Levelling Up: Institute of Coding announces Skills Bootcamps to connect people to employment

Institute of Coding (@IoCoding) Skills Bootcamps to connect 1,500+ people to employment

The 20 new IoC-led Skills Bootcamps, running nationwide, are part of the Government’s Lifetime Skills Guarantee and Plan for Jobs

The Institute of Coding (IoC) is a collaborative national consortium of industry, educators, and outreach providers that are working together to respond to the UK’s digital skills gap through the delivery of employer-led digital skills education. The IoC consortium, which is led by the University of Bath, was announced by Government yesterday as a provider for the Department for Education’s (DfE) Skills Bootcamps. 

Skills Bootcamps are flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, giving people the opportunity to build up tech skills and fast-track to an interview with an employer. They are being developed by the Government as part of the Lifetime Skills Guarantee and Plan for Jobs, in partnership with employers, providers, and local authorities. The Skills Bootcamps will provide learners with best-in-class digital skills education and deliver resilient pathways to work, with learners receiving the opportunity to interview with an employer upon the successful completion of their Skills Bootcamp. 

In addition to the IoC’s existing provision, which includes more than 150 university level digital skills courses, the IoC will design and deliver the new Skills Bootcamps in online and face-to-face formats at locations throughout the country. Topics include core digital skills, data science, software development, AI, cybersecurity and others. These Skills Bootcamps will give people the advanced digital skills needed for a role in tech and create a skilled talent pool for employers. 

Using its collaborative approach, the IoC is bringing together partners with delivery and engagement expertise to ensure that each step of the Skills Bootcamp journey is high-quality and tailored to meet the needs of employers and those looking to upskill to boost their employability. The IoC-led Skills Bootcamps will be coordinated and delivered by respected UK universities, including Aston University, Bath Spa University, the University of Bath, Birmingham City University, Durham University, Edge Hill University, the University of Gloucestershire, the University of Huddersfield, Manchester Metropolitan University, Northumbria University, the Open University, Teesside University, University of the West of England Bristol (UWE Bristol) and more. 

The programme will also be supported by the IoC’s engagement partners (e.g. DWP Jobcentres), pathway to work collaborators (including Deloitte – who are building infrastructure to support the programme’s data flow and reporting, measuring enrolment across the UK and promoting Skills Bootcamps and its graduates among their client network – as well as techUK, combined authorities, and LEPs), alongside the IoC’s existing network and consortium. 

Jacqueline de Rojas CBE, President of techUK and IoC Co-Chair, said: “It is widely acknowledged that the tech sector will power the UK’s post-pandemic economic recovery, but this cannot happen until the digital skills crisis is addressed. To ensure this recovery leaves nobody behind, we must help more people to upskill and reskill. The IoC-led Skills Bootcamps are designed to provide an accessible route for people to enter or re-enter employment with a job interview at the end. This widens pathways for diverse talent to improve employability and helps to prepare us all for what comes next.”

Richard Houston, Senior Partner and Chief Executive of Deloitte UK, said: “No business can ignore the threat of the digital skills gap. Without action, it will continue to widen, derailing jobs, business resilience and the UK’s economic recovery. Skills Bootcamps will spark necessary change and ensure that businesses across the country are able to recruit workers with the digital skills they urgently need.” 

Professor Ian White, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Bath, said: “As the lead university at the Institute of Coding, we’re delighted that the Government has asked the IoC consortium to deliver 20 Skills Bootcamps, providing more than 1,500 places for learners. Our respected university partners have proven experience delivering best-in-class digital skills education, and this, joined with our top-tier employer partnerships and award-winning learner engagement campaign, will help a larger and more diverse group of people directly into high-quality, well-paying employment.” 

Professor Bernie Morley, Co-Chair of the Institute of Coding Governance Board said: “With more than 1.6 million people out of work in the UK, we need a national pivot to digital skills to support the UK’s economic recovery and to support jobseekers back into work. There is an urgent need for accessible digital skills education to support that pivot, and the Institute of Coding has responded by enrolling 900,000 to date on flexible, modular digital skills courses focused on employability. The IoC-led Skills Bootcamps will extend our provision and form a rapid intervention that will produce quick results that will directly benefit learners and employers.”