Background One third of the UK workforce now work for organisations which have either attained or are working towards the Investors in People Standard. The Standard is the intellectual property of the Secretary of State for Education and Employment and is central to the Department's plans for workforce development. The National Learning Targets in England reflect the Government's commitment to increase take up of the Standard. By 2002, we want to see 10,000 small organisations and 45% of medium and large organisations recognised as Investors in People. By December 1999 we had achieved some 16,500 recognitions and 21,000 commitments. This means that a significant number of new recognitions are required over the next 32 months to meet the targets. Until the LSC becomes operational next April, TECs will remain the main agents for supporting organisations to meet and maintain the Investors in People Standard. They use Local Competitiveness Budget funds to help them provide advice, support, and financial assistance on Investors in People to employers. TECs are also the owners of around 50 separate assessment, recognition and adviser registration units which. These are currently either single TEC units or collaborative units. The Department has recently commissioned ACL consultancy to undertake a review of Investors in People assessment and recognition units to map the type and range of units and to identify issues for consideration in the design of future arrangements. Their findings have been used to help inform the development of future arrangements and their final report will be published in June. An executive summary is attached at Annex 2. Investors in People UK licenses assessment, recognition and adviser registration units and is responsible for the integrity and development of the Standard and quality assurance. The company also runs a national advice and assessment unit which gives support to national employers that choose not to work through individual TECs. The recent Learning to Succeed White Paper and Prospectus set out proposals for the introduction of the LSC and the DTI has established the SBS and is currently considering bids for local SBS franchises. These developments have provided us with an opportunity to review the means through which Investors in People advice, assessment and recognition is delivered. In parallel to these structural changes, a new version of the Standard will be introduced from April 2000.

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