In the latest UVAC Associate research, Sharon Walpole explores the changing relationship between higher education, regional skills priorities and England’s evolving devolution landscape. 

The research considers how Strategic Authorities, Local Growth Plans and Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs) are changing the environment in which universities operate, and what this means for higher technical education, employer engagement and regional partnerships. 

One finding stands out: universities remain highly visible in regional strategies, but higher technical and professional qualifications are not. Regional ambitions are more often expressed through productivity, innovation, investment, workforce development and sector growth. Qualifications are important, but increasingly as a means of achieving these wider economic ambitions. 

These two papers provide both a detailed picture of regional skills priorities and a wider consideration of how universities can position themselves within increasingly devolved skills and economic systems. They also identify practical considerations for UVAC members, including regional intelligence, employer relationships, progression and earlier engagement with regional decisionmakers. 

The research will be shared and discussed at the UVAC Executive Leaders’ Network on 20 October, providingan opportunity to test and develop the findings through the experiences of senior leaders across the sector. 

READ THE PAPER AND RESEARCH IN FULL.