Background
The UK Institute for Technical Skills & Strategy has responded to The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology’s (DSIT) call for written evidence on Building a future tech skills sector that works for everyone.
Our response
The response draws on findings from Technical Skills Landscape in the Digital and Technologies Sector report, insights from the Herschel Programme for Women in Technical Leadership, and evidence from Institute’s work on T Levels.
The submission highlights that frontier technologies are rapidly reshaping skills requirements, roles, and career pathways across the UK’s digital and technologies sector. However, structural challenges in the skills system, particularly around pathways, progression, and diversity, risk constraining both growth and inclusion.
Skills shortages and structural barriers
- The Technical Skills Landscape in the Digital and Technologies Sector report found that 120,000 extra technicians are needed across the frontier industries
by 2035. - Technical career pathways are fragmented, with limited visibility and awareness.
- The nature of technical careers is becoming increasingly non-linear, requiring individuals to continuously upskill and rely on access to development opportunities and professional networks.
- Persistent diversity imbalances, particularly for women, continue to constrain the available talent pool and are more pronounced at senior and leadership levels, with over 78% of roles across frontier industries held by men.
- Barriers to entry and progression begin early, with limited awareness of technical careers and evidence that interventions at GCSE stage are often too late to influence participation.
Interventions and solutions
- Government and providers have introduced technical pathways such as T Levels, which offer a positive route into technical careers but have yet to address participation gaps, particularly in engineering and digital routes.
- Targeted interventions such as the Herschel Programme demonstrate strong impact: 40% of participants progressed through promotion or role regrading, leadership representation increased from 38% to 62%, and over 90% reported improved confidence and leadership capability.
The submission concludes that the UK must address technical skills shortages and inclusion together. To do so, the system must engage individuals earlier in the pipeline, create clearer and more accessible pathways, align education more closely with employers’ needs, and support targeted interventions that support progression for underrepresented groups. It must also provide long-term support for technical pathways such as T Levels and apprenticeships to enable robust evaluation of impact on career progression and learner outcomes.
Prepared by: Farheen Akhtar, Institute Policy and Engagement Manager
The Institute’s Research and Policy Group conducts research to help the sector better understand the technical workforce. We use these insights to influence policy changes related to technical roles, education, and training.