17. Employability and Skills Profile
What is it?
Inclusive growth is a core aim of the Plan Strategy. Policies SP4, EC1, EC2, EC3, EC5, EC6 and EC7 relate to proposals that have economic development impacts. Policy EC4 seeks to protect zoned employment land.
Chapter 9 of the Developer Contributions Framework sets out the circumstances in which developers will be required to make contributions to employability and skills.
An Employability and Skills Profile provides a breakdown of proposed uses and an estimate of potential jobs to be created/displaced as a result of the development. This information enables the Council to undertake a “skills assessment”, which will inform whether employability and skills interventions are needed as a result of the development.
When is it required?
An Employability and Skills Profile should be provided with all applications for:
- Major development (except for applications for environmental improvements and Multi-Use Game Areas);
- proposals resulting in the loss of economic development uses.
Guidance
An Employability and Skills Profile should include:
Construction
- details of the “construction phase” including: estimated construction costs; period for construction including estimate start date and completion date; and any relevant phasing information (including demolition);
- the number and type of Full Time Employment (FTE) jobs that will be created during the construction stage of the development including job occupations;
- The approximate number and type of jobs that will be created during the occupation stage of the development based on purpose/use of development, including displacement calculations; and
- For public sector construction, confirmation that Social Value applies. A Construction Employability and Skills Plan is not necessary in such cases.
Operation
- Details of the ”operational phase” including: breakdown of floor space by use/number of bedrooms as applicable;
- the number and type of Full Time Employment (FTE) jobs that will be created during the operational/occupation stage of the development based on purpose/use of development including displacement calculations;
- for mixed use developments the expected breakdown of uses as related to the employment sectors, the approximate number and type of jobs that will be created during the occupation stage of the development based on purpose/use of development; and
- the developer should base the provided figures on recognised employment densities and provide information on any assumption they have adopted.
Guidance
The submitted information should be sufficient for the Council to carry out a “skills assessment” to establish whether employability and skills interventions are required.
Where interventions are required, the applicant will be required to provide an Employability and Skills Plan. This will normally be secured through a Section 76 Planning Agreement (see section 36 Planning Agreements (Heads of Terms Form).
Further guidance is provided by the Council’s Developer Contributions Framework.
