UK could be ‘sleepwalking towards net zero skills shortage’, report finds
发布时间：2024年6月4日 15:47
197
'It’s clear that we could be sleepwalking towards a net zero engineering skills shortage without knowing how big the skills and educational gaps are' (Credit: Shutterstock)
The UK could be ‘sleepwalking towards a net zero skills shortage’ because of an inconsistent approach to analysing demand, a new report has said.
The UK could be ‘sleepwalking towards a net zero skills shortage’ because of an inconsistent approach to analysing demand, a new report has said.
The government must improve its understanding of the number of future green jobs and skills needed to meet the country’s decarbonisation commitments, according to the Net zero workforce report by EngineeringUK.
The analysis of almost 30 research reports from across the engineering sector found neither a consistent understanding of the future demand for engineering and technical skills needed to meet net zero targets by 2050, nor of the implications for those coming through STEM education in secondary school and beyond.
There is no ‘backcasting’ being done to understand whether we have the necessary numbers of young people acquiring STEM qualifications to tackle net zero challenges, the report found. Only one of the research papers included in the analysis mentioned STEM A-levels, for example.
“It’s clear that we could be sleepwalking towards a net zero engineering skills shortage without knowing how big the skills and educational gaps are, and where they are,” said Mike Hardisty, head of environmental sustainability at EngineeringUK.
“We need to change that to ensure that the right policies are in place to address this. The Unit for Future Skills would appear to be a good starting point to act as a hub to guide government on workforce issues, like producing a regular national labour forecast.
“To address the climate crisis, there are issues within our education system that need to be tackled. For example, we need more young people to take STEM subjects at school and in further education, but we are lacking the teachers and the infrastructure to make this happen.
“More needs to be done to encourage and enable young people across the UK to take up STEM-based qualifications with a view to tackling the climate crisis – if we don’t have enough young people studying chemistry and physics now, for example, it could lead to a shortage of electrical and chemical engineers, which means we will not have the necessary skills in the future workforce.”
Get to grips with the future factory at Advanced Manufacturing (18-22 July), part of the Engineering Futures webinar series. Register for FREE today.
Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
The analysis of almost 30 research reports from across the engineering sector found neither a consistent understanding of the future demand for engineering and technical skills needed to meet net zero targets by 2050, nor of the implications for those coming through STEM education in secondary school and beyond.
There is no ‘backcasting’ being done to understand whether we have the necessary numbers of young people acquiring STEM qualifications to tackle net zero challenges, the report found. Only one of the research papers included in the analysis mentioned STEM A-levels, for example.
“It’s clear that we could be sleepwalking towards a net zero engineering skills shortage without knowing how big the skills and educational gaps are, and where they are,” said Mike Hardisty, head of environmental sustainability at EngineeringUK.
“We need to change that to ensure that the right policies are in place to address this. The Unit for Future Skills would appear to be a good starting point to act as a hub to guide government on workforce issues, like producing a regular national labour forecast.
“To address the climate crisis, there are issues within our education system that need to be tackled. For example, we need more young people to take STEM subjects at school and in further education, but we are lacking the teachers and the infrastructure to make this happen.
“More needs to be done to encourage and enable young people across the UK to take up STEM-based qualifications with a view to tackling the climate crisis – if we don’t have enough young people studying chemistry and physics now, for example, it could lead to a shortage of electrical and chemical engineers, which means we will not have the necessary skills in the future workforce.”
Get to grips with the future factory at Advanced Manufacturing (18-22 July), part of the Engineering Futures webinar series. Register for FREE today.
Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
Share:
Read more related articles
Careers Environment and sustainability Power and Energy
Read more related articles
Careers Environment and sustainability Power and Energy
