THE further education sector in Northern Ireland will be the engine room of Northern Ireland’s economy.
That was the message from the minister for Employment and Learning, Stephen Farry, as he addressed attendees of the Trans-Atlantic Technology and Training Alliance (TA3) conference.
The TA3 conference, held in Northern Ireland for the first time, is a consortium of leading community and technical colleges in the US and Europe which promotes learning and innovation across borders, supports regional economies and promotes the value and importance of a global per-spective.
Speaking to the delegates at Belfast Met’s e3 campus Minister Farry said: “It is a great pleasure for Northern Ireland to host this year’s TA3 conference which will ultimately lead to greater linkages and international partnerships between Northern Ireland and member organisations.
“Whilst here, our visitors will also have the opportunity to see the outstanding facilities that our colleges can offer to potential students and learn how they are working with employers to develop world class skills.”
The three-day conference had the theme of ‘Preparing the Future Global Workforce — Bringing Employers and Educators Closer Together’ and provided an opportunity to showcase the work and employer collaboration of the further education sector in Northern Ireland to an international audience.
Highlighting the work his department is doing to transform professional and technical education and training in Northern Ireland, the Minister continued: “My department is leading major reviews of key aspects of the professional and technical education and training landscape in Northern Ireland. The single most important objective for all aspects of this work is to ensure that identifying, and then meeting, the skills needs of employers and the wider local economy are at the centre of our programme of reform.
“We have now embarked on the implementation of a new apprenticeship system in Northern Ireland which will be effective from September of next year. Key features of our new model are that apprenticeships will start at level 3; crucially, there will be progression to higher profes-sional, technical or academic pathways.
“Four of our colleges are already piloting seven higher level apprenticeships in five occupational areas covering professional services, ICT, engineering, accountancy and life sciences. In total, there are now over 120 higher level apprentices working with 46 different employers across Northern Ireland. Approximately 400 new higher level apprenticeship places will be available from September 2015 in sectors including renewable technologies and agri-Food.
“The further education sector in Northern Ireland will be the engine room of our economy, sharing best practice with each other and with others around the world, using technology to enthuse learners and to increase flexibility in delivery, and striving for excellence in all that they do. But above all else, colleges will offer economically relevant provision at increasing high levels to ensure that the needs of employers and individual learners are met.”
Gerry Campbell, chief executive of Colleges NI, said: “We are committed to strength-ening the skills pipeline through close partnerships
with employers, thus ensuring that we have the skills to support economic growth and development now and into the future. This conference will
help to foster and develop our international alliances and partnerships and assist colleges to become more competitive in the international market.”