Skills for London’s economy

Download the working papers using the links at the bottom of the page.

As London looks ahead to a skills devolution deal, the capital has ambitions to create an adult skills system that is more responsive to the needs of the local economy. This work reflects on the area based review which will shape the future of the Further Education sector in London. Analysis by GLA Economics sets out what drives London’s economy, and what this means for future skills needs.

In this series of papers we analyse the demand for jobs and skills to inform the Government’s area reviews of post-16 education and training, covering four London sub-regions (working papers 76-79).

Thanks to London’s transport connectivity, the job opportunities available to learners are wider than a particular sub-region. The 2011 Census shows that less than half of all workers in London (48%) live in the same sub-regional area as their place of work. This calls for a broader, pan-London view (working paper 75).

In the past three decades, London has become increasingly connected to the global economy and specialised in high value business services as a result. London’s growing workforce and resident population also generates demand for localised services such as schools, healthcare, retail and other customer services.

These trends translate into increasing demand for a highly skilled and increasingly professional workforce in the capital. There is also likely to be a significant level of training needed to replace the more than half a million workers who leave their roles each year, and to help workers to adapt to changes in technologies and the nature of work.

The published data that sits alongside the papers can be accessed on the Datastore.