Read the full Cumbria Local Skills Improvement Plan 2026–2029 and access all supporting annexes via our dedicated LSIP report download page here.
Cumbria’s Challenge: Skills Gaps and Workforce Pressures
Cumbria’s skills challenges are real, and addressing them requires a coordinated, employer-led response. Cumbria faces a structurally tight labour market, characterised by an ageing population and limited workforce growth. Employers continue to experience recruitment difficulties across priority sectors, alongside shortages in technical, entry-level and higher-level skills. Lower levels of higher qualifications compared to the national average further contribute to these challenges. Together, these pressures are constraining economic growth and limiting employers’ ability to recruit and retain staff, improve productivity, and respond to major investment opportunities. At a time of significant economic challenges – an ageing workforce, growing skills shortages, and the transition to clean energy – the Local Skills Improvement Plan brings together employers, strategic authorities, higher and further education, independent training providers and wider stakeholders to solve these challenges together.
A Plan for Action
The Cumbria Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) 2026-2029 sets out a clear, employer led plan to align skills provision with labour market demand, supporting economic growth, productivity and inclusion. Cumbria Chamber of Commerce leads the LSIP as the designated Employer Representative Body, working with employers and partners to identify priority skills needs and turn them into meaningful action for businesses and learners. Delivery of the LSIP is co-owned across the local skills system, with employers and the Chamber, further and higher education providers, local authorities, the Combined Authority, and Jobcentre Plus and Work & Health partners all playing an active role. This shared ownership ensures coordinated action across education, skills and employment, alignment with programmes such as Get Cumbria Working, and effective use of funding and resources. The 2026-2029 LSIP identified advanced manufacturing, construction, energy and net zero, health and social care, land-based industries, and the visitor economy as priority sectors and these reflect both the county’s current economic strengths and its future growth opportunities.
What’s Changed?
The 2026-2029 plan provides an overview of local economic challenges, priorities and skills gaps, along with relevant strategies and initiatives. Following updated guidance from Skills England, the plan strengthens existing practice around broad stakeholder involvement while introducing closer alignment with local authority priorities, expanded coverage of higher-level skills up to Level 8, stronger Higher Education involvement, clearer links to national and local economic strategies, and an increased emphasis on clean energy, net zero, and equality of opportunity. The LSIP is expected to improve the relevance of FE and HE provision, simplify access to skills and training pathways, increase employer involvement and investment in skills and ensure better coordination across the local skills system – including careers services and Jobcentre Plus.
Achievements of the 2023-2025 LSIP
The 2026-2029 plan builds on a strong and proven track record, the 2023-2025 LSIP delivered real, measurable results for Cumbria. Employer engagement was substantial, with 217 employers participating through surveys, 56 employers and 12 providers contributing through one-to-one interviews, and a further 22 employers engaged through focus groups. The use of Bootcamps increased, and they aligned with LSIP priorities helping to address skills shortages across key sectors. Through the LSIP, learner support significantly exceeded expectations, with 299 learners reached against a target of 172, and 131 unemployed or economically inactive individuals progressed into employment or self-employment against a target of 87. Over 300 adults were also engaged through careers fairs.
Why LSIPs Matter
The case for a strong, locally led skills plan has never been clearer. The recent Milburn Review – an investigation of why over a million young people across the UK are not in employment, education or training (NEET) – serves as a stark reminder of the consequences of inaction, both for individuals and for economic growth. The Review’s central finding is that the systems designed to support young people into work – education, health, welfare, and the labour market – are failing to work together effectively. Chamber led LSIPs are already helping to bridge the gap between education and employment and play a central role in delivering change at scale.
The LSIP is a living document so actions will continue to develop over its life, including identification of additional actions as further research continues. So, we encourage everyone to stay or get engaged – whether an employer, provider, or other stakeholder. It is through your active involvement that Cumbria’s 2026 LSIP will succeed in making the most impact.
John Barradell OBE, Interim Chief Executive of Cumbria Combined Authority, said:
“This plan reflects what businesses across Cumbria have been telling us they need, and that’s why we fully support it.
“It fits with our wider plans to grow the local economy and take more control of our future through devolution, and sets out clear, practical actions. It gives colleges and training providers a better idea of where to focus, so people can train for the jobs that are actually out there. That means clearer, more achievable routes into work for local people.
“We’ve worked closely with Cumbria Chamber of Commerce and other partners to shape this together, and it shows what can be done when we all pull in the same direction.”
Suzanne Caldwell, Managing Director of Cumbria Chamber of Commerce and LSIP lead for Cumbria said:
“Working in genuine partnership with stakeholders across both the private and public sectors is essential for LSIPs to be truly successful. By embedding skills planning across local partnerships, LSIPs ensure training reflects the real needs of the local economy, strengthening collaboration and improving outcomes for learners while helping businesses plan for the future.
“This new plan builds on that foundation, addressing the economic challenges and skills gaps businesses are telling us about and ensuring provision across further and higher education is better coordinated, more relevant, and more accessible than ever before.”
