South London Skills Strategy

Strengthening our economy is a key focus for the SLP. Creating the conditions for existing businesses to thrive and grow, and for our  business start-ups or incoming businesses to make South London their home. We want opportunities of a thriving sub-regional economy to be accessible to all our residents.

In February 2018, we published our Skills for South Londoners Strategy, that focuses on technical and vocational education for young people and adults.  It sets the SLP boroughs’ vision for skills in our area, identifies business and resident needs, and sets some priorities for action to improve outcomes.

Our vision

South London Partnership is committed to securing a skills system that:

  • equips our young people and all our residents with relevant skills, versatility, adaptability and resilience to secure sustainable employment and support their wider wellbeing throughout their lives, and
  • supports the growth and productivity of the sub-regional economy, ensuring that existing and future employers can access a ready pool of suitably qualified, resilient workers and can secure learning and training to support their workforce and business development.

Our priorities

  1. Support all residents towards or into work and to progress through their career
  2. increase employer participation and investment in skills
  3. align the skills offer to our growth and strategic sectors

The strategy identifies a range of priority actions that we will seek to pursue ourselves, with partners across South London and with the Mayor and government over the coming years.

Adult Community Learning

Boroughs have a longstanding role in shaping and securing delivery of Adult Community Learning (ACL) provision to meet local needs and integrate with other services.  Public funding for ACL comes primarily through the Adult Education Budget which is being devolved to London.

Alongside the Area Based Reviews of the post 16 education and training sector, that were carried out on sub-regional geographies in London in 2016, a review of Adult Community Learning in London was undertaken.

Following up on this, South London Partnership joined with the GLA, London Councils and other sub-regional partnerships in the capital to commission a review of Adult Community Learning in the Context of London’s Vision for Skills, which was published in November 2017.

The South London Partnership Adult Community Learning (ACL) Collaboration framework , agreed in March 2018, sets out how the SLP boroughs will work together in respect of the commissioning of ACL services.