maintain collaborative cross border relationships at both a sector and college level with their counterparts in the South.
This has been key to access additional funding through initiatives such as PeacePlus to benefit of all learners.
I will continue to build on the positive engagements that have taken place with Ministerial colleagues in the South to develop a dual agenda for all island provision.
Increasing maintenance support
At present, students whose household income is below £19,203 per year are entitled to receive the maximum maintenance grant of £3,475 per year.
As a result of the financial pressures on the Executive, this threshold for maintenance support has been frozen at the same level for many years.
The outworking of this is that the number of eligible households has declined year on year.
Given the cost-of-living crisis facing students, I am determined to improve this situation.
The earliest changes can be made is from August 2025.
At that point I intend to raise the threshold for families that receive the maximum grant.
The precise extent to which I can raise the threshold will be subject to the resources available in 2025/26.
Conclusion
Ceann Comhairle, the need for more skilled workers is the top priority for businesses.
I will continue to work with Executive colleagues, Members, and industry representatives to bring more people into the labour market, and equip them with the skills needed by industry.