Seventy-one per cent of Scottish employers offered training to their staff according to the latest findings, a higher rate than England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The findings come from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) 2015 Employer Skills Survey, which also shows that the Scottish training rate has increased from 70 per cent in the last survey (2013). England’s rate was 66 per cent, Wales 63 per cent and Northern Ireland 62 per cent.

The survey also shows that the number of employers reporting a skills gap has fallen five percentage points to 14 per cent, broadly comparable to both England and Wales.

Minister for Youth and Women’s Employment Annabelle Ewing said:

“Today’s survey shows some positive news for Scottish workers and I am very pleased to see that the vast majority of employers are offering training opportunities to their staff. This approach is consistent with the Scottish Government’s work on Developing the Young Workforce – Scotland’s Youth Employment Strategy which puts skills development at the heart of our economic growth.

“However, some gaps do remain which is why we will continue to take action to increase training opportunities. We have an ongoing commitment to at least 25,500 Modern Apprenticeships every year – rising to 30,000 by 2020 – as part of a drive to cut youth unemployment by 40 per cent. In order to meet these ambitions we need more employers to get involved with training and developing staff, something which will have considerable benefits to their organisation.

“In addition, Skills Development Scotland has published skills investment plans for key sectors including engineering, construction and the creative arts. As part of our support for the digital sector, Scotland’s first digital skills academy opened its doors in October, with the first graduates due shortly.

“The overall Scottish youth unemployment level and rate fell to their lowest September-November figures since 2006 in figures released earlier this month so it is very clear that progress is being made in supporting more young women and men into jobs. However, we will continue to do everything in our power to drive forward Scotland’s economic growth.”