Skillnets calls on Offaly people to participate in public consultation on Statement of Strategy 2016-2019

Developing the skills of businesses and strengthening economic growth continued to be key priorities for Skillnets at the launch of the public consultation for its Statement of Strategy 2016-2019 this week.

Skillnets, the national agency responsible for funding and supporting training networks is asking the people of Offaly to input into their new strategy, which will support more Irish companies to stay competitive and at the leading edge of their industry over the next four years.

Skillnets CEO Paul Healy said: “A highly educated and skilled workforce has been one of the key driving forces behind the country’s economic recovery. It ensures Ireland is a dynamic leader in marketable skills and strengthens productivity, competitiveness and international investment. As the marketplace evolves, the training needs of businesses change, with demand for new skills in growth areas.

It is essential that Skillnets continues to be at the forefront of enterprise skills development in Ireland and that our new strategy reflects this. Skillnets develops and delivers training through a unique enterprise-led model, working directly with employers to identify and deliver dynamic and relevant solutions to skills shortages.

Skillnets does this through over 60 networks spread across the country. This public consultation gives people the opportunity to input into a strategy that will bring real results to workers and employers at a regional and industry level.”

According to Skillnets Chairman Brendan McGinty, local businesses and community-led enterprise are the driving force behind growth and success for the country.  “Skillnets partners with companies at a local level, giving them the opportunity to collaborate with industry peers and play a key role in their sector’s growth. We believe the harnessing of the knowledge and expertise of our member companies is essential for identifying areas of potential growth and subsequent skills development.

We’re now asking all stakeholders for their input to help secure the future of a highly skilled, competitive workforce, and enhance the contribution that Skillnets makes to the needs of both enterprise and national policy.”

The public consultation for the Skillnets Statement of Strategy 2016-2019 will run for a period of eight weeks, beginning Monday 23 May 2016.

A position paper to support the consultation, and an online consultation survey, is available at www.skillnets.ie.  The closing date for submissions is Tuesday 19 July 2016.

About Skillnets

Skillnets was established in 1999 and is funded from the National Training Fund (NTF) through the Department of Education and Skills (DES).  It actively supports and works with businesses in Ireland to address their current and future skills needs.  It funds groups of companies in the same region / sector, and with similar training needs, through training networks that deliver subsidised training to Irish businesses.

The training programmes offered by Skillnets comprise:

• Training Networks Programme (TNP) supports a wide range of training options representing specific industry sectors or geographical regions for employees and job-seekers.

• Finuas Networks Programme (Finuas) supports specialised training in the international financial services (IFS) sector for employees and job-seekers.

• Job-seekers Support Programme (JSSP) supports training and work placements for job-seekers covering a broad range of training and includes ‘conversion courses’ to increase employability by up-skilling / cross-skilling job-seekers to re-enter previous employment sectors or transfer into alternative sectors.

• ManagementWorks supports a range of management development training opportunities along with mentoring support for owner-managers.

Further information about Skillnets is available at: www.skillnets.ie.