Chamber and committees

The Labour Market Strategy, which was published in August 2016, included a commitment for the Scottish Government to undertake a joint review of the current ILA scheme with Skills Development Scotland.

The review formed part of the Scottish Government’s aim to enhance the employment prospects of those in work or looking for work; to equip people with the right skills to participate and be successful within our labour market; and to support employers by providing workers with opportunities to improve their work-related skills and qualifications.

A range of factors were considered during the review including the impact the scheme has had on employability, the popularity of the scheme since inception, learner feedback, and the performance and efficiency of the current system for both learners and course providers.

Following careful consideration, I am proposing to modify the ILA scheme with changes to learner, provider and course eligibility and to change the scheme’s name to ‘Individual Training Account’.

Individual Training Accounts, retaining the value of £200 per year, will be available for people who are looking for work or who are looking to progress in work. By amending the current course provider eligibility, we will improve the quality of courses available so that every ITA will be used towards funding a recognised qualification.

Secondary legislation will be brought to the Scottish Parliament to enable the proposed changes to be brought into force in October 2017.

Learners and course providers who participate in the current ILA scheme are being informed of the proposed changes. Learners with an open ILA account should be assured that they will still be able to use their funding to attend courses until the end of September 2017 but courses must be booked no later than 30 June.