1. 2. Should the design and build cost threshold not be met, any proposal that creates at least 20 additional FTE end user jobs will also be subject to the above requirements.

Explanation

  1. The council will seek to increase and ensure access to a range of employment skills and opportunities across the borough for residents, and in particular for protected groups where barriers to employment and education exist.
  2. The One Stockport Economic Plan sets out to improve access to training and skills provision to enable residents to take advantage of new opportunities at all life stages under the ‘Fair and Inclusive’ theme. Furthermore, the key strategic priorities of the Greater Manchester Local Industrial Strategy include giving all young people and adults a clear line of sight to opportunities for education, skills development and work in the city-region, and also ensuring all residents have the functional skills and attributes employers need including English, maths, digital and creative skills.
  3. It is acknowledged that the borough suffers from areas of relatively high unemployment and economic disadvantage. However, those areas are either adjacent to existing Employment Areas or they are well served by public transport which would link them to such areas, including the town centre. Consequently, it is not the location of employment uses which is the main issue, and rather it is important that worklessness is addressed, ensuring that residents are sufficiently well skilled and trained and other barriers to employment are lifted in order to be able to take advantage of the jobs that exist and will be created.
  4. Stockport's Social Value Charter 2023 includes a commitment to delivering a social value vision where the Council, businesses, third sector partners and voluntary groups work together for the benefit of the citizens, businesses and communities of the borough. To this end, the council will work closely with the Stockport's Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector and encourage partnership working between employers and local training providers to help develop the skills of the borough's work force and sections of the community that are disadvantaged in the labour market.
  5. The One Stockport Economic Plan prioritises a fair and inclusive economy, of which Employment and Skills Agreements are an important contributor to ensure economic prosperity is shared. The council will seek to enter into Employment and Skills Agreements via the use of planning conditions, and the Economy, Work and Skills Service will ensure their inclusion can be supported.
  6. The national benchmarks and cost ratios from the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) will be used to agree outcomes relating to work placements, new employee entrants to the construction sector, curriculum projects with local schools and colleges and workforce training opportunities including apprenticeships. The design and build cost threshold of £1 million is used by CITB