In a special feature for FE News to mark Get the Nation Learning Week, Alison Morris, Director of Policy at Skills Federation brings together members Daisy Hooper, Director of Policy, Research and ER at LANTRA and Andy Hall, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at ScreenSkills, to explore how employers are creating a culture of lifelong learning in the land-based and screen industries. 

Alison: What does lifelong learning mean in practice for your sector – and why is it important?

Daisy: In the land-based sector, learning is rarely a single stage at the beginning of someone’s career. For example, students in areas such as agriculture and arboriculture often complete an initial course to gain the competence needed to enter work and may then return after time in industry to gain an additional competence, move into a better-paid role or learn new technology.

That is lifelong learning in practice: moving between education and employment as roles and ambitions change. With automation, environmental requirements and new production methods transforming our industries, people need realistic ways to build on their experience without stepping away from work for long periods or begin again from scratch.

Andy: There is lots of great lifelong learning in the screen industry.  Not least through the Screen Skills industry skills funds which next year will see employers invest more than £21mil in training and workforce development.  Upskilling and reskilling are vital for our sector, because while our analysis shows that thanks to the work of industry and training providers there is strong capacity in the screen workforce, there is under-employment, with current utilisation at just 50% – 55%.  

If we don’t help train people to stay and progress through the industry into the mid and high level roles that have skills gaps, then we risk losing them and the brilliant talent that underpins a real UK industrial success story which contributed roughly £24 billion in GVA to the UK economy in 2024. 

Alison: What benefits are employers in your sector seeing from investing in learning and skills?

Daisy: The benefit is clearest when learning solves a real business problem. For example, it might allow an employee to operate specialist machinery, meet a safety or assurance requirement, support a new environmental land-management activity or take on supervisory responsibility.

For smaller employers, this can reduce the need to buy in expertise, allow the business to offer a new service or make it easier to adopt technology effectively.

There is also a strong retention argument. Land-based employers frequently report difficulty recruiting people with the right combination of practical and technical skills. Developing existing employees can be more effective than recruiting from a limited pool. But employees need to see a tangible return too, through greater responsibility, recognised competence, career progression or higher pay. Learning is most valued when the link to those outcomes is clear.

Andy: We know that overall evidence of ScreenSkills training impact is strong, with ScreenSkills longitudinal survey data from selected course alumni showing that 79% of respondents remain working in the screen industries, 76% have progressed to or beyond their training level, and 87% believe the training contributed directly to their career progression.  The majority of employers report that at least 80% of the workforce is proficiently skilled.

92% of employers in Screen recruited freelancers in the last 12 months so given the mobility of labour, ensuring employers can see and understand individuals training that has taken place across the industry is a key priority.  This is why we have launched our ScreenSkills Training Passport initiative which has seen 10,500 completions, helping individuals demonstrate and transfer learning and skills training between employers and career stages.

Alison: As workplaces evolve in response to a changing world (technology, automation, AI and transition net zero), how are employers in your sector adapting their approach to learning and skills to keep pace? 

Daisy: Employers increasingly need people who can combine traditional land-based knowledge with new technical and digital skills. In agriculture, that might mean working with robotic dairies, interpreting data collected by machinery or using drones. In environmental work, it may involve collecting and analysing information about habitats, soil or water.

Many employers in our sector need shorter, targeted opportunities that help people apply new technology in their own workplace. Practical demonstrations, manufacturer training, online modules, peer learning and accredited short courses can all form part of that mix.

One of the findings from recent Lantra research also found that technology itself is not always the main barrier. Businesses may be able to buy a new system but lack the skills, confidence or support to use it properly. The investment in equipment and in people therefore need to go together. 

Andy: We have modelled the potential impact of AI on our sector’s workforce. Our Sizing Up the Future report (in partnership with 4Skills) shows that the impact of AI may affect up to 80% of production roles by 2028. Of these, 45% of production roles may see a ‘low’ impact, 20% a ‘medium’ impact where AI could enhance productivity, and 15% a ‘high’ impact, where displacement risk may be significant.  

To support the transition we are developing and accrediting new AI training to ensure the workforce is prepared for the changing nature of work. ScreenSkills is accrediting courses like AIMICI’s which, builds lasting competencies and strategies for working with AI responsibly. 

Alison: Many of the flagship initiatives we hear about are from large, national employers. What are the benefits for smaller businesses in prioritising investment in learning?

Daisy: Most land-based employers are small or micro-businesses without dedicated learning and development teams. On the flip side, because teams are small, gaining one additional competence can have a significant effect.

A new skill may enable a business to meet a contract requirement, undertake work that would otherwise be subcontracted, use equipment more effectively or reduce a safety risk. Investment in learning can therefore strengthen both day-to-day delivery and future growth.

Training must reflect these. Our research points to the value of short modules, work-based or mobile provision, shared cohorts and local delivery. Trusted intermediaries can also reduce the burden of finding suitable training and navigating funding or administration.

Andy: Firstly, to ensure SMEs can offer training and skills development it is important they are equipped to thrive in a challenging market. 

The BFI funded Creative Enterprise programme, for example, has supported over 1,000 entrepreneurs since 2018, offering funding, mentoring and industry connections that turn creative potential into sustainable, scalable companies.

Much of the screen industry workforce is freelance which, as with SME employers, can make it harder to reach them through established training systems and utilise government programmes such as apprenticeships.  Coordination across industry is vital and ScreenSkills together with industry partners is supporting Action for Freelancers (AfF) – a first-of-its-kind pan-industry collaboration, which aims to improve the working lives and skills development of freelancers in the UK’s television sector. Their work for example promoting personal development plans which help freelancers to identify their career goals and training and development opportunities is key.

Alison: Do you have any examples of how employers are making training and learning opportunities inclusive – for example, encouraging people who may have had poor experiences of formal education, lack confidence, or who are neurodivergent?

Daisy: Many land-based colleges support learners with low prior attainment, additional learning needs or low confidence through practical, hands-on learning that helps people stay engaged and progress into work. Organisations such as OrganicLea have also shown how community-based approaches can build confidence, skills and routes into employment.

Our research suggests the barriers are frequently practical rather than educational. Transport, PPE costs, licences and access to work experience can all prevent someone taking up an opportunity. The demand is there: Groundwork’s New to Nature programme attracted around 2,000 applications for just 95 placements, showing that when opportunities are visible and supported, people are keen to enter the sector.

Andy: Inclusion is a key principle of ScreenSkills Training offer. Our free training directory includes courses on neurodivergence in the Film & TV industry, Deaf awareness and welfare and duty of care.

The industry has also developed The TV Access Project (TAP), an alliance of the UK’s biggest broadcasters and streamers to improve access for Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent talent. A guide has been developed to help workers, advocates and employers navigate how disability rights apply through key stages of the employment process.

Alison: What role do you think sector skills bodies play in making lifelong learning work?

Daisy: Sector skills bodies can provide the link between what is changing in industry and what is available through education and training.

For Lantra, this includes working with employers to identify current and future skill needs, developing recognised standards and training, and helping governments and providers understand where provision is not keeping pace. It also means joining up routes that can currently feel fragmented, including college courses, apprenticeships, technical certificates and continuing professional development.

Recognition of prior learning is important too. Someone with substantial industry experience should be able to demonstrate what they already know and focus their learning on genuine gaps, rather than repeat training unnecessarily.

Sector bodies also have a role in representing small and dispersed employers whose needs are not always captured through vacancy data or conventional employer surveys, ensuring they are visible in skills planning.

Andy: Lifelong learning systems are complex.  Sector bodies play three core roles to ensure the wider system works for employers and individuals. Firstly, providing insight, which creates the evidence base to inform policy and guide investments; secondly, assuring quality by developing standards and skills checklists to help identify skills needs; and thirdly  innovating, for example through our ScreenSkills Training Passport which is helping partners including BBC Public Service, BBC Studios, ITV Studios, Sky, Banijay and All3Media streamline onboarding and recognise industry-approved training.

Alison: If you could change one thing to create a stronger culture of lifelong learning in the UK, what would it be?

Daisy: I would make the skills system easier for people and employers to navigate.

Good training already exists, but the routes through it are often unclear. Employers and learners face a mixture of college provision, apprenticeships, commercial courses, professional schemes and industry-led CPD. It is not always obvious how these fit together, what should come next or which learning will be recognised by an employer.

We need clearer pathways for entering sectors, progressing and returning to learning throughout their career. These should recognise existing skills and experience and include practical, modular and work-based options alongside formal qualifications.

This is particularly important for small businesses. Creating a stronger culture of learning is not just about increasing the number of courses. It is about making the right learning easier to find, access and apply. 

Andy: Despite strong progress, there is unrealised potential both for employers and the workforce.

Unlocking the Screen Industries’ ability to access government lifelong learning funding and mechanisms could make a real difference and it would not require dramatic change. 

For example, our analysis shows mid and senior-level roles were seen to have the most skills gaps but it is now harder for employers to offer leadership and management training.  Unlocking apprenticeship units could help address this and counterbalance the difficulty the industry has in utilising the apprenticeship levy.

Our sector supports and champions lifelong learning and this has built a skilled workforce. If employers could further unlock government programmes such as apprenticeship units tailored to the sector’s skills needs, we could further harness the opportunity and growth potential of a sector that contributed roughly £24 billion in GVA to the UK economyin 2024 and which supports the employment of around 250,000 people.  

By Alison Morris, Director of Policy at Skills Federation; Daisy Hooper, Director of Policy, Research and ER at LANTRA and Andy Hall, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at ScreenSkills