Five years of the Lincolnshire Institute of Technology: What impact have we had?
Posted on 24th January 2025 at 15:05
We recently celebrated our fifth birthday here at the Lincolnshire Institute of Technology, so we’re looking back on what we’ve achieved since our inception in 2019.
With the demand for technically qualified employees remaining high across the UK, training and education plays a key role in supporting Lincolnshire’s economy. Employers are often competing for trainees and qualified staff, so our mission is to help make recruitment easier for them.
We do this by preparing individuals for work and supporting their development and progression within employment - ensuring the current and future workforce have the right skills.
STEM-ing the flow of the skills shortage
Since 2019, a massive 3,000 students have studied with the Lincolnshire Institute of Technology - meaning we’ve helped 3,000 people gain the skills they need for a successful STEM career.
What’s more, the majority of these students were studying at level 4 or 5, which is exactly what the region needs. The Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership Local Skills Report in January 2022 showed that Greater Lincolnshire has just 31.5% of individuals with a level 4 qualification or above, which is lower than the national average.
Our data also shows that engineering was the most popular subject area which, again, is great for the region. The Local Skills Report showed that roles for maintenance engineers are one of the toughest to fill and nearly all (96%) of engineering enterprises have been in recruitment mode over the previous 12 months. With the volume of students studying our engineering courses, we’re on track to address this issue.
Agritech is another popular area of study for our students, which is no surprise considering that Lincolnshire is responsible for growing 30% of the nation’s vegetables. But despite this, the skills shortage in this sector is a real issue - the Local Skills Report shows that the agricultural, horticultural and food manufacturing sectors have vacancies across all levels that cannot be filled. By working with our agricultural education providers, we’re working to tackle this issue.
Looking to the future
We have made huge strides towards tackling Lincolnshire’s STEM labour shortage in the last five years, and we have no plans to stop there. We currently have 1,500 students studying with us in 2024/25 and our target is to have a total of 5,000 students study with us between 2024 and 2029.
We’re always looking to adapt our offering to the region’s needs and that’s why we’ve also introduced two new subject areas to our curriculum - which we hope to see thrive in the next five years.
One of these is construction. The Federation of Small Businesses Greater Lincolnshire & Rutland Local Skills Improvement Plan shows that 7% of construction companies tried but failed to recruit over the previous 12 months, against an average failure rate of 6% across all sectors. 36% also said they have “little or no confidence” that they will find suitable training options in the local area for existing employees. We’ll be working closely with construction employers across the region to understand their needs and ensure the curriculum reflects these.
We have also recently partnered with Stamford College to introduce healthcare courses into our offering. The college will be establishing its own Lincolnshire Institute of Technology facilities, specialising in health-related programmes, to create a talent pool that is equipped with in-demand skills.
If you’re interested in kickstarting your STEM career, or upskilling in your current role, then why not take a look at our education partners’ websites to explore the courses on offer? You can find the links below.
Or if you work for a local business that needs help finding employees with the skills you need, contact mlochran@lincoln.ac.uk for more information.
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