Pillar B: Work And Wellbeing

Priority 1: Raise Aspirations of Children and Young People

Aim: “Enable young people to live, work and realise their full potential in Walsall.”

Rationale: Walsall has a young and growing population, with 22% of residents aged under 16. Young people in Walsall need help to realise their potential by acquiring the skills, competencies and resilience to grasp opportunities and help grow the local talent pool. Concentrations of deprivation, below average educational attainment, and high levels of youth unemployment hold back social mobility and make it harder for young people to fulfil their potential. Poor educational achievement is one of the strongest predictors of poor health and low income.

Expected action areas

Action	Description	Strategy/Alignment
Ensure the Best Start and Good Schools	Implement the LSES to support Best Start in life, improve attainment and quality of education, and ensure a sufficiency of places across settings, schools and colleges	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy Walsall Children and Young People Strategy
Improve CEIAG and skills provision for young people linked to local economic strengths	Improve CEIAG aligned to local opportunities, strengthening links between education and industry needs, providing practical work experience and quality career guidance in line with Gatsby benchmarks Leverage Labour Market Intelligence to inform essential skills development, curriculum planning, and CEIAG provision to support progression into positive destinations	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy WM Youth Engagement Plan
Prevent the risk and incidence of NEETs	Deliver targeted support and intervention for NEETs to facilitate progression into positive destinations. Leverage initiatives such as the Youth Guarantee to find innovative ways of working with employers and young people.	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy WM Youth Employment Plan West Midland Works WMCA Youth Guarantee Trailblazer
Develop, attract and retain talent to fuel growth	Support pathways into employment, including key sectors, through boosting the provision of employer encounters, work placements and apprenticeships. Encourage local champions and the provision of local success stories to promote how Walsall is a great place to live and thrive Develop the work readiness of the future workforce through investing in a programme of essential skills development to support literacy, numeracy, work readiness, and positive attitudes to work and behaviours	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy West Midlands and Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan
Raise awareness of enterprise as a route to economic participation	Develop an enhanced entrepreneurship programme in education settings to raise awareness and inspire children and young people to consider enterprise as a route to employment	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy Walsall Business Growth Strategy

Priority 2: Invest in Future Skills

Aim: "Ensure residents and workers in Walsall are adaptable and resilient to a changing labour market."

Rationale: Walsall and its workforce need to be ready to adapt to structural challenges in the economy so they can navigate economic shocks, capitalise on technological change, and play their part in the transition to net zero. Many work opportunities are driven by knowledge and every person’s ability to secure good jobs will depend increasingly on skills and know how. Walsall’s lower skilled workforce is vulnerable to change and the one in ten residents with no qualifications will struggle to take advantage of the opportunities ahead.

Expected action areas

Action	Description	Strategy/Alignment
Invest in Skills to support Prosperity and Competitiveness	Secure funding for adult skills provision aligned to identified gaps and future skill needs, drawing on evaluation and performance data to drive continuous improvement, identify gaps in delivery, and shape future programmes Develop an all age CEAIG offer which provides a consistent and quality offer to support economic participation for young people and adults and provides targeted support at critical transition points	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy WMCA Adult Education Budget Strategy West Midlands & Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan West Midlands Growth Plan
Promote STEAM, Apprenticeships and High Level Skills to support the Walsall economy	Promote STEAM pathways with CEIAG programmes and work experience options to businesses and learners Undertake a curriculum review with FE colleges to link education (including V levels) with LSIP and economic development objectives	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy West Midlands & Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan
Leverage the social impact of major investment to benefit local residents	Leverage procurement and social value commitments from major investment to connect local people to job and placement opportunities, ensuring investors/developers work with and for Walsall communities to maximise impact	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy
Deliver a responsive skills system	Active involvement in the WM LSIP refresh to support a responsive skills system in Walsall to meet current and future skill needs in key growth sectors and work with providers to design solutions to meet identified needs Maximise Labour Market Intelligence to inform essential skills development, curriculum planning, and CEIAG provision to support progression into positive destinations Ensure best use of Adult Education Budget aligned to local needs in Walsall, securing commitment to the use of devolved funding to address Walsall challenges and opportunities	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy Draft Walsall Place Based Strategy WMCA Adult Education Budget Strategy West Midlands & Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan West Midlands Growth Plan
Encourage employer investment in training	Support employers to invest in skills to support in work progression and reduce skill mismatches and gaps through skills diagnostics, business support, signposting and guidance Secure devolved funding commitments to inform the use of adult skills funding including in work provision and training programmes tailored to employer needs Encourage and incentivise employers to create and support opportunities for young people and new entrants to enable a future talent pipeline	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy Draft Walsall Place Based Strategy West Midlands & Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan

Priority 3: Facilitate Lifelong Learning

Aim: “Enable more people to reach their full potential by tackling the skills gap”

Rationale: Not enough of Walsall’s residents have the higher qualifications needed to access high-value jobs and help drive future business growth. Walsall also has a high number of working age people who are economically inactive experiencing barriers such long term sickness and care responsibilities. Investing in lifelong learning will ensure residents can upskill and reskill to improve their chances of engaging in the world of work and stay relevant as the needs of the economy evolve.

Expected action areas

Action	Description	Strategy/Alignment
Promote Lifelong Learning to support upskilling and reskilling	Work with Employer Representative Bodies and other partners to promote Lifelong Learning Entitlement and Free Course for Jobs to Walsall Workers Review community learning provision to ensure alignment with lifelong learning objectives and WM Works strategy.	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy WMCA Adult Education Budget Strategy West Midlands Works
Develop the work readiness of inactive residents	Secure investment and implement a preemployment support programme to build confidence, address barriers and secure basic skills to support progression into employability programmes and employment. This requires delivery which embeds lived experience and trauma informed practice and targets support at those communities experiencing multigenerational unemployment and entrenched worklessness.	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy West Midlands Works
Support ESOL and job readiness of residents and workers	Work with ESOL providers and employers to create work-focused intensive short courses to improve job entry	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy WMCA Adult Education Budget Strategy
Increase collaboration and engagement to support the effective reach and delivery of lifelong learning and employability provision	Support the delivery of the regional WM Works Plan within Walsall Increase VCFSE collaboration to support effective reach to target communities and increase engagement with lifelong learning and employability services	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy West Midlands Works
Support residents to upskill and reskill to access opportunities and improve quality of life	Secure commitment for the use of adult skills funding including provision of courses to improve basic functional and vocational skills, including financial literacy. Support residents to overcome barriers to participation in education and employment i.e. safe and affordable travel provision	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy Walsall draft Place Based Strategy
Enhance digital inclusion	Enhance core digital skills provision and roll out introduction to AI Improve access to digital devices for disadvantaged, economically inactive and long term unemployed	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy West Midlands & Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan

Priority 4: Support Healthy Lives

Aim: “Improve health outcomes and overcome barriers to help more people to progress into and remain in work.”

Rationale: Walsall residents report having significantly poorer health than regional and national benchmarks. Life expectancy is also lower than the national average, and rates of chronic conditions are high. These health challenges reduce quality of life for those affected and limit people’s economic prospects, making it harder for them to work, learn, or engage in their communities. Walsall has a disability employment rate gap of 25%, illustrative of how poor health and disabilities can limit economic participation. Poor health puts greater pressure on health and care systems, resulting in longer waiting times and impacting on quality of life.

Expected action areas

Action	Description	Strategy/Alignment
Reduce health inequalities and overcome barriers to economic participation	Develop a new Health and Wellbeing Strategy which includes a focus on overcoming health related barriers to economic participation and facilitating healthy working lives Support roll-out and take up of initiatives such as Work and Health programme, Connect to Work, Work Well and Thrive. Secure resources to scale up the Work4Health programme and expand sector reach through targeted engagement with major employers	West Midlands Works Walsall Joint Local Health & Wellbeing Strategy Mental Wellbeing Walsall Walsall Physical Activity Framework
Develop the work readiness of inactive residents	Secure investment and implement a preemployment support programme to build confidence, address barriers and secure basic skills to support progression into employability programmes and employment. This requires delivery which embeds lived experience and trauma informed practice and targets support at those communities experiencing multigenerational unemployment and entrenched worklessness.	Walsall Learning, Skills & Employment Strategy West Midlands Works
Workplace health and the provision of good work	Support employers to acquire the skills and knowledge to understand what a healthy workplace means in practice and make adaptations and adopt new practices Support employers to provide access to guidance and support for workers with additional needs to support recruitment and retention Encourage participation in the WM Thrive at Work workplace commitment and the development and roll out of a West Midlands Good Work Charter	West Midlands Works Walsall Joint Local Health & Wellbeing Strategy Mental Wellbeing Walsall
Provide a testbed for population health	Secure health innovation funding to test and learn to support enhanced population health, levering HEI/NHS anchor institution assets to facilitate	Walsall Joint Local Health & Wellbeing Strategy
Accessible and targeted health and wellbeing provision	Roll out Walsall Family Hub model to support preventative approaches from an early stage Secure investment in neighbourhood health hubs	Walsall Joint Local Health & Wellbeing Strategy

Walsall Economic Framework 2025 - Pillar B: Work And Wellbeing

Priority 1: Raise Aspirations of Children and Young People

Expected action areas Expected action areas

Priority 2: Invest in Future Skills

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Priority 3: Facilitate Lifelong Learning

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Priority 4: Support Healthy Lives

Expected action areas Expected action areas

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Expected action areas