Connectr announces launch of Green Skills Workforce Coalition and latest research on sentiment towards green jobs

Connectr is an award winning, industry-leading provider of talent solutions for young people, including recruitment, school engagement and career development – today announces the launch of its Green Skills Workforce Coalition alongside research, led by Nesta. The green transition is critical; for humanity, communities, and the climate. And from an economic perspective and an employer’s perspective, it is becoming increasingly important to the growth and development of businesses. The coalition will focus on providing an ecosystem to educate our future workforce on and help them gain access to green jobs.

The coalition, already supported by and working on projects with various industry leaders including National Grid and the Careers and Enterprise Company, will seek to close the gap between employers’ needs for green skills and young people who are currently in education and have an opportunity to build green skills for the future. This group will focus on those in education as well as undertaking research more widely cross-sector, majoring on enterprise jobs.

The report, based on research involving over 8,000 participants, tested various messaging frameworks and financial incentives to gauge their impact on the interest in green skills training. The findings are crucial for policymakers, green industries, and businesses as the UK aims to achieve its Net Zero ambitions by 2050.

The most important considerations for taking up green skills training were related to financial factors and the convenience of the training. Many think green jobs are important (74%) but few know what green jobs are available (43%) and where to look for them (42%).

Financial incentives significantly increased interest in green skills training. A grant increased interest by 39.5 percentage points, a loan by 28 points, and a subsidy by 33.3 points compared to the control group.

Based on these findings, and with the Climate Change Committee recently reporting that 40% of UK jobs – an estimated 12 million – are going to require a green transition, the report recommends highlighting financial incentives upfront, considering the value-for-money or potential return from different financial incentives, providing early-years education and green career advice to students, bespoke green job matching services, and offering a range of training times and formats.

The report also calls for further research to address gaps for different groups, the efficacy of low-cost, low-time intensive training, and the efficacy of various framings for green skills training and green jobs.

Will Akerman, CEO and Founder of Connectr, comments:

"We are proud to be leading this group, working with industry leaders to provide valuable insights into the UK's green skills gap and offers actionable recommendations for policymakers and businesses. As we move towards a decarbonised economy, it's crucial that we equip our workforce of the future, with the necessary green skills to meet demand.”

Andrew Sissons, Deputy Director at Nesta, comments:

“It is incredibly important to educate the youth of today on what a green job is, specifically the sliding spectrum of what a green job can be, and how to obtain one – there is huge appetite and attractiveness among employers and young people, but we aren’t seeing an increase in the number of green jobs due to a lack of understanding. This research and coalition will endeavour to increase awareness and confidence around green skills, courses and training, and in turn, close the growing skills gap we are seeing.”

Sarah Harris, External Affairs Manager at National Grid, comments:

“We have a key role to play in helping to deliver Net Zero by 2050, and it is estimated that 400,000 new jobs will need to be filled by the energy industry to get there. This coalition will be vital to addressing the need for access to skills development and educating young people. Through our partnership with Connectr, we have committed to working with 100,000 pupils – across a diverse range of backgrounds in London – to cultivate talent for the future and support the green transition.”

Paul Lewis, Chief of Strategy & Communications at The Careers & Enterprise Company, comments:

“We welcome the focus on providing students with in-depth, impactful engagements, and impartial exposure to green career pathways. We encourage employers and providers working in schools, to design programmes that support Careers Leaders to help students access high quality careers education. We’re impressed by the work Connectr does with schools, delivering meaningful engagements with employers, helping young people make their best next step.”