As Jeremy Hunt sets out the government’s plans in the 2023 Spring budget, the overarching theme running through the announcements is to build up the UK workforce. Amidst a cost of living crisis, high inflation and public sector strikes, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported a continuing drop in number of job vacancies to 1.12 million (three months to February) as well as an increase in redundancy rate. The Spring budget’s “back to work” approach is looking to alleviate real concerns about the future job market in the UK.
What does this mean for the tech sector? The Spring budget marks the technology sector as an area of growth, pledging support in this sector with a focus on research. It also lays out plans to encourage retired workers back into the UK workforce, as well as support parents with childcare so they can go back to work. Investment plans such as these are a positive and could contribute greatly to closing the tech skills gap. But the overriding question remains: is enough being done to support talent entering the tech sector?
The UK tech industry is dynamic and has great potential. Recent government reports suggested the UK tech sector is leading on its European counterparts, reaching a combined market value of $1 trillion by end of 2022[1]. Corporations across the UK may have some tough budget decisions to make over the course of the next months, especially where high energy bills and an increase in corporation tax to 25% are concerned. Will the budgets stretch to support investment in people entering the tech sector? We believe it should, as fostering talent of all ages and backgrounds needs to be a top priority.
At Insight, we offer a Skills Academy programme to anyone interested in joining the technology sector. The programme has a duration of 18- 24 months, and supports anyone who might be looking for a first job in tech, or might be interested in returning to the sector. With the Skills Academy providing the opportunity to learn and gain experience across different technology departments, in excess of 30 new talented individuals are hired in the UK just through this initiative each year. The programme has been so successful in its first year running that it has been extended to a further seven countries in Europe.
Whilst the government is proposing support to strengthen the workforce with a “back to work” plan in its Spring Budget, we need to continue to support talent entering the technology industry to guarantee a bright future. We believe talent initiatives like the Skills Academy play a key role in driving this.
[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-tech-sector-retains-1-spot-in-europe-and-3-in-world-as-sector-resilience-brings-continued-growth
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