• Research reports
• Research Seminars 2011-12
• Taskforce publications
• Research Conference 2010
• Research Conference 2011

Taskforce publications

The Education and Employers Taskforce has produced the following research publications since its launch in October 2009:

The economic case for language learning and the role of employer engagement (December 2011) published by the Education and Employers Taskforce argues the economic case for language learning in Britain and how employers can help. The decline in language learning is holding back both young people and UK plc. The report highlights consistently high employer demand for people with foreign language skills and how our lack of skills in effect creates a £7.3 billion 'tax on trade' for the UK.

The report also introduces Inspiring the Future  as a new free way for people who use languages at work to volunteer to share real life experiences with young people at state schools and colleges in England.

Assessing the return on investment, evaluation and impact of the Young Apprenticeship Programme, Creative & Cultural Skills, Baker Tilly and the Education and Employers Taskforce (September 2011)

This study considers the impact of the Young Apprenticeship Programme, which was introduced in 2008 and for which take-up has increased rapidly. There have been more than 700 completions to date, with the current cohort comprising 210 learners. The project has been jointly completed with Education and Employer's Taskforce, which has undertaken surveys and jointly led focus groups and focused interviews of providers, employers and learners in order to gather the evidence base for the financial evaluation using Social Return on Investment (SROI) methodology. This has built a robust evidence base to support the connection between activities undertaken and outcomes achieved, which many commentators are now terming the 'theory of change'.

Creative Apprenticeships: Assessing the return on investment, evaluation and impact, Creative & Cultural Skills, Baker Tilly and the Education and Employers Taskforce (October 2011)

This study shows that the Creative Apprenticeship is adding significant value to employers, employees and the state, and has potentially far-reaching impacts on other sectors that depend on the creative and cultural industries. The latest cohort of 210 CAs is expected to deliver a net gain of c£2.4m to the UK economy over the coming decade, with forecast net gains of some £16.4m for the next five cohorts of learners (with incremental increases in annual learner numbers up to 400 in year 5).

The importance of experience of the world of work in admissions to Russell Group universities: a desktop review of admissions criteria for six courses (July 2011)

This research explores how 'experience of the world of work' feeds into admissions to Russell Group universities. It is a desktop review of admissions and criteria for six courses namely: Business/Economics/Management, Dentistry, Engineering, Law, Medicine and Veterinary Medicine/Science. It looks into whether 'experience of the world of work' was cited as an essential or desirable criteria or not mentioned at all.

Employer engagement in schools: the business case, Local Economy Journal (May 2011)

What happens when someone from the economic community becomes involved in the work of schools and colleges? To what extent can they support pupil learning, progression and the performance of educational institutions? These are the two questions which policy makers across the OECD countries have grappled with over the last decade. Drawing on a shared awareness of labour market shaped by deindustrialization, increased flexibility and the use of ICT, governments and educationalists have identified employer engagement as a primary means of securing a more efficient flow of young people into the labour market, while offering a richer and more relevant learning experience to students.

The point of partnership: the case for employer engagement in education, Strategic HR Review (October 2010)

The paper highlights research in four areas - staff development, staff engagement, recruitment, and corporate reputation - and concludes with a case study demonstrating how volunteering can be beneficial for business. Findings show that there are significant benefits for employers and employees across the four research areas from engaging with education and young people. Owing to the positive impact on personnel performance, the paper suggests that education volunteering should sit within the HR function. 

What is to be gained through partnership? (October 2010)

This Taskforce report published on 15 October 2010 pulls together robust UK and international evidence on employer engagement. What is to be gained through partnership? provides high quality evidence about the benefits of education and employer engagement to young people, schools and employers, including recent research:

• from the US demonstrating 11% higher wages eight years after leaving school, earned by young people who had had experience of intense work-related learning compared to a control group
• on significant impact made by employee representatives as school governors in the UK
• on how volunteering with schools is a cost effective means of developing core staff competencies for employers.

The impact of formal work experience (part-time work) (February 2010)

This paper marks an introductory exploration of a pre-existing longitudinal dataset on the impact of two types of activity, formal work experience placements and part-time paid employment during term-time. It exploits the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England (LSYPE), a government-funded survey tracking the opinions, activities and outcomes of initially around 15,500 of the same young people each year, all of whom turned 14 during academic year 2003/04. At the time of writing data is available over five years, until the young people were 18 or 19, providing a rich data source on their short-term outcomes.

Guidance for commissioners of evaluation of education (January 2010)

This document draws upon the advice and guidance of members of the Taskforce Expert Group on Research who have actively participated in commissioning, and undertaking, evaluations of programmes and activities.  It is a guide that is especially relevant to organisations that fund projects designed to improve the educational experience of young people, aged 5 to 19, through initiatives that engage employers and employees, from private, public or third sector organisations. In doing so, it draws upon the Taskforce's definition of effective partnership - that the sum of the best collaborations will provide support for schools and colleges:

• across the breadth of activities defined in the National Framework
• with measurable positive impact on participants,
• be of mutual benefit to participants from the worlds of education and employment, and
• be relevant to circumstances that are distinct to the educational institution.

From the employers' perspective, the document provides advice on key areas of impact in terms of recruitment, staff engagement, development and organisational reputation.

Defining effective employer engagement (December 2009)

The 2008 report of the National Council for Educational Excellence recommended that every school and college should have an effective partnership with employers. Without a clear understanding of what is meant by 'effective' employer engagement, it will not be possible for the Taskforce, working with partners, to benchmark current practice and assess if new initiatives, campaigns and communications have any measurable impact on the learning outcomes of all young people.  This paper sets out the definition that has been developed by the Taskforce, working with partners including Ofsted, DCSF and the members of the Taskforce's Expert Group on Research. The paper has been endorsed by the Taskforce's Partnership Board and Board of Trustees.

In short, 'effective' engagement is where the cumulative total of partnerships provides an individual school or college with engagement that is broad, impactful, mutually beneficial and relevant to institutional circumstances.

The paper distinguishes between the characteristics of an effective set of partnerships between a single school/college/cluster and a number of employers and those of a partnership between with a single school/college and employer.  Ways of capturing data at a national level are explored and areas where data is currently scarce are identified.