York & North Yorkshire LSIP
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Discover the latest insights from the York & North Yorkshire LSIP Report.
Priority Sectors
The LSIP is focused on accelerating growth in York and North Yorkshire's high value and high growth sectors, where the region has existing strengths and future opportunity, as well as areas of significant employment and skills needs.
Clean Energy, Green Economy & Carbon Negative Skills
Clean energy and carbon negative skills are a core LSIP priority because they are essential to delivering national decarbonisation commitments and local growth ambitions.
The UK Industrial Strategy and Clean Energy Jobs Plan identify clean energy as a long-term growth sector, with rapid workforce expansion required to deliver retrofit, renewables and low-carbon infrastructure.
Locally, the York and North Yorkshire Local Growth Plan identify clean energy as a competitive advantage sector, while the Adult Skills Fund Strategic Skills Plan prioritises modular reskilling to expand delivery capacity and embed sustainability skills across construction, engineering and related roles.
Key Skills Gaps and Workforce Pressure
- Shortages in retrofit, low carbon installation, and electricial/mechanical skills
- Gaps in energy efficiency, diagnostics and quality assurance
- Shortages in higher-level digital skills (e.g. smart energy systems, EV infrastructure, monitoring)
- Ageing workforce and competition for skilled labour across sectors
Relevant SIC codes
- 35 Electricity, gas and renewables
- 43 Building services (retrofit, heat pumps, low‑carbon installations)
Key SOC occupations
- 2122 Mechanical engineers
- 5241 Electricians
- 2436 Project managers
Construction
Construction skills are prioritised in the LSIP due to persistent workforce shortages, an ageing labour force, and the scale of planned housing, infrastructure and retrofit activity. National policy recognises construction as critical to enabling delivery of growth, carbon negative and building safety objectives.
The York and North Yorkshire Local Growth Plan relies on sufficient construction capacity to deliver regeneration and decarbonisation, while the Adult Skills Fund Strategic Skills Plan supports entry-level trades, reskilling and progression into supervisory roles.
Strengthening construction skills is therefore essential to both short-term delivery and long-term productivity.
Key Skills Gaps and Workforce Pressures
- Acute shortages in core trades (e.g. bricklaying, carpentry/joinery, electrical, plumbing)
- Insufficient supply of site supervisors and construction mangers, limiting delivery capacity
- Growing gaps in retrofit, low-carbon and building safety skills linked to carbon negative and regulatory requirements
- Limited construction capability including the adoption of BIM and digital site systems
Relevant SIC codes
- 41–43 Construction of buildings and specialised construction activities (including heritage)
Key SOC occupations
- 5312 Bricklayers
- 5315 Carpenters and joiners
- 2436 Construction project managers
Creative & Cultural Industries
Creative Industries are prioritised because they contribute to employment, placemaking, and economic diversification, while supporting innovation across other sectors. The Industrial Strategy identifies Creative Industries as a national priority growth sector, supported by dedicated sector plans. Locally, the York and North Yorkshire Local Growth Plan recognises creative activity as a competitive advantage, particularly in York, while the Adult Skills Fund Strategic Skills Plan supports flexible and modular provision suited to freelancers and SMEs. Focusing on digital, commercial and freelance sustainability skills supports both inclusive employment and higher-value growth.
Key Skills Gaps and Workforce Pressures
- Gaps in advanced digital and technical creative skills, including effective use of digital tools in creative production.
- Weak business, commercial and freelance sustainability skills (e.g., pricing, bidding, intellectual property, marketing, and financial management)
- Limited progression routes from entry level roles into higher value and more stable employment, contributing to income volatility and skills underutilisation
- Cross cutting gaps in leadership, project management and digital capability, particularly for small firms and self-employed workers.
Relevant SIC codes
- 58–60 Publishing, film, TV and music
- 62 Computer programming and digital content
- 90 Creative, arts and entertainment
Key SOC occupations
- 2472 Artists
- 2136 Software developers
- 3545 Sales and marketing professionals
Health & Social Care (including Engineering Biology & Life Sciences)
Health and Social Skills are a priority due to rising demand from an ageing population and persistent recruitment and retention pressures. Adult social care and life services are recognised nationally as priority and supporting sectors within the Industrial Strategy because of their economic and social importance.
Locally, the Local Growth Plan highlight Health and Social Care as a key employment sector and Engineering Biology and Life Sciences as a high-value growth opportunity.
The Adult Skills Fund Strategic Skills Plan prioritises stabilising workforce supply, improving progression and expanding higher-level technical skills to support service sustainability and innovation-led growth.
Key Skills Gaps and Workforce Pressures
- Shortages in Level 2–3 frontline care roles, particularly in rural and coastal areas
- Gaps in safeguarding, communication, EDI and digital capability in care settings
- Limited progression into supervisory, management and leadership roles
- Shortages in higher level technical skills (Levels 6–7) in life sciences
- Gaps in laboratory automation, bioinformatics, data, regulatory/quality and commercialisation skills
- Ongoing challenges with recruitment, retention and graduate pipeline development.
Relevant SIC codes
- 86 Human health activities
- 87 Residential care activities
- 88 Social works without accommodation
- 72.11 Biotechnology R&D
- 72.19 Natural sciences/engineering R&D
- 21 Pharmaceuticals (where applicable)
Key SOC occupations
Care workforce:
- 6135/6136 Care workers & senior care workers
- 6131 Nursing auxiliaries
- 1232 Care managers
- 1171 Health/public health managers
Life sciences:
- 2113 Biochemists/biomedical scientists
- 3111 Laboratory technicians
- 2424 Project professionals
Land-based Skills (including Food & Farming Innovation)
Land-based skills, including Food and Farming Innovation, are a priority due to their central role in York and North Yorkshire’s rural economy, workforce resilience and environmental sustainability. National policy and the Industrial Strategy emphasise the need to improve productivity, innovation and resilience across agrifood systems.
The York and North Yorkshire Local Growth Plan identify food and farming innovation as a competitive advantage sector, reflecting the region’s high concentration of agricultural, land-based and agrifood businesses and their importance to regional economic performance.
Land-based skills are particularly significant in York and North Yorkshire given that over 70% of the region’s land area is agricultural or managed countryside, the area includes two National Parks and multiple National Landscapes, and natural assets underpin tourism, food production, climate resilience and rural employment.
The Adult Skills Fund Strategic Skills Plan reinforces this by prioritising practical land-based skills, improved rural access to training, and progression into digital, sustainable and leadership roles, supporting both immediate workforce stability and longer-term transformation across land-based and rural industries.
Key Skills Gaps and Workforce Pressures
- Ageing workforce and replacement demand across farming, food production and processing roles
- Shortages in practical Level 2–3 skills (food safety, quality, traceability and operational competence)
- Limited uptake of digital and precision agriculture skills, constraining productivity and innovation
- Weak progression pathways into higher level technical and agribusiness leadership roles
- Skills mismatch driven by rurality, transport constraints and limited access to training.
Relevant SIC codes
- 01 Agriculture, food, farming and horticulture
- 5111 Forestry, land management and environment
- 10 Manufacture of food products
- 28.30 Agricultural machinery (Agri‑tech support)
Key SOC occupations
- 5112 Agricultural and fishing trades
- 3111 Laboratory technicians (food testing)
- 1121 Production managers (food manufacturing)
Manufacturing & Engineering (including Rail Innovation & Securities)
Manufacturing and Engineering are prioritised because they underpin productivity, high-value employment and replacement demand across the region.
The Industrial Strategy identifies advanced manufacturing as a core national growth sector, alongside strategic priorities in transport and secure technologies. The York and North Yorkshire Local Growth Plan highlights manufacturing, engineering and rail innovation as competitive advantage sectors with significant growth potential.
The Adult Skills Fund Strategic Skills Plan supports replacement demand, upskilling and progression into higher-level technical roles, enabling both workforce resilience and long-term industrial transformation.
Key Skills Gaps and Workforce Pressures
- Ageing workforce and high replacement demand across trades, technicians and engineering roles
- Persistent shortages in core technical skills (machining, fabrication, welding, maintenance, quality and inspection)
- Gaps in higher-level technical and digital capability, limiting productivity and innovation adoption
- Weak progression pathways into supervisory, professional and project management roles, particularly for SMEs
- In rail and secure technologies, gaps in systems integration, applied digital capability and project delivery.
Relevant SIC codes
- 25–30 Manufacturing (fabrication, machinery, transport equipment)
- 33 Repair and installation of machinery
- 71 Engineering design, testing and R&D
- 30.20 Rail locomotives and rolling stock (rail sub‑sector)
Key SOC occupations
- Engineering technicians (3115)
- Welding trades (5215)
- Design and development engineers (2126)
- Engineering professionals (2129)
- Software developers (2136)
- Project managers (2424)
Overarching LSIP Priorities
The LSIP identifies both immediate skills priorities (next 12–18 months) and medium-term skills shifts (2–3 years). In the short term, the emphasis is on addressing hard-to-fill vacancies through expanded technical provision, short courses and job-ready training. Over the medium term, the focus shifts towards building resilient pipelines into higher-level technical and professional roles, supporting adoption of digital, AI and low-carbon technologies, and strengthening leadership and management capability to drive productivity and business growth.
Within the priority skills sectors the LSIP addresses 6 overarching priorities:
1. Stabilise workforce supply and readiness
Improve work readiness, employability and transferable skills to address immediate recruitment, onboarding and retention pressures across priority sectors.
KPIs
1.1 Increase in the number and proportion of learners enrolled on LSIP‑aligned programmes.
2. Embed digital capability across all sectors
Strengthen baseline digital literacy and progress towards applied digital, data, AI and automation skills aligned to occupational roles.
KPIs
2.1 Increase in the number and proportion of LSIP‑aligned programmes that explicitly embed digital or digital‑enabled skills.
2.2 Year‑on‑year increases in learners completing provision with applied digital skills relevant to their occupational pathway.
3. Build progression pathways and higher-level skills (Levels 1-8)
Create clear progression routes, including at Level 2–3 in sectors such as construction, engineering, care, manufacturing and the land-based economy, and expand Level 4–7 technical education and apprenticeships to support productivity and career change or progression.
KPIs
3.1 Increased enrolments on provision explicitly aligned to LSIP priorities.
3.2 Evidence of improved collaborative working between FE and HE to drive place based LSIP priority pathways reporting from FE / HE
3.3 Growth in higher‑level (L4–L8) provision aligned to LSIP priorities, supporting graduate retention, productivity and innovation, particularly in technical, digital, clean energy and engineering pathways, whilst not overlooking the importance of level 2-3 courses in these areas
4. Develop leadership, management and commercial capability
Address frontline leadership shortages and build leadership-for-growth and commercial skills, particularly within SME-dominated sectors.
KPIs
4.1 Increased proportion of LSIP‑aligned provision that explicitly incorporates employability, leadership or supervisory skills outcomes. Can be through curricular or pastoral delivery.
5. Accelerate green, carbon negative and sustainability skills
Scale retrofit, clean energy and low-carbon skills and embed sustainability across roles and sectors. Not treating green skills in isolation. Reflect the skills needs of the wider land-based sector.
KPIs
5.1 Growth in the number of learners completing green, carbon negative and sustainability‑related provision.
5.2 Increase in the number of LSIP aligned sector pathways that embed sustainability or carbon negative competencies within core provision, rather than delivering these solely through standalone courses.
6. Ensure a coherent, employer-informed and responsive skills system
Strengthen employer leadership, flexible and modular delivery, and alignment of funding and provision to LSIP priorities. Increase employer engagement with the skills system, especially for SMEs.
KPIs
6.1 Employer engagement activity: Increase in the number and diversity of employers participating in LSIP engagement activity, surveys, sector skills groups and curriculum discussions.
6.2 Provider responsiveness: An increased proportion of provider accountability statements and curriculum changes that explicitly reference LSIP priorities.
