Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP)
LSIP: If We Want Better Talent, We Have to Help Shape It
We constantly hear:
“There’s a skills shortage.”
“Education isn’t producing work-ready candidates.”
“Young people aren’t prepared for the workplace.”
But here’s the uncomfortable question: Are employers actively shaping the system — or just criticising the output?
What Is LSIP?
LSIP stands for Local Skills Improvement Plan.
It’s a government-backed initiative designed to ensure training, qualifications and education provision reflect the real skills needs of employers.
In simple terms: it connects workforce demand with curriculum design.
I’ve been fortunate to contribute to the Thames Valley LSIP workshops as part of LSIP 2.0, the next phase focused on identifying recruitment challenges, skills gaps and future workforce needs.
This is not a policy exercise. It directly influences course design, funding priorities and regional skills planning.
Why It Matters to Employers
Through direct employer engagement, LSIP is:
Identifying current and future skills gaps
Shaping new courses and qualifications
Aligning training investment to business need
Strengthening collaboration between employers and education
Nearly 3,000 employers have already engaged, with significant investment and new training provision created. When employers contribute, change happens.
Themes from the Talent Pipeline Forum
I recently joined the panel at the Thames Valley Talent Pipeline & Essential Skills Forum. The discussion reflected what we see every day in recruitment:
Ongoing recruitment and retention pressures
Gaps in essential (soft) skills
Multi-generational workforce expectations
Inclusivity and overlooked talent pools
Whether CVs are still the right assessment tool
These are shared challenges. They won’t be solved by education alone, and they won’t be solved by employers working in isolation either.
Our co-founder, Francine Kane, recorded short video responses to some of the Forum’s unanswered questions, offering further perspective and practical insight.
Q: How are you overcoming recruitment and retention challenges?
Q: How can we move from reliance on sponsored workforce to domestic workforce?
Q: Are employers missing out by not leveraging the vast experience of more senior individuals — many out of work aged 40–60?
Q: Do CVs still serve a purpose when talent are applying for roles?
Q: How can employers fill skills gaps while also creating a more inclusive workforce?
Q: What’s the best way for young people to demonstrate the level of essential skills they have at application and interview?
If anyone has any questions about the above, or would like to have a catch up to discuss further, Get in touch at hello@4frontrecruitment.com or 07799 334438.