Skills England has just published its assessment of the UK’s priority skills needs from now until 2030 and there are some interesting takeaways for anyone keeping an eye on digital skills.
The modelling suggests that occupations in Digital, Adult Social Care, Construction, and Engineering are expected to see the biggest growth in demand between 2025 and 2030.
For digital specifically, programmers and software development professionals are predicted to see 87,000 additional roles created, making them the second highest growth occupation in the UK over the next five years.
And it’s not just tech companies who need these skills. Programmers and software developers are listed as priority occupations in seven different industries:
- Advanced Manufacturing
- Creative Industries
- Defence
- Digital and Technologies
- Financial Services
- Life Sciences
- Professional and Business Services
Most of the additional demand for digital roles will require Level 4 qualifications or higher. That covers areas like software development, data engineering, cloud computing, and AI. Skills that go well beyond basic IT literacy.
Interestingly, the report shows that only 70% of computing graduates go on to work in priority occupations which is a reminder that growing the digital skills base isn’t just about getting more people to study computing, it’s also about creating clear and accessible routes into the right roles.
If your organisation depends on digital skills now, it might be worth thinking about how that need could grow over the next five years and how you might meet it.
You can read the full Skills England report here: Assessment of priority skills to 2030
And if this has got you thinking about the digital skills your organisation might need in the years ahead, we’re always happy to chat, just drop us a line at [email protected].