Sub-Regional Investment Planning (SRIP)

Sub-Regional Investment Planning (SRIP) was introduced by the Regional Development Agency - Yorkshire Forward - to improve the joining up of public sector resources, in order to meet strategic needs and contribute to the implementation of the Regional Economic Strategy at a sub-regional level. This represents significant investment for West Yorkshire.

The West Yorkshire Economic Partnership (WYEP) was given the task of co-ordinating the process in West Yorkshire and established a number of Theme Groups to focus on addressing the key objectives identified within West Yorkshire Strategic Economic Analysis. The LSC West Yorkshire was identified to lead on the Skills Theme, specifically Objective 4 "improving education, learning and skills". In February 2004 the LSC established the West Yorkshire Skills Group (WYSG), involving 18 key organisations including local and sub-regional organisations and Yorkshire Forward, to take this forward.

The WYSG took the approach of agreeing a framework for Skills actions. It worked together to identify West Yorkshire's skills priorities and identified five priority themes:

• Widening Participation
• Skills Progression
• Implementing the Skills Strategy
• Enterprise Skills and Creative Learning
• Learning Connectivity

Six Skills Action Plans - 1 sub-regional and 5 local district action plans - were developed by the WYSG in consultation with a wide range of individuals and organisations from public, private and voluntary sectors. At local level this process was co-ordinated by Learning Partnerships. Each action plan considered each of the 5 priority themes above. Within each priority theme the WYSG identified a range of interventions to address the skills issues, and against these interventions the WYSG mapped existing projects / activity and proposed new actions to tackle the issues. In accordance with the Investment Planning approach, the WYSG worked collaboratively to plan and develop the interventions and to align public funds to maximise the resources available to support the implementation of this process.

The Bradford Action Plan clarifies and outlines the key skill challenges for the District and proposes actions to deal with them. It focuses on what is required to change to enable long-term improvements in skills, and puts skills needs into the context of regeneration activities and economic development and economic growth opportunities. It particularly aims to ensure that people in Bradford can benefit from the regeneration opportunities.

For Bradford, the Key Priorities include:

• To improve educational and skills attainment particularly amongst non-learners, those without qualifications and those with basic and key skills needs, through supported access and engagement into and progression through learning.
• To address the disengagement of individuals from the labour market, through information, learning and support to access employment opportunities.
• To support graduate and skills retention with the District linked to mechanisms to improve employment opportunities for the higher skilled.
• To encourage creative and entrepreneurial responses to local needs by developing and channelling such skills into learning and regeneration.
• To encourage a collaborative approach to lifelong learning and provision and support delivery amongst the education, training institutions and other public, private and voluntary sector stakeholders.

Details of the action planning process and the Bradford Skills Action Plan can be found on Bradford Learning Partnership's website

Commissioning Process

A package of proposed projects for Bradford was submitted by the LSC for approval during summer 2005. This has led to the commissioning of projects totalling £7m - half of which would be for local projects and the remainder for sub-regional projects targeted in Bradford.

'Headline' projects that are now being contracted for Bradford include:

• Construction Skills Training
• Regeneration Project Management School for Graduates, to support local regeneration
• Creative Skills and Creative Enterprise support and development
• Enterprise Skills for Young People
• Airedale Learning Line, creating easy access to learning provision
• Traineeships for 25+ for BME communities
• Engaging targeted groups into learning and assisting progression into mainstream provision
• Digital Skills development

Further details of these projects will be available on this website when they are up and running.

An additional bidding round has recently been announced to fill gaps where projects were not successful, and to invest additional resources to address skills related issues. Details are available on LSC West Yorkshire's website. The deadline for applications is 4 April 2006.