Mapping the Course: Education Partnerships for Continuous Skills Development
Mapping the Course: Education Partnerships for Continuous Skills Development
This report examines the evolution of regional education partnerships in the UK, specifically highlighting the experiences of Newcastle University and the North East of England. It aims to present and promote innovative strategies that enhance collaboration among education providers, businesses, and local governments, ultimately increasing access to skills and training opportunities.
Kindly supported by Newcastle University—an institution known for its commitment to lifelong learning and collaboration with further and higher education partners in the North East—the research also engages with community projects in fields such as science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), and the creative and health sectors.
The report's primary goal is to analyse the opportunities and challenges that tertiary education providers, like Newcastle University and its partners, face in forming regional collaborations focused on skills improvement. It provides an in-depth overview of the policy landscape influencing partnerships among education providers and business stakeholders, examining how various policy approaches have allocated responsibilities for skills and training strategies among local governments, educational institutions, and businesses.
Published:
16 July 2025
Key recommendations include:
1. Encourage the formation of ‘Regional’ Education Partnerships (REP) to align with Mayoral Combined Authorities, to act as a ‘chamber of learning’ that can represent the tertiary sector (colleges, universities, and private training providers) with a single unified voice. The creation of a REP would foster collaborative decision-making around sub-national skills development and guarantee long-term stakeholder partnership commitments. This should:
Act as a conduit between Skills England and MCAs to advise on holistic skills strategy.
Work with MCAs to strengthen careers guidance and develop Lifelong Learning Pathways (LLPs) in anticipation of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement now scheduled for 2026/7.
Map-out routes for how learners/workers can upskill by progressing within a place-based or sectoral network of education institutions.
Develop a quality assured ‘skills passport and badging’ scheme for courses offered by North East education providers, to enable lifelong learners to have their qualifications recognised in the region.
2. Progressively move away from LSIPs by supporting Skills England, in partnership with Mayoral Combined Authorities to develop place-based skills strategies in devolved areas as part of the national drive towards greater devolution.
3. Give a representative voice to individuals as members of the labour force, learner pool, and residents by including trade unions, students’ and learners’ associations, and community organisations in regional skill improvement strategy.