Report – Roundtable 2: Skilling Up

Posted on: Tuesday 13 November 2018 6:45pm by Helen Dugdale

A roundtable discussion about how education and training providers are supporting the industry to improve recruitment.

Top Takeaways

Katie Lander – Brown Bag Films

• Brown Bag Films doubled their workforce this year with 70 new staff members – 45 per cent of new recruits are on short-term contracts and from the EU.
• The industry is facing a staggering issue around talent and we need to future-proof the problem.
• Employers need to take responsibility and help to shape apprenticeships as there is no consistency between each company and each apprenticeship scheme.
• There are no animation apprenticeships offered in the North West.
• Apprenticeships are not just for people looking for their first jobs. They are also for individuals already within their career.
• The focus needs to be finding assessors who understand the industry.
• ScreenSkills can bring HE and apprenticeships together.

Carl Sargeson – Arch Apprentices

• There have recently been big improvements on the standard of apprenticeships as they are now designed by people in industry and look at competence of individuals in the workplace.
• People in their 20 and 30s are now completing apprenticeships.
• Assessors are sector specific and from a variety of backgrounds.

Gareth Ellis-Unwin – ScreenSkills

• Tasked with recruiting 10,000 people to the industry over next four years.
• There is a new focus on connectivity between employers, what education is offering and the different stages of people’s careers.
• There are four barriers to entering the sector: geography, contacts, ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’ and maturity to go into a company. All these are a shared responsibility.
• Mentoring is crucial.
• We need to help employers, employ!
• The industry is lots more than just flashy jobs. 

Ben Elson – The Manchester College

• FE/HE are working hard to get students work ready.
• For far too many students FE is their first encounter with animation – they do not think of it as a job, it is more something to do.
• There is an awareness that what other companies are doing is essential.
• The college has created a bootcamp where it pairs companies with students.
• Mentoring is the single most effective thing Ben has ever seen and it should be part of the system.
• HEs/FEs can offer apprenticeships. The college is starting a Level 4 animation course in 2019.
• The college has worked as a mini-agency helping the industry find staff from within the classroom.
• It is essential to offer courses in association with companies as it opens industry doors into classrooms and potential employees.