Skills Action Plan for Rural Scotland: 2019–2021.

Skills Action Plan for Rural Scotland: 2019–2021 seeks to focus on developing the skills required for the jobs in rural areas both now and in the future. The plan builds on analysis of the evidence, identification of key issues impacting on skills and agreement or priority areas of action by partners. Within each priority area there are complementary themes with one or more specific actions identified. These actions seek to address challenges or enable opportunities in specific sectors of the rural economy and/or within specific localities to support an inclusive growth aspiration. Each action identifies a lead and supporting partners, detailing their contribution and specifies a proposed timetable for action. These specific actions are a combination of: 1) approaches, activities, interventions and programmes that are already underway in rural areas but are being considered for scaling up or rolling out into different geographies; ‘flexed’ to better meet needs of rural areas or more intensively or widely promoted. 2) new approaches, activities interventions and programmes needed to plug a gap which are either national, regional or sectoral.
Agreed priority areas for action are: A) Better understand the skills rural employers need and align provision to support this; B) Provide individuals with accessible education and skills provision to secure, sustain and progress in their careers in rural areas; C) Develop the current workforce in rural areas through upskilling and reskilling; D) Build a secure pipeline for the future; E) Take a co-ordinated, strategic approach to tackling skills in rural areas.