02 August 2026
Increasing employer investment in skills - report
The Industrial Strategy Advisory Council (ISAC) has published its report on 'Increasing employer investment in skills', examining the barriers to employer investment in skills.
ISAC is an independent expert committee that advises the government on aspects of the industrial strategy. The report is set in the context of a long-term decline in employer investment in skills, and the focus is on one element of addressing the UK’s skills challenges.
Skills investment is a driver of productivity, supporting growth in the economy and living standards, makes the economy better able to withstand shocks and make the most of technological developments.
In the UK we continue to experience skills shortages in key areas, in part due to a decline in investment in skills by employers. Thise in the eight key sectors of the industrial strategy invest more than average, though it is still variable across sectors and employers.
The report identifies three broad barriers to employer investment. They can be deterred by system complexity and policy churn; firms underinvest due to failures in co-ordination and poor collective action; and gaps in availability of training provision reduce employer confidence and take-up. These challenges are then exacerbated by increasing technological transformation.
The report proposes a ‘coordinated package of system-level reforms’, including reducing system complexity, strengthening coordination and collective action, encouraging large employers to support skills within their supply chains, and improving training quality and responsiveness.
Read more about increasing employer investment in skills.
ISAC is an independent expert committee that advises the government on aspects of the industrial strategy. The report is set in the context of a long-term decline in employer investment in skills, and the focus is on one element of addressing the UK’s skills challenges.
Skills investment is a driver of productivity, supporting growth in the economy and living standards, makes the economy better able to withstand shocks and make the most of technological developments.
In the UK we continue to experience skills shortages in key areas, in part due to a decline in investment in skills by employers. Thise in the eight key sectors of the industrial strategy invest more than average, though it is still variable across sectors and employers.
The report identifies three broad barriers to employer investment. They can be deterred by system complexity and policy churn; firms underinvest due to failures in co-ordination and poor collective action; and gaps in availability of training provision reduce employer confidence and take-up. These challenges are then exacerbated by increasing technological transformation.
The report proposes a ‘coordinated package of system-level reforms’, including reducing system complexity, strengthening coordination and collective action, encouraging large employers to support skills within their supply chains, and improving training quality and responsiveness.
Read more about increasing employer investment in skills.
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