Soft skills missing

A report released by the British Chambers of Commerce last month, Skills for business: more to learn?, found that almost half (45%) of 6,000 survey respondents said that it was very or quite difficult to find staff with the right skills. This included poor levels of literacy and numeracy, but also of softer skills such as timekeeping and communication.

The survey also found that only a minority (20%) of businesses had taken on an apprentice between March 2010 and April 2011 and even fewer (15%) planned to over the next 12 months.

However, it found businesses that did offer apprenticeship programmes saw them as beneficial to their long-term development. Most employers (82%) took on an apprentice to build the skills capacity within their businesses and firms that had taken on an apprentice were more likely to want to expand their staff numbers.

Skills for business: more to learn? is available to download at: www.britishchambers.org.uk/zones/policy/press-releases_1/bcc-businesses-need-a-more-skilled-workforce.html