Green Jobs Taskforce
The Green Jobs Taskforce launched in 2020 to set the direction for the job market as we transition to a high-skill, low carbon economy. The taskforce concluded in July 2021.
Background
The Taskforce was announced on 12 November 2020 and formed part of the Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution.
It was convened by ministers from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and Department for Education (DfE), and was made up of members from industry, trade unions, the skills sector:
- Afsheen Kabir Rashid MBE, CEO, Repowering
- Alan Goundry, Head of Energy Academy, Newcastle College
- Andy George, Head of Talent Management, Barratt Developments Plc
- Angela Francis, Chief Advisor, Economics and Economic Development, World Wildlife Fund for Nature UK
- Prof. Dave Reay, Professor of Carbon Management and Education, Edinburgh University
- Jane Cooper, Member of the Board, Engineering Construction Industry Training Board
- Nick Molho, Executive Director, Aldersgate Group
- Paul Nowak, Deputy General Secretary, Trades Union Congress
- Rhian Kelly, UK Corporate Affairs Director, National Grid Group Plc
- Russell Smith, Managing Director, RetrofitWorks
- Sarah Beale, CEO, Construction Industry Training Board
- Sharon Lane, Tees Valley Local Enterprise Partnership
- Simon Ashley, SVP people & culture - trading, shipping, culture, BP UK
- Sue Ferns, Senior Deputy General Secretary, Prospect
- Tor Farquhar, HR Director, Tata Steel Europe
- Yvonne Kelly, Principal and CEO, East London Institute of Technology
The group was asked to look at the following challenges and advise government, industry and the skills sector on how to realise the UK’s ambitions for green jobs:
- the skills needed to drive a green recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic
- the skills needed to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050
- how the UK can ensure green jobs are good jobs, and open to all
- how workers in high carbon-sectors can be supported to transition to the new green economy.
Green Jobs Taskforce report
The independent report from Taskforce brings together evidence on the skills needed for our transition to net zero and sets out the Taskforce’s recommendations for how government, industry, the education sector alongside other stakeholders can work together to grasp the opportunities of a green industrial revolution and meet the challenges of supporting high carbon sectors, their workers and the communities they support through the transition to net zero.
The government considered the Taskforce’s rich evidence base and comprehensive recommendations in drawing up its Net Zero Strategy.
Update on Apprenticeship standards and Free for Courses Jobs Level 3 offers in support of green skills
Alongside the report, the government provided more detail on steps to ensure that green jobs are good quality, that they can be accessed by people of all backgrounds and in all parts of the country, and that workers in sectors and industries undergoing change can re-apply their skills and expertise towards this new challenge.
For example, a Green Apprenticeship Advisory Panel was tasked with identifying existing apprenticeships that best support green career pathways, and the Free Courses for Jobs offer was already supporting adults to study fully-funded qualifications in subject areas crucial for green jobs, such as construction, forestry and engineering. More detail can be found below.
