SSC relicensing
SSCs were originally licensed by Government between 2003 and 2006 to be the authoritative voice for employers in their sector able to exert influence over the UK's education, skills and training systems. Since then the importance and the role of SSCs had grown and a full review that they were continuing to operate effectively was essential. The relicensing process was designed to test this.
The Relicensing Process
The process was focused on assessing SSCs against four key themes:
- how well run the organisation is
- its ability to deliver core products and services
- its ability to deliver sector specific solutions to employer demand
- its ability to deliver results and impacts.
The relicensing assessment comprised an independent and detailed review and report on each SSC by the National Audit Office (NAO) against a relicensing framework. This framework Empowering SSCs – Employer driven skills reform across the UK (PDF, 183 Kb) was launched in July 2008.
The UK Commission also produced a guide for employers on the relicensing process and employers were invited to provide feedback on their SSC to feed into the assessment process. The UK Commission received 337 employer responses through our online feedback portal and 313 hard copy letters.
The NAO collected evidence on each SSC, including employer testimonies and stakeholder feedback when producing their assessment report. This report was then considered by the UK Commission in a process which included a designated Commissioner from the UK Commission meeting with the SSC Board, and a relicensing panel in which both the Chair and CEO of each SSC met with Commissioners to make their case for relicensing.
After considering all the evidence, the UK Commission made a recommendation to Ministers in England and the Devolved Administrations as to whether an individual SSC should receive a further licence. Each SSC was awarded a final assessment mark as to how well they had met the requirements; Outstanding, Good, Satisfactory or Does Not Meet the Standard.
The decision to award or withhold a licence is made by Ministers in the UK Government and the Devolved Administrations. Sector Skills Councils were permitted to appeal against the recommendation made by the UK Commission, but not appeal against the Ministerial decision.
