2025: A Whirlwind Year for Skills Policy, What’s Next for 2026?

What a whirlwind 2025 has been for anyone working in skills policy. In addition to the significant changes to apprenticeships, we’ve seen a renewed focus on sectors with the Industrial Strategy, growth plans and sector skills packages, plus the publication of the Post 16 Education and Skills White Paper with its substantial number of recommendations. And there’s also been the important move of skills policy to the Department for Work and Pensions. This transition has brought a renewed focus on tackling youth unemployment, alongside additional funding to help make this ambition a reality.

With so much announced in 2025, what can we expect for 2026? My hope is that it will be a year of implementation rather than announcements, a year where government nurtures the policy fledglings launched in 2025 and turns them into tangible outcomes. But what will make this a success? These are what I think might be the key priorities.

Build on the sector-focused approaches within national strategies

The sector-focused approach taken in the industrial strategy and sector funding packages feels like the right way forward. It’s not totally comfortable to ‘back winners’ but does allow a more focused approach, which, coupled with regional flexibilities, could help increase economic growth. Sector skills bodies are uniquely positioned to support this direction, offering rich intelligence and convening power across their industries. Leveraging these organisations will ensure that skills policy is grounded in real-world needs and aligned with economic priorities.

Respond to employer demand to create a fit for purpose skills system

Whether the words used are ‘employer led’, ‘pro employer’, or ‘employer driven’ or something different, employer input is critical. Policies must respond to employer demand for skills, ensuring relevance to the labour market and supporting economic growth. The input of smaller as well as large employers is essential, and there is a role for intermediary organisations to play in convening employers. Clear, consistent and accessible mechanisms need to be developed to ensure that responding to employer needs is systematic and timely.  

Employers are clear that technical knowledge and skills alone are not enough to support young people to gain and progress through employment. New qualifications and pathways must sit within a curriculum that also develops the essential employability skills, including collaboration, communication, creative thinking and information literacy, that young people need to thrive in the modern workplace. This will prepare learners not just for their first job, but also bolster their resilience to be able to adapt to career changes, whether voluntary or as a result of the fast evolving labour market.

Smarter skills coordination across the UK

Skills policy remains devolved, but we hope that with the move of skills policy to the UK wide Department for Work and Pensions, that there may be more scope for greater collaboration. This could start with agreeing on a consistent approach to occupational standards. This would benefit employers operating across borders and enable individuals to be more mobile across nations.

Ways of working – test and learn

2026 should be a year when we see implementation. This doesn’t all have to happen at once, though, and a test and learn approach can help address the specific needs of places and sectors without immediate wholesale change. However, this must be done with care. Implementation should be thoughtful, with lessons learned along the way. Early challenges should not lead to wholesale abandonment but instead, inform refinements. A culture of continuous improvement across as well as within places will help ensure that pilots evolve into robust, scalable solutions which can be rolled out more widely.

Looking Ahead

If these principles are put into practice, 2026 could be a year of transformation which maximises the potential of the skills system, drives economic growth, and creates new opportunities for individuals. The groundwork laid in 2025 was ambitious, and now is the time to turn ambition into action.

To maximise the impact, government needs to implement with care, collaborate widely, and keep employers at the heart of the system. If we get this right, the skills landscape in 2027 will not just look different, it will deliver better outcomes for everyone.

By Fiona Aldridge, Chief Executive, Skills Federation