THE Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) in partnership with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority has launched Skills for Growth - an initiative which has already helped 417 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) find emerging talent.

The free programme connects business owners from all sectors in the region with local schools, colleges and universities to build talent pipelines.

The launch follows the identification of skills shortages and the urge to match local talent with business needs in West Yorkshire.

Skills for Growth aims to help everyone involved in the programme; the SMEs to actively develop the young talent that they need to grow, the education providers to prepare and upskill its students for specific career opportunities and the local economy.

Starting with a registration of interest on the LEP website, SMEs will be allocated a Business Partnership Adviser who will arrange an assessment to find out more about their business structure, the skills needed and discuss how Skills for Growth can find solutions for their business.

Business Partnership Advisers will produce an Education Engagement Plan, which will identify the education provider(s) that can offer the specific skills and talent businesses need.

They will then broker the partnership with the education provider(s) and create an action plan.

The LEP in partnership with the West and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce found that 81% of manufacturers reported difficulties recruiting in the last quarter, up from 57% respectively in quarter two.

Businesses across the region are also at risk of low levels of staff retention, with as many as 39% of employers in Yorkshire said to have no form of training or workforce development in place.

Manufacturing is one of the main sectors finding it difficult to attract staff, particularly young people and those willing to take up entry level positions. Construction and engineering firms have also reported difficulties resulting from the skills required in entry-level positions rarely being met by school leavers and apprentices.

Sir Roger Marsh OBE DL, chair of the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership and NP11 group of Northern local enterprise partnerships, said: “Recruitment difficulties and labour shortages have become widespread as the economy readjusts to the end of Covid-19 restrictions.

"The skills shortage that SMEs in West Yorkshire are currently facing has been driven by a combination of people leaving the labour market and a lack of funding and resources to recruit raw, skilled talent across the region.

“The aim of the Skills for Growth programme is to tackle the skills shortage by helping local businesses grow, and young talent thrive.

"Any small or medium sized business based in West Yorkshire, Craven, Harrogate, Selby and York is eligible and we’d encourage them to visit our website to find out more.”