As we enter a new year, and indeed a new decade, we are faced with a number of new possibilities, but also new challenges.

According to the economists we are entering into phase two of the recession and the old adage of getting worse before it gets better is a real possibility for us in the skills sector. With a general election fast approaching, there is a renewed emphasis on squeezing public expenditure. There appears to be a competition going on between the political parties on who can cut public expenditure the most, yet have the least impact on public services. This very much puts funding for training into the spotlight.

With that said, we are already in active dialogue with the political parties to fight the corner for public funding focused on the needs of employers. It is clear that whichever party gets in, Apprenticeships will be the flagship training programme. This is good news for a sector built of vocational qualifications.

There is clear evidence that Apprenticeships provide the best route for young people into the industry by giving them structured training and real work experience. They also provide employers with the opportunity to get to know and shape the people that they need for the future.

The good news is that the role of Sector Skills Councils as the coordinated voice of employers has been reaffirmed by both the Labour and Conservative parties; and in fact the Conservatives see employer leadership as crucial to the continued rationalisation of the skills landscape.

Of course a major weapon in our armoury is our National Skills Academy, set up to bring together public, employer and individual investment to achieve best value for money and ensure the best training available. We are proactively promoting the Academy to politicians as the most cost effective way of getting funding into skills delivery where it is really needed.

Looking forward, the new Qualifications and Credit Framework finally becomes the only game in town after the end of this year, enabling employers to access bite sized learning credits – something we have been lobbying for a long time. In addition, only qualifications approved by us will get on the new Framework, meaning that only qualifications that are approved by employers may be eligible for public funding.

And not forgetting the launch of the Diploma in Sport and Active Leisure in September. A major part of the 14-19 education reform, the Diploma will offer young people the opportunity to combine both class work and hands-on experience giving them the a fully rounded education through a number of learning methods within both the classroom and the workplace. We have ensured that employers have been fully engaged through the development of the Diploma and can be confident that the content is right, what employers are looking for, and yet is still suitable to go on to college and university if that is the ultimate goal.

So what a year we have in front of us. Last year was all about the relicensing process, this year is about delivering our strategic objectives. With that said, we still need employers to engage with us, now more than ever, with your support we can continue to pressure the government to fund the qualifications and training that are important to our sector. Once you’ve help us to shape them of course.

As I noted last month, after months of waiting, I am delighted to say we have finally been officially relicensed as the Sector Skills Council for Active Leisure and Learning.

Following a rigorous relicensing process by the government, we were not only successful in having our five year license renewed, but was also judged as a good SSC with a number of outstanding areas, namely employer engagement, leadership, project management and delivery. And I am thrilled with this assessment, as our sector employers are our bread and butter and if we’re not delivering on their behalf then we’re doing something wrong.

Over the last five years – technically six – our focus has been on increasing the demand for skills, along with raising the quality of skills provision, creating a fit for purpose system of training, and lobbying funding agencies and policy makers to invest in this employer-led framework. And this can be demonstrated in a variety of ways, for example the development and delivery of apprenticeships, these programmes have developed and rapidly grown in a sector with no tradition for such structured work-based programmes. Over 4,000 apprentices have been certificated in the past 12 months.

The development of a broad range of S/NVQs that have become established across the industry – there has been a 30% increase in people completing their qualification, and we have issued around 22,000 certificates already this year. Not forgetting our National Skills Academy, which since its creation, has led to a one-stop shop for the industry to access quality assured training and support in four out of nine English regions.

Our renewed license is based on a new five year plan of delivery. We need to ensure all qualifications in the sector are on the new Qualifications and Credit framework – in which case they have to be the qualifications employers want their future workforce to have. We need to ensure our National Skills Academy continues to expand across the whole of the country and look at ways it could work within the home nations. And despite the recession, we are a growth sector, its crucial that we continue this growth. Therefore, we must ensure that the sector is supported by a qualified, high calibre workforce, and we must support employers to invest in this workforce. So there’s a lot to do.

The fact that we have been relicensed is a testament to the commitment and passion of my staff that are working so tirelessly on behalf of the sector. But also, it is a testament to the commitment and passion of employers in the sector, that are working so tirelessly to develop and deliver a service that addresses the health and well-being of the nation.

So for me, right now, it’s important to recognise how far we’ve come and say with pride that we’re going in the right direction. But it’s also just as important to recognise the journey has only just started and we’ve a long way to go. However, working together, I know that we’ll get there.

There’s no denying that we’re going through a very difficult period. As the recession continues, the job market continues to look bleak across the whole of industry. Over the past few months the media has focused on graduates who have left university and are simply boosting the unemployment figures, instead of starting their career.

Despite this reality, our industry has remained somewhat buoyant, the growth has slowed down, yet we continue to see a rise in opportunities. To this end, there has never been a better time to attract people to start a career within health and fitness.

Our Sector Skills Agreement research has shown that there is a lack of people with higher level skills in management and leadership attracted to the industry, and yet according to national statistics, there are unemployed graduates; so I have to ask the question, are we doing enough to attract the right people?

Employers repeatedly tell me that expectation is often a barrier to attracting graduates into the industry. They have the skills required and yet don’t expect to learn the business by working on the front desk or cleaning the bathrooms.

This may have been the case five years ago; however the rise in vocationally-based qualifications, placement work experience, and part-time jobs have given graduates a realistic picture of the industry, so expectation can no longer be a significant barrier.

According to the FIA State of the Industry Report, in 2009 the industry’s total revenue was up to almost £4billion – an all time high. This places a greater emphasis on the workforce, and ensuring that we have the right people with the right skills to support this growth. Positively, our recently launched 2009 Working in Fitness Survey results show that health and fitness continues to be a popular industry to work in – once you’re working in it – and respondents were keen to progress their career within the industry.

This is great news for an industry with historically reported retention challenges. So what can we do to tackle the recruitment challenges?

My advice, let’s utilise the current climate and find a way to attract more people who are highly qualified, with the skills we need for the continual development and success of the industry.  It’s well publicised that graduates are out there looking to start their careers – let’s help them.

Young people are amongst those to be hardest hit by the recession.  Fears of a ‘lost generation’ have led to calls to explore solutions to help young people through these difficult times and reduce the proportion not in education, employment or training.

Apprenticeships have long been hailed as a key solution in ensuring the work readiness of young people and remain a key part of the government’s strategy to increase the skills and competitiveness of the UK economy.  It is therefore a cause for concern that nationally the number of young people starting apprenticeships has dropped over the past year.

The fall indicates substantial challenges ahead, especially given new government targets which outline that around 1 in 5 of all 16-18 year olds should be participating in apprenticeship programmes by 2020.

If young people are to be engaged in apprenticeships across a range of industries, we must address the fundamental barriers that prevent participation.  Recent research undertaken by SkillsActive reveals that although employer engagement is a key barrier to take up, there is a range of supporting issues that must also be addressed if the problem is to be resolved.

For the active leisure and learning sector to be successful in achieving apprenticeship targets we must ensure greater employer and provider engagement but also raise the profile of the sector and the apprenticeship pathway as a potential route for young people.  Intervention is required to clearly communicate the apprenticeship offer to ensure that all key parties have access to the right information so that they can make informed decisions (i.e. young people, their parents/guardians, advisors, employers and providers)

We must ensure fair access to information, advice and guidance about apprenticeships and careers in sectors outside of the traditional mainstream options.  In particular, we must improve knowledge of the active leisure and sector, ensuring that those offering advice have the skills and confidence to deliver advice on the sector and/or have access to experts that can give more tailored advice. Remaining aware of the resource restrictions of IAG, we need to explore measures to support the delivery of impartial and quality advice for all key parties and not just young people.

Finally, we must encourage greater employer engagement by addressing the key concerns of the sector (e.g. candidate suitability, perceived burden and risk and financial issues).

A full copy of the research report and evaluation report for a South West engagement model can be found on the SkillsActive website.

SkillsActive are working closely with employers and training providers to increase the availability and take up of apprenticeships, but we are always interested in hearing your views and ideas on what can be done increase participation.

Recently FE News interviewed John McNamara, chief executive of the Alliance of Sector Skills Councils, about what is in store for the future of skills given the recession. He emphasises the importance of training and the continual improvement of skills, along with reinforcing the points of Stephen Studd’s recent blog posts about how employers direct government messages through the Sector Skills Councils and the need for employers to be at the forefront of skills development.

View the video below: