Coventry Skills Strategy appendices - Print version

Appendix A: Links to other strategies

Internal strategy/plan

• One Coventry Plan [http://www.coventry.gov.uk/onecoventryplan]
• Economic Development Strategy [/economicdevelopmentstrategy]
• Climate Change and Sustainability Strategy (strategy to be published)
• Social Value and Sustainability Policy 2021 [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/socialvaluepolicy]
• SEND Strategy 2019-2022 [/sendstrategy] (strategy currently being updated)
• Early Help Strategy 2020/22 [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/earlyhelpstrategy] and Parenting Strategy 2019-2023 [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/parentingstrategy]

External strategy/plan

• WMCA Regional Skills Plan 2016 [https://www.wmca.org.uk/media/2267/regional-skills-plan.pdf]
• DfE Skills For Jobs White Paper 2021 [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skills-for-jobs-lifelong-learning-for-opportunity-and-growth]
• Levelling up the United Kingdom 2022 [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/levelling-up-the-united-kingdom]
• Coventry Marmot City Evaluation 2020 [https://www.instituteofhealthequity.org/resources-reports/coventry-marmot-city-evaluation-2020]
• Coventry College Strategic Plan 2021-2024 [https://www.coventrycollege.ac.uk/corporate/]
• Coventry University 2030 Plan [https://www.coventry.ac.uk/the-university/about-coventry-university/2030-group-strategy/]

Appendix B: Arriving at the Priorities (Evidence Base)

Overall Skills Levels: Improve the overall skills levels of Coventry residents

Table 1 shows that Coventry is performing well on overall skills levels compared to regional averages but there is a challenge to catch up with National Averages particularly around higher-level skills. This is significant considering employment demand trends; Working Futures estimates that (55.2%) of all jobs will require L4+ skills by 2027. 

To improve overall skills levels of Coventry residents we need to consider skills attainment through all stages of education - Primary, Secondary, Further and Adult Education:

Primary Performance

Overall Coventry’s primary schools perform well. 92.4% are rated as good or outstanding by Ofsted, which is the highest in the WMCA region. The number of pupils which met the expected levels is in line with the WMCA average and for Maths exceeds both WMCA and National averages. However, Coventry trails national averages for meeting expected levels and performs worse than both WMCA and National averages for reading and writing.

Secondary Performance

86.4% of Coventry secondary schools are rated good or outstanding which rates as second best in the WMCA region. Coventry is slightly below WMCA and National averages for educational progress and achieving Grade 5 (C) or above for Maths and English. 

Coventry’s overall good Ofsted performance suggests there are other factors to consider rather than just looking at the quality of teaching or overall quality of primary and secondary schools themselves. Children from poorer families are less likely to meet or exceed expected educational levels. Analysis by Teach First found that; in 2019, 44.9% of disadvantaged pupils achieved a standard pass in GCSE English and maths, compared with 72.1% of non-disadvantaged pupils - an attainment gap of 27.2%. For the West Midlands this is slightly lower at 25.8%.

A Joseph Rowntree Foundation report from March 2010 looked at the main factors that affect educational attainment for children from poorer backgrounds. For primary education these include home learning environment, parenting styles and rules, family interactions (i.e mother-child closeness) and the health and well-being of the child. Also, key are the aspirations of parents, and how far parents and children believe their own actions can affect their lives. For secondary education there is also; what parents can devote to material resources towards education - including private tuition, computer and internet access, time spent sharing family meals and outings; and that parents quarrel with their child relatively infrequently.

Further Education Performance

Coventry has higher numbers than both WMCA and National averages for students completing the main study programme with an average grade of ‘C’ - in line with the WMCA average, although trails the national average of ‘C+’.

As with primary and secondary education to improve educational attainment in further education, we need to look at wider issues than just quality of teaching within

Adult Education Performance

Adult Education data for the previous academic year (2020-21) shows high numbers of learners entering with either no qualifications or at entry level:

• 4500 learners (39%) enter with either no qualifications or only Entry Level qualifications.
• A further 1477 at Level 1 (13%)

In terms of learner enrolment:

• 1900 enrolled on LV1 courses (17%)
• 4300 enrolled on LV2 courses (38%)

This shows the vital role our Adult Education providers are playing in improving educational levels for adults in the City. However, as of December 2021 (latest data available) there were 19,100 adults in Coventry without any qualifications, an increase of 1500 on the previous year. 21,100 Coventry residents were only qualified to LV1, this has decreased by 4000 on the previous year showing considerable success in residents gaining LV2 or above qualifications. 

Higher Education Performance

Coventry has 2 world-class higher education institutions with over 55,000 students combined. Despite this Coventry trials National averages for residents qualified to NVQ4 and above. This can be attributed in part to higher-skilled Coventry workers choosing to live outside the City in less urban areas, and commuting in. However, there is also an issue with graduate retention. A Centre for Cities study shows that Coventry retained 15 per cent of graduates in the 2014-2015 period, the fourth lowest among UK cities. However almost a third of students in Coventry – 31 per cent – came from outside the UK and this should be factored in. Furthermore 42% of Coventry residents that progressed to university chose to study in Coventry which is 18th highest amongst UK Cities.   

Aspiration: An aspirational skills system that inspires residents to achieve through from primary school to lifelong learning

Primary aspiration

The Joseph Roundtree Foundation report highlights the key role parental aspirations have. The Skills Strategy highlights key actions, working in a One Coventry way to support parental aspirations for their children.

Secondary/Further Aspiration

Coventry secondary schools are making good progress in embedding the 8 Gatsby Benchmarks, with the number of schools meeting them increasing year on year. The 8 Gatsby

30 out of 33 of Coventry’s schools and colleges (including special schools) are engaged with the Coventry and Warwickshire Careers Hub (CW Careers Hub). This is funded by the Careers and Enterprise Company working in partnership with Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP) and Think Higher. The CW Careers Hub supports schools' ‘Careers Leaders’ to create a high-quality careers plan that will increase employer engagement, embed careers into the curriculum and inform students and parents of their options.

There is also the ESF-funded Coventry and Warwickshire; ‘Collaborate to Train’ project, a partnership between WCG (formerly Warwickshire College Group), Coventry City Council Job Shop, Coventry College, Coventry University and Solihull College & University Centre. The project helps small and medium enterprises (SMEs) access the right training to support the future of their businesses including; accessing apprenticeships, work experience placements, supported internships and advising on effective school engagement. The project has now entered its second phase after the first phase supported over 400 SMEs.

Coventry University has advised that they are currently revising their ‘Access and Participation’ plan. This will lead to increased engagement with schools which will support with building aspiration amongst pupils and their parents.

Adult Education

Adults out of work can be supported by Coventry Job Shop working with public sector and community partners to promote skills offers that lead to good quality employment. This includes Sector Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs), which are continuing to increase in the City. These are short 2-8 week courses co-designed with employers, providing learners with the skills required by the host employer(s) as well as work experience and a guaranteed interview at the end of the course. Also, of great importance are apprenticeships, which are now funded for all ages. Apprenticeship data from 2019/20 shows 52% of apprenticeship starts in Coventry were for those over the age of 25.

For adults in work, in addition to supporting Skills Providers to offer flexible provision that can fit around work commitments, there is also ESF-funded programmes:- Skills Support for the Workforce (SSW) and Skills 4 Growth (S4G). Serco have the contract for SSW in Coventry providing a range of skills courses targeted at individuals in low-paid work. Since 2016 it has provided over 2200 in work skills courses, the majority (1900) at Level 2. S4G is led by Coventry City Council and provides targeted skills funding for SME businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire with 50% funding for any level of accredited course. This enables upskilling of workforces which provides more entry-level opportunities as existing employee’s progress. Finally, Apprenticeship Levy can be used to upskill workforces of larger employers. Coventry City Council is leading in this, with over 450 employed apprentices undertaking over 65 different types of apprenticeship. This has been supported by workforce planning sessions mapping career pathways, utilising apprenticeships to address current and future predicted skills shortages.

Progression Pathways: Clearly built in throughout Coventry’s skills system

As our largest provider of both FE and Adult Education - Coventry College acknowledge in their 2021-24 Strategic Development Plan that traditionally, too many learners exiting the college at LV1 and 2 didn’t progress to higher levels. Their Strategic Development plan looks to address this. In addition, they plan to increase numbers progressing from Coventry College to higher education. Currently 7.2% of Coventry College provision is ‘Access to Higher Education’ and the strategy plans to increase this by 2024.

Community: A skills system which meets the needs of all residents and is widely accessed by all Coventry communities

Data from last academic year (2020/21) suggests Adult Education delivery in Coventry is doing reasonably well in serving Coventry’s communities. Wards with higher levels of deprivation have higher volumes of learners such as St Michaels (12%) and Foleshill (12%). However, there could still be community groups and areas of the City that are under-represented and we need to continue to ensure our Skills Providers have good reach across the City.

Inclusion: A skills system which is fully inclusive and representative of our diverse City

Coventry continues to welcome large proportions of refugees. Between 2019 and 2020 Coventry saw the second-highest number of international arrivals after Birmingham. This contributed to Coventry in 2020 (latest data available) having the highest percentage of foreign-born residents in the region – 25.9%. Currently, Coventry has around 1500 asylum seekers. This is three times the number of asylum seekers Coventry had at end of 2019/ beginning of 2020.

Secondary/Further Education

For 2019-2020 GCSE results, Black young people in Coventry scored lower than the overall average on the attainment 8 (average of 8 GCSE results) score – with a score of 47.1. The gap between this score and the average is only 0.9% and is equal to the national average gap. However, compared to the previous year, the gap has widened by 0.3% in Coventry whereas nationally it has decreased by 0.4%. Coventry performs better for mixed raced young people with scores 0.7% higher than the average. This is a large improvement from the last academic year in which scores were 2.3% below average. Asian students performed well above the average.

Comparative data is not available for further education at Local Authority level but national data suggest that far few students from black backgrounds go on to achieve 3 A Levels.

Adult Education

Data from the academic year (2020/21) suggests Adult Education delivery in Coventry is doing reasonably well in serving Coventry’s ethnic minorities. 21% of learners described themselves as from African, Caribbean, or other Black backgrounds. 16% as from Asian backgrounds. This is shown below in table 5:

However, we need to consider learner experiences, particularly how different ethnic groups progress and achieve.

Highest Needs: A skills system which supports those most in need, supports people out of poverty and helps create a more equal city.

Disability

There are many adults in Coventry with learning disabilities and other disabilities who are not in employment, for all adults with disabilities the ONS estimates around 53.6% are in employment but for those with learning disabilities only between 19-34%. However, for those with learning disabilities who receive a service from Adult Social Care this decreases to around 5.6%, with the West Midlands having the lowest rates at 3.2%.

Poverty

Coventry had very low levels of unemployment with 3% of 16-64-year-olds claiming out-of-work benefits in February 2020. This increased significantly due to the pandemic but is decreasing month on month and is now at 4.7%. Despite this, there are still significant areas of economic deprivation the city. The 2019 IMD report showed Coventry still ranks as the 64 most deprived out of 317 Local Authority areas. This suggests that there are issues with in-work poverty, which is also something local support agencies - Coventry Citizens Advice and Coventry Independent Advice Service are reporting. December 2021 data for DWP Mercia District (Coventry and Warwickshire) shows the highest proportion of in-work Universal Credit claimants in the region at 41% compared to a regional average of 39%. There is a larger gender gap between female and male pay in the City than most of the UK. The gap in gross weekly pay is £172 compared to the national average of £97 and the West Midlands average of £102.

Other barriers

• Alcohol/Substance misuse: Coventry has the highest levels of alcohol hospital admissions in the WMCA with 2976 per 100,000 compared to a WMCA average of 1999 per 100,000. Coventry also has high rates of Alcohol dependency with 18.8 residents per 1000 struggling with alcohol dependency compared to a UK average of 13.7 per 1000. Coventry also has high rates of 15-24 substance misuse hospital admissions which are the 2nd highest in WMCA at 199 per 100,000 compared to the WMCA average of 190 per 100,000.
• Victims of domestic violence: Domestic violence crime rates are only reported regionally, but the West Midlands has a comparatively high rate with 37.27 per 1000 crimes which is higher than Greater Manchester at 34.25 and London at 35.14. In 2019 15% of the 350 families supported by Coventry City Council for homelessness were victims of domestic violence, with the actual number likely to be higher as women who are victims of domestic violence often stay with wider family before seeking support from statutory services.
• Homelessness-  Coventry City Council supported 340 families who had been made homeless in 2019 compared to 40 in 2015. Rising rents and increased bills from the current cost of living crisis are likely to see this rise continue.
• Ex-Offenders- Coventry has slightly lower crime rates than the WMCA average and lower rates for youth offending with 16.79. 17-year-olds per 1000 entering the youth justice system compared to a WMCA average of 17.67.

Skills for business: A skills system which provides the skills required by Coventry’s businesses, both current and future and contributes to economic growth and the prosperity of the city

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) ‘Small Business Confidence Survey’ from December 2021 reports 39% of SMEs in the West Midlands believe access to the right staff is holding them back and close to a quarter state challenges finding individuals with the right skills in their area. A similar proportion say hiring is a struggle because they require individuals with niche skill sets.

Social Value and Sustainability: A skills system which is well positioned to maximise increased commitment to social value and Coventry’s commitment to tackling climate change

The Governments Net Zero Strategy, October 2021 formalises plans to ensure the UK is fully carbon neutral by 2050 with plans to create up to 440,000 jobs. A proportion of these will involve re-skilling existing workers from carbon-intensive industries but there will also be a need to train new people.

The areas of opportunity for Coventry are set out below with actions to both re-skill existing workers and train new people to benefit from new ‘green’ jobs.

• Heat and Buildings (Heat Pumps and Retro-fitting): All new heating appliances installed in homes by 2035 to be either electric heat pumps or hydrogen boilers. This in combination with continued plans to better insulate homes, will create 100,000 jobs in the middle of the 2020s and up to 175,000 by 2030. Traditional gas boiler engineers will steadily see their skills become obsolete, therefore a large proportion of the 100,000 jobs will involve retraining. There will also be a requirement for FE colleges and other skills providers to reshape their curriculum away from training traditional gas boiler engineers and into training heat pump or hydrogen boiler engineers.
• Transport (EV vehicle production and maintenance): The Government’s ‘zero-emission vehicle mandate’ bans the sale of new petrol or diesel cars by 2030. In addition, there is £620 million of funding for zero-emission grants and electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure and a £1 billion Automotive Transformation Fund. Combined these measures plan to create 22,000 jobs by 2024 and 74,000 by 2030.

Coventry is uniquely positioned to benefit from job growth in ‘green’ transportation. Coventry already has the largest number of electric vehicle (EV) charging points outside of London and has the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC), which employs over 100 people in highly skilled roles. There are plans to build a Battery Gigafactory which will put Coventry at the heart of the UK’s EV industry and create over 4000 jobs locally.

Appendix C: Skills survey results and analysis

Section 1: Profile of respondents

• Completed by 259 people
• 37% were male and 62% female
• 11% declared a disability

Overall Ethnicity split

• 41% White British
• 26% Asian backgrounds
• 18% Other
• 11% Black backgrounds
• 4% Prefer not to say

Overall age split

• 13% - aged 16-24
• 58% - aged 25-49
• 29% - 50+

Section 2: Key findings and overall conclusions

Why adults engage in skills courses:

The survey only asked about ‘most recent qualification’ which will not capture all reasons respondents may have engaged with adult skills courses. This will be addressed in future surveys. In addition, for younger respondents their ‘most recent qualification’ may have been statutory education. There was also not the option of ‘to gain skills for work’ which may have affected the results.

Taken into account these limitations, we can learn:

• Personal development: High numbers of adults take courses for personal development – wanting to ‘learn something new’ (27.8%) or to ‘gain confidence’ (18.5%).
• Hobbies: Undertaking courses for ‘hobbies and interests’ is still important for many with 11.3% of overall respondents and 25% for respondents with a declared disability. However only 2.4% of respondents from Asian backgrounds selected this option and also lower proportions of the 25-49 year old age group (8.3%).
• Career Change: Selected by 10.3% overall respondents with higher proportions of White British respondents (12.3%) and 24-49-year-olds (12.6%). No 16-24-year-olds selected this option.

How to promote skills courses:

• Online: Good online information is key with 60.6% of respondents finding they found out about courses this way.
• Face-to-face: Still important for many, especially the Job Shop with 41.5% stating they would use the Job Shop to find out about skills courses.
• Younger people favoured face-to-face: Lower proportions of 16-24-year-olds said they would find out about courses online (42.1%) with higher proportions from this age group selecting the Job Shop (54.5%) and Job Centre plus (33.3%- compared with only 10.49% of 25-49-year-olds and 13.7% of those who were 50+).

How to remove barriers:

• Flexible course provision: 47.6% of survey respondents stated that ‘time’ was a barrier to accessing skills courses, with this rising to 48.3% of 25-49-year-olds and 58.7% of White British respondents. 49.6% of survey respondents stated that ‘more flexible course solutions’ would remove barriers for them. Comments from survey respondents included; ‘more evening courses’, ‘more weekend courses’ and ‘being able to do courses flexibly in my own time’.
• Address concerns around fees: 41.9% of survey respondents stated that ‘low/no fees’ would support them to access more courses with this rising to 49.2% of respondents from Asian backgrounds. This could be reflective of the high percentage of respondents who were ‘employed full time’ (58.9%), as the majority of those who are out of work can access courses for free, as can many who are in low-paid work. This may also relate to respondents needing ‘better information on courses’ as it may be that some are not aware of what they can access for free, for a low fee or options to use the student loans system.
• Increase online provision: 37.8% of survey respondents wanted more online courses. However, when asked how they preferred to learn 54.5% wanted ‘blended’ learning with only 22.2% opting for solely online.
• Childcare: 21.5% of survey respondents stated childcare was a barrier with most of these being respondents from Asian backgrounds.

Section 3: Learning levels and employment status of respondents

Literacy self-rating – overall: The majority of respondents rated their literacy as either excellent or good (77%):

• Excellent - 39.5%
• Good - 37.5%
• Average - 16.8%
• Poor - 4.7%
• Very poor - 1.6%

Literacy self-rating for respondents with a declared disability: For respondents with a declared disability the pattern of responses is broadly the same. 

Literacy self-rating by gender: A much higher percentage of female respondents rated their literacy as ‘excellent’ than males:

Literacy self-rating by age: Significantly lower numbers of 18-24-year-old respondents rated their literacy as ‘excellent’ with 76% in this age category instead opting for ‘average’ and ‘good’:

Numeracy self-rating: Overall, most respondents (74%) rated their numeracy as either ‘excellent’ or ‘good’. This is a lower % than for literacy (77%) and also far fewer rated their numeracy skills as ‘excellent’ – ‘32.2%’ compared with ‘39.5%’ for numeracy:

Numeracy self-rating for respondents with a declared disability: A far higher proportion of respondents with a declared disability rated their numeracy as ‘good’, although fewer rated their numeracy as ‘excellent’:

Numeracy self-rating by gender: A lower percentage of female respondents rated their numeracy as ‘excellent’ than male respondents. This contrasts with literacy self-rating which showed the reverse:

Numeracy self-rating by age: Higher proportions of young people (16-24) rated their numeracy as either ‘poor’ or ‘average’ – 40.4% compared with 20.4% of 25-49-year-olds and 27.3% of those who are 50+. The 25-49-year-old group rated their numeracy the highest with 78.9% rating themselves as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’:

Digital skills self-rating: Overall, 66% of respondents rated their digital skills as either ‘good’ or ‘excellent’. This is lower than both the self-rating for numeracy and literacy:

• Excellent - 26%
• Good - 40.4%
• Poor - 4.4%
• Very poor - 3.2%

Digital skills self-rating for respondents with a declared disability: For respondents with a declared disability a lower percentage rated their digital skills as either ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ with a higher percentage opting for ‘average’:

• Excellent - 22.2%
• Good - 29.6%
• Average - 37%
• Poor - 7.4%
• Very poor - 3.7%

Digital skills self-rating by gender: A higher proportion of male respondents rated their digital skills as ‘excellent’, although when combining ‘good’ and ‘excellent’ male and female self-ratings are nearly inline:

Digital skills self-rating by age: Significantly lower proportions of respondents who are 50+ rated their digital skills as either ‘good’ or excellent’ with a combined total of 50.4% compared to 67.6% of 25-49 year-olds and 63.6% of 16-24-year-olds:

Employment status of respondents – overall: The majority of respondents (58.9%) were employed full-time. However, a significant proportion were either looking for work or employed part-time – combined this makes up 37.2% of responses:

• Employed full-time - 58.9%
• Looking for work - 23.6%
• Employed part-time - 13.6%
• Student - 8.9%
• Self-employed - 5.7%
• Other - 5%
• Retired - 4.3%
• Carer - 1.1%

Employment status of respondents with a declared disability: Far fewer respondents with a declared disability were ‘employed full time’. Slightly higher proportions were ‘employed part time’ and ‘looking for work’:

• Employed full-time - 16.7%
• Looking for work - 26.7%
• Employed part-time - 16.7%
• Student - 3.3%
• Self-employed - 3.3%
• Other - 23.3%
• Retired - 10%
• Carer - 0%

Employment status of respondents by age: Significantly more 16-24-year-old respondents were ‘employed full-time’ with a higher proportion of those who were 50+ ‘looking for work’:

Employment status of respondents by ethnicity:

Black Backgrounds includes – Mixed White and Black Caribbean, Black/African, Caribbean Black or Black British Caribbean, Black or Black British, Black African Other, Mixed White and Black African

Asian Backgrounds includes - Asian or Asian British Chinese Asian, Asian British Bangladeshi, Asian or Asian British Pakistani, Asian or Asian British Indian, Mixed White and Asian

White British includes - White English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish or British

A higher proportion of White British respondents were ‘employed full-time’ and also ‘employed part-time’. Respondents from Asian backgrounds were the most likely to be ‘looking for work’:

Highest Level Qualification – Overall, the majority of respondents were qualified to above Level 3. However, a significant proportion (21.5%) were below Level 2 (GCSE Grades A-C/9-4):

• Above Level 3* - 56.3%
• Level 3* - 14.6%
• Level 2*  - 7.6%
• Level 1* - 8.2%
• Entry level - 7%
• No qualifications - 6.3%

Highest level of qualification for respondents with a declared disability: No respondents with a declared disability were qualified below Level 2:

• Above Level 3* - 55.6%
• Level 3* - 22.2%
• Level 2* - 22.2%
• Level 1* - 0%
• Entry level - 0%
• No qualifications - 0%

Highest level of qualification by gender: A higher proportion of female respondents were qualified to above Level 3 with higher proportions of male respondents being below Level 2:

Highest level of qualification by age:  A higher proportion or 25-49-year-old respondents were qualified to above Level 3, although it should be noted that some of those in the 16-24-year-old category would not have reached an age where it is possible to achieve above Level 3. Significantly higher proportions of the 50+ group had no qualifications:

Highest level of qualification by ethnicity: Respondents from Asian backgrounds proportionality were most likely to be qualified to above Level 3, although taken together with those qualified to Level 3, White British respondents were the highest qualified overall with 76.2% qualified to Level 3 or above:

When most recent qualification was taken - The majority of respondents (52%) have taken their most recent qualification within the last 3 years, with 33.3% having taken a qualification within the last 12 months:

• N/A - 16%
• 0-12 months - 33.3%
• 1-3 years - 18.7%
• 4-9 years - 20.7%
• 10 years+ - 11.3%

When most recent qualification taken - respondents with a declared disability: Higher proportions either answered ‘NA’ or that their last qualification was undertaken 10 or more years ago:

• N/A - 33.3%
• 0-12 months - 25%
• 1-3 years - 16.7%
• 4-9 years - 0%
• 10 years+ - 25%

When most recent qualification taken – by gender: More female respondents have taken their most recent qualification in the last 12 months although there were also a large group of female respondents who took their last qualification more than 10 years ago.

When most recent qualification taken – by age: Respondents who were 50+ were least likely to have taken a recent qualification. Understandably, 16-24-year-olds were most likely to have taken a recent qualification, which is reflective of those within this age category who would have recently left statutory education (or still be within statuary education). However, a large percentage of 16-24-year-olds selected N/A despite non from this age category stating they had ‘no qualifications’ on the previous question. This suggests some 16-24 decided not to include their statutory education for this question and took the question to mean any qualifications gained since leaving statutory education:

When most recent qualification taken - by ethnicity: Higher proportions of respondents from Black backgrounds and Asian backgrounds had taken a course in the last 12 months compared with respondents who were White British. A high proportion of the White British respondents had taken their last course 4 or more years ago.  

Section 4: Analysis of individual questions

Why did you take you most recent qualification (tick all that apply)

Reasons for taking most recent qualification – overall: ‘Learning something new’ was the most common response for survey respondents with 27.8% of respondents selecting this option, followed by wanting to ‘gain confidence’ – 18.5%. This focus on learning being more for personal development as opposed to ‘change career’ (10.6%) or ‘increase earnings’ (6.6%) is an interesting contrast in light of the current funding focus for Adult Education. The Department for Education (DfE) ‘Skills for Jobs White Paper’ and the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) ‘Regional Skills Plan’ focus the Adult Education Budget (AEB) much more on skills for employment. This said we need to explore more what ‘learn something new’ means for respondents and it could be that some survey respondents meant this more in terms of learning something new for work. Likewise gaining confidence could be to do with gaining confidence to gain a job, or securing a better job.

• To become self-employed - 1.3%
• My employer required me to attend - 5.3%
• To make friends - 5.3%
• To be able to help a child/dependant - 6%
• To increase earnings - 6.6%
• Other - 7.3%
• To change career - 10.6%
• For a hobby or interest - 11.3%
• To gain confidence - 18.5%
• To learn something new - 27.8%

Reasons for taking most recent qualification – respondents with a declared disability: A much higher proportion of respondents with a declared disability selected ‘for a hobby or interest’ as their reason for doing their most recent course, with less selecting ‘to learn something new’ and none selecting ‘to make friends’, ‘my employer required me to attend’ or ‘to become self-employed’:

• For a hobby or interest - 25%
• To gain confidence - 18.8%
• To learn something new - 18.8%
• Other - 12.5%
• To change career - 12.5%
• To make friends - 6.3%
• To be able to help a child/dependant - 6.3%

Reasons for taking most recent qualification – by gender: Slightly higher proportions of male respondents opted for ‘learn something new’, with lower proportions opting for ‘to increase earnings’, ‘to be able to help a child/dependant’ and ‘my employer required me to attend’:

Reasons for taking most recent qualification – by age: Significantly higher proportions of 16-24-year-old respondents selected ‘to learn something new’ and ‘for a hobby or interest’. None in this age category selected ‘to change career’, or ‘my employer required me to attend’. This despite higher proportions of respondents in this age category being in full-time employment. However, it may be reflective of more being at the start of their careers and doing their first jobs. Higher proportions of 25-49-year-olds selected to ‘change career’ and ‘to increase earnings’ with less selecting ‘for a hobby or interest’. This perhaps shows greater focus for this age group compared to the other age groupings in using skills provision for career development and increasing earnings as opposed to more social or wellbeing related reasons:

Reasons for taking most recent qualification – by ethnicity: Higher proportions of respondents from Asian backgrounds selected to ‘learn something new’, although significantly less opted for ‘hobby or interest’. Respondents from Asian backgrounds were also the only ethnic grouping who stated that they did their last course ‘to become self-employed’. No respondents from White British backgrounds selected ‘to be able to help a child/dependant’.

What has stopped you from doing a skills course in the past? (tick all that apply)

Barriers to skills courses – overall: The most common barrier was time, followed by cost and then ‘not being sure what is available’:

• Time - 47.6%
• Cost - 36.2%
• Not sure what is available - 26.8%
• Location - 22.4%
• Childcare - 14.6%
• No courses of interest - 13%

Barriers to skills courses – respondents with a declared disability: Cost was more of a barrier, with also a higher proportion of respondents with a disability stating location as a barrier (33% compared with overall average of 22.4%). More blended provision may better support those with disabilities to access courses where location is a barrier.

• Cost - 48.1%
• Time - 33.3%
• Location - 33.3%
• Not sure what is available - 22.2%
• No courses of interest - 18.5%
• Childcare - 11.1%

Barriers to skills courses – by gender: Cost was more of a barrier for female respondents as was the location of courses and childcare. This suggests that providers who want to attract more female learners need to think carefully about course location. It is of interest that childcare was a barrier for some male respondents as well, showing that this can be a general issue for families and more flexible provision may be needed.

Barriers to skills courses – by age: Not being sure what was available features as a more prominent barrier for 16-24-year-olds, suggesting that training providers need to work harder with this age group to promote their offers. In turn, employment support providers, including careers guidance professionals need to ensure that young people understand their training options.

Barriers to skills courses – by ethnicity: For the White British* group ‘time’ features more prominently as a barrier. This may be reflective of a higher proportion of this group being in full-time employed. For respondents from Black backgrounds we can see that ‘not being sure what is available’ is the most prominent barrier. This suggests that skills providers and employment support providers may need to work harder with this group to ensure their offers are clearly communicated. For respondents from Asian backgrounds, childcare is a far more significant barrier than for the other two ethnicity groupings.

What would help you overcome these barriers (please tick all that apply)

Overcoming barriers – overall: It is clear that Adult Skills Providers need to make courses as flexible as possible, with just under 50% of survey respondents stating that this would help overcome barriers. In addition, they need to continue to increase their online offer with 37.8% of respondents stating this would help them. Providing good information on courses is also key and is a challenge also to Employment Support Providers such as JobCentre Plus (JCP), Coventry Job Shop and the National Careers Service (NCS) who can serve as a key referrer to adult skills courses (see Q9).

A lot of respondents have stated that ‘no/low fees’ would help them to access more skills courses. This could be reflective of the high percentage of respondents who were ‘employed full time’ (58.9%), as the majority of those who are out of work can access courses for free, as can many who are in low-paid work. Also, respondents may need ‘better information on courses’ as it may be some are not aware of what they can access for free, for a low fee, or options to use the student loan system.

As with question 6, childcare should not be underestimated as a barrier, with 21.5% of respondents stating that free/convenient childcare would support them to access skills courses. This can be linked to needing more flexible courses solutions and more online courses as both of these could make it easier for parents to access courses:

• More flexible course solutions - 49.6%
• No/low fees - 41.9%
• More online courses - 37.8%
• Better information on courses - 34.1%
• Free/convenient childcare - 21.5%
• Careers guidance - 10.2%

Overcoming barriers – respondents with a declared disability: For respondents with disabilities there was a significantly larger percentage who stated that they wanted ‘more flexible course solutions’, ‘no/low fees’ and ‘more online courses’. Slightly fewer from this group stated that they needed ‘better information on courses’ and significantly fewer stated ‘free/convenient childcare’ and better careers guidance.

• More flexible course solutions - 59.3%
• No/low fees - 55.5%
• More online courses - 51.9%
• Better information on courses - 25.9%
• Free/convenient childcare - 11.1%
• Careers guidance - 3.7%

Overcoming barriers – by gender: Female respondents were more ‘vocal’ in their response to this question with considerably higher percentages responding to all barriers. This suggests Adult Skills Providers need to particularly think about barriers for female learners. This said both nationally and locally there are considerably more female respondents accessing Adult Education Budget (AEB) courses with a ratio of around 60% female to 40% male. This suggests there may be other reasons, not picked up in this survey, for males not accessing courses this is a point to address when this survey is run again in subsequent years.

Overcoming barriers – by age: Course flexibility was a bigger issue for both the 16-24 and 50+ age groups. Conversely ‘no/low fees’ was a bigger issue for the 24-49-year-old group. Interestingly wanting more courses online was not as big an issue for 16-24-year-olds as for 25-49-year-olds. This perhaps goes against assumptions and shows offering more online solutions could actually attract more 25-49-year-olds than 16-24-year-olds. ‘Free/convenient’ childcare was understandably a bigger issue for the 25-49-year-old group, reflective of the increased likelihood of childcare responsibilities.

Overcoming barriers – by ethnicity: Respondents from Asian backgrounds were considerably more responsive with much higher percentages for ‘more flexible course solutions’, ‘more online courses’, ‘better information on courses’ and ‘careers guidance’. ‘Careers guidance’ also features more prominently for respondents from Black backgrounds as well.

What, if anything, did you not enjoy about your previous learning experiences (open text responses)

This question was answered by 55 of the survey respondents. Responses have been grouped into themes to show patterns:

• Time (15 responses): For example - ‘Not having enough time in work to do it’ or ‘having to fit studies around my part time job’.
• Quality and subject interest (14 responses): For example - ‘staff were not well prepared’ or ‘some of the topics in the course felt irrelevant’.
• Flexible Learning (11 responses): For example – ‘Too much time travelling to the location’ or ‘fixed hours of delivery even though it was an online course’.
• Progression and reward (9 responses): For example – ‘it didn’t help me to get a new job’ or ‘sometimes courses were very vague with no qualification’.
• Social Aspects (4 responses): For example – ‘bullies in the class’, or ‘loudest people get the most attention’
• Other: ‘Self-confidence’ and ‘finance’ with one response each.

Things learners did not enjoy in previous learning experiences by 'theme':

• Time - 15
• Quality and subject interest - 14
• Flexible learning - 11
• Progression and reward - 9
• Social aspects - 4
• Self-confidence - 1
• Finance - 1

Where would you go to find out information on available courses? (Tick all that apply)

Finding out about courses – overall: It is clear that Adult Skills Providers need to have a strong online presence with 60.6% of survey respondents saying they would find out about courses this way. However, it is still important for Skills Providers to work closely with referral partners especially the Coventry Job Shop with 41.5% stating they would use the Job Shop to find out about courses.

• Online - 60.6%
• Job Shop - 41.5%
• Direct - 18.7%
• JCP - 15.4%
• NCS - 15.4%
• Other - 12.6%

Finding out about courses- respondents with a declared disability: Responses from this group were roughly in line with overall responses.  

Finding out about courses – by gender: Higher proportions of female respondents favoured finding out about courses online, whereas a significantly higher proportion of male respondents favoured face-to-face information – especially from the Job Shop (51.6 compared to 32.7 of female respondents) and JCP (23.2 compared to 9.6% of female respondents).

Finding out about courses – by age: The 16-24 age group showed the lowest preference for finding out about online courses, which is consistent with responses to question 7 with lower proportions of 16-24-year-olds wanting online course delivery compared with the other age groupings. The 16-24-year-old group were much more likely to want face-to-face information than the other two age groupings, especially from JCP and the Job Shop.

Finding out about courses – by ethnicity: Online information was selected by more White British and Asian backgrounds respondents then Black backgrounds respondents. Both Black and Asian background respondents showed a significantly stronger preference for the Job Shop than White British respondents. This was not the case for other face-to-face sources of information though with Black backgrounds respondents selecting NCS and JCP less than the other two ethnicity groupings.

What makes learning fun for you? (open text responses)

This question was answered by 116 of the survey respondents. The above word cloud shows the importance of other ‘people’ with several survey respondents expressing that they wanted to work in groups collaboratively and with ‘like-minded’ people. There was a lot of emphasise also on the quality of tutors especially their teaching style and passion for the subject they teach. Interest in the subject and the learning environment also feature quite strongly in the word cloud.

• Subject interest (27 responses): For example – ‘learning something new’ or ‘passion for a particular subject/area’
• Progression and reward (27 responses): For example - ‘learning something useful that will further progress my career’ or ‘transferrable skills and improved understanding’.
• Collaboration and connection (24 responses): For example – ‘Having like-minded people with you’ or ‘interaction with peers and networking’.
• Flexible learning (19 responses): For example – ‘Easy bite-sized lessons’ or ‘flexible time scheduling’
• Quality of teaching (17 responses): For example - ‘Passionate teachers that enjoy the content being taught’ and ‘good tutor support with helpful feedback’.
• Other (2 responses)

What makes learning fun for you?

• Progression and reward - 27
• Subject interest - 27
• Collaboration and connection - 24
• Flexible learning - 19
• Quality of teaching - 17
• Other - 2

How do you prefer to learn? (tick one)

Preferred learning delivery method – overall: Overall there was clear preference for blended learning. Slightly higher numbers of respondents preferred solely classroom over solely online.

• Blend - 54.5%
• Online - 22.4%
• Classroom - 26.4%

Preferred learning delivery method – respondents with a declared disability: There was a lower preference for blended learning from respondents with a declared disability, with responses being evening split between the 3 options.

• Blend - 33.3%
• Online - 33.3%
• Classroom - 33.3%

Preferred learning delivery method – by gender: Slightly higher percentages of male respondents opted for blended and classroom-based learning, but much lower percentages of male respondents opted for online learning compared to female respondents.

Preferred learning delivery method – by age: Blended learning was the most common response for the 25-49 age group. The 50+ group were the most likely to choose classroom learning with nearly as many choosing this option as blended.

Preferred learning delivery method – by ethnicity: A significantly higher percentage of respondents from Asian backgrounds opted for online learning then the other two ethnicity groupings.

Do you have any suggestions for how we can improve skills provision in Coventry (open text responses)

This question was answered by 86 survey respondents. The above word cloud shows that many felt courses could be better advertised and promoted. Respondents showed a preference for ‘in person’/’face to face’ courses. However, some did state that they wanted courses to be streamed. The flexibility of course delivery also featured with some wanting evening or weekend courses. Also featured were responses around good ‘prior information’ on course content.

To consider whole responses rather than individual words, responses have been grouped into themes to show patterns. This reflects the word cloud in showing the most common responses were around promotion and advertising of courses. ‘Flexibility’ features more strongly than in the word cloud as does ‘progression and reward’:

• Promotion and advertising (24 responses): For example – ‘Increasing advertising of courses’, or ‘better promotional materials.’

• Flexibility (20 responses): For example – ‘More out of hours courses’ and ‘more weekend courses.’
• Progression and reward (12 responses): For example – ‘Progressing to a higher level, after learning the basics’ and ‘have an end destination such as an interview with an employer’.
• Widening the range of learning (10 responses): For example – ‘More 'refresher' courses for people who have been away from a job for a few years’ or a ‘design courses that meet real work world needs’.
• Quality (7 responses): For example – ‘Trainers need to better apply information.’  Or ‘having extra teachers in the class to provide more 1-to-1 support’
• Venue (6 responses): For example – ‘a more central training venue’ and ‘a venue with better parking’.