Decision - City Employment & Skills Plan & Action Plan 2011-14

2.1             That the Cabinet Member for Planning, Employment, Economy & Regeneration notes the content of the report and endorses the City Employment & Skills Plan 2011-14 and its priorities and action plan.

2.2             That the City Employment & Skills Plan 2011-14, as a component of the council’s Policy Framework, be reported to the Culture, Tourism & Enterprise Overview & Scrutiny Committee for information, and referred to full Council for endorsement.

The CESP draws on the latest data sets and policy information to identify the needs, opportunities and challenges for the city. Key to addressing these issues is the ability of individual members within the CESP to use existing resources towards the agreed priorities.

The role of the Local Authority in helping to guide the work; its role as an Education Authority responsible for adult and young people services; its role in supporting those facing disadvantage in the labour market and in driving economic development means that it is uniquely placed to assist in driving this agenda.

The endorsement of the Cabinet Member for Planning, Employment, Economy and Regeneration is therefore considered vital in ensuring that the council is able to make a meaningful contribution to this agenda.

The option of not developing a plan was discussed by the CESSG and it was agreed that due to the prevailing policy and socio-economic conditions a ‘do nothing’ strategy would have a negative impact on the city and would be likely to result in a more disjointed and therefore costly approach as each organisation takes forward individual strategies to tackle related issues.