Skills Development Scotland Launches Our Skillsforce

5th November 2012

Skills Development Scotland Launches Our Skillsforce - www.ourskillsforce.co.uk

New web service will provide information on skills support for employers in the Highlands
Employers in the Highlands are now able to access the help they need to recruit and develop skilled people following the launch of a brand new web service - Our Skillsforce.

Developed by Skills Development Scotland, working with Highland Council and partners, it enables employers' access to skills support services available from public sector organisations in Scotland.

For the first time employers can find information on recruiting, developing and planning their workforce all in one place, along with up-to-date information on national and local labour markets.

Launched on November 2, Our Skillsforce sets out all the publicly-funded skills support services available. It also enables employers to flag their skills and recruitment needs through a Skills Alert feature assisting them to the best available package of support, while the results of a quarterly national survey of Scotland's employers provides insight into their training and recruitment priorities and challenges.

Chairman of the council's Planning, Environment and Development Committee, Councillor Thomas Prag said: "We are delighted to support Our Skillsforce and would commend it to employers in Highland. The new site makes it much easier to find the skills services they need and is more understandable than ever before."

John McClelland, Chair of SDS said:"In today's competitive economy, having a skilled workforce is the lynch pin to achieving business success. Our Skillsforce strengthens employer engagement, as well as responding to what Scotland's employers have been asking for.

"Our Skillsforce makes it much easier for them to recruit and develop the skills they need now and to plan for a skilled workforce in the future, regardless of business size or location." 

At its launch Angela Constance, Minister for Youth Employment, said:"I often hear from employers who are seeking assistance in finding the right person for the jobs available, and we already know that we have a talented, enthusiastic generation of young people, many of whom need help to find work.

"Our Skillsforce will make an important difference to both young people and employers and go long way to matching the right person to the right job, and ensure that people seeking work, be they a young person or over 24, can maximise their potential and help our economy flourish."
Our Skillsforce website is available at:  www.ourskillsforce.co.uk

Further information is available on the Skills Development Scotland website:
www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk