UKFT attended the inaugural Skills for Growth Conference in London on 22 June, as part of our mission to support the UK fashion and textile industry to address urgent skills shortages, tackle recruitment issues and create a workforce that is fit for the future.

This was the first conference of its kind from the Department for Education and the Department for Business and Trade and brought together a wide range of businesses, government representatives and other stakeholders. In attendance was the Education Secretary Gillian Keegan, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt, Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch, Skills Minister Robert Halfon and Business Minister Kevin Hollinrake.

During the day, speakers emphasised that the skills agenda is as important as sustainability and climate change but underlined that business must be at the heart of the skills strategy.

Apprenticeships, T-Levels and vocational qualifications were discussed enthusiastically and promoted throughout the whole day. The new Skills Bootcamps were a prominent feature of conversations and the government plans to double provision. The government also indicated plans to introduce more flexibility around apprenticeships.

Celia Thornley, skills and training manager at UKFT, who attended the conference, said: “Businesses in our sector are desperate for support to recruit, tackle skills shortages and build a talent pipeline for the future to support future growth. We’re working on a wide range of projects and interventions in this area on behalf of the UK fashion and textile industry but it is encouraging to see acknowledgement of these issues at the highest level.

“We’re looking forward to working with the government to address some of these barriers to productivity and growth, and to reshape the skills system so that it helps to deliver a productive, competitive economy of the future.”

As the Government-appointed Sector Skills Body for fashion and textiles in all four nations, UKFT looks after skills and training at all levels from apprenticeships and entry level training through to higher education, encouraging people into the wide variety of jobs. We cover all parts of the industry including fashion and footwear manufacturing, dyeing and weaving, leather work, pattern cutting, bespoke tailoring and design and development roles.

We work with companies of all sizes, from the industry’s biggest global brands through to micro businesses and start-ups to support the next generation of talent. Our work includes promoting careers in the industry, developing new vocational and academic routes in, industry quality assurance, creating quality internship opportunities and supporting the growth of good quality training provision.

Some of the most recent projects we’re working on include:

• Launching a new website, UKFT Futures, to help new entrants to explore careers in the UK fashion and textile industry
• Promoting careers in UK fashion and textiles at a wide range of careers events around the UK
• Developing the programme for first Fashion and Textiles Skills Bootcamp delivered in Greater Manchester in April 2023, in partnership with Salford College and a group of Greater Manchester employers. The first of the attendees have recently found jobs in the industry
• Launching an online training programme for industrial sewing skills
• Running the Young Textile Technician Training Fund to support in-depth training for UK textile technicians under the age of 30. We also recently ran a travel bursary fund to allow UK young textile technicians to attend textile machinery show ITMA 2023 in Milan
• Running the MADE IT programme to enrich the production and sourcing knowledge of UK fashion and textile design university students through masterclasses and paid internships
• Running the UKFT x Drapers Bursary programme to enable fashion and textile university students to undertake paid internships they may otherwise struggle to afford
• Ensuring the apprenticeship provision is fit for industry
• Developing the content for the new T-Levels for craft and design
• Supporting the development of a new textile technology BSc

For more details on what we do to support skills and training in UK fashion and textiles industry, visit www.ukft.org/skills-and-training