Our partners
We use our global network to benchmark the UK’s skills against major competitor economies. We partner with countries like Japan, South Korea and Taiwan to share best practice, creating an exchange of knowledge to drive innovation in technical and vocational education. We do this through:
Research, evidence and learning to influence policy and practice
Exchange and professional development of organisations, practitioners, educators, experts and young people
Collaboration through our Centre of Excellence to include seminar programmes linked to international innovation and benchmarking
Developing transformative approaches to training, assessment and benchmarking and disseminating the learning to drive high-quality skills development
We are setting a new level of ambition for the UK to be a world-leading skills economy, developing a higher quality skills system by putting business needs to the fore.
We work with partners like Oxford University, the RSA, and the Learning and Work Institute to mainstream global excellence in skills by exploring global trends in skills development.
This includes a report in partnership with Enginuity and the Learning and Work Institute which highlighted the digital skills gap and makes recommendations on how to close it.
Our project with NOCN gathered international insights in construction, providing recommendations on how the UK can increase productivity through technology.
We support the development of thousands of young people each year in a programme of competitions-based training and assessment. This – along with our careers advocacy events and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion work – inspires more young people, from all backgrounds, to take up high-quality apprenticeships and technical education.
Our competitions-based training programmes are designed to build young people’s confidence, enhancing their skills and mindset so their employers are more productive and competitive. This culminates in the biennial world finals, where young people compete against the rest of the world.
To create the skills required for our economy, we develop programmes in key growth sectors, raising the standard of skills for young people and employers. To ensure these programmes meet industry needs, we work with employers in a variety of sectors.
Our careers advocacy events inspire young people – from all backgrounds – to take up high-quality apprenticeships and technical education. Our Spotlight Talks, for example, convene leading employers to inspire young people with high-quality careers advice, and we’re always looking for new partners.
Our commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion is a driving force in our work. Our EDI advisory group supports us as we help young people make choices which challenge stereotypes, and our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Heroes Awards honour those who champion EDI in the skills sector.
The Centre of Excellence draws on unique global insights – while utilising NCFE’s expertise in curriculum development – to mainstream excellence in technical and vocational education, employing a range of methods to transfer world-class expertise to educators.
With forty colleges participating, these regional hubs promote key skills and competencies that address industry requirements, and the programme was even cited in the Skills for Jobs White Paper for England as representing best-practice in training and development.
Learn how partners are using our training methodology
We introduced development plans to close the skills gaps in our company using elements of competition to address key areas.
Competition activity is now fully embedded in our apprenticeship programmes. This mirrors what UK businesses need to do in order to thrive in a global economy.
We know how important competitions are in helping to improve and learn and benchmark against the very best.
It’s really important for us to be involved in WorldSkills UK competitions. When our apprentices compete in that particular trade-set, they’re honing their skills, and we’re able to benchmark where we are against that particular standard.
