The Digital Britain report was published yesterday – I was away on external examination duties, so didn’t have a chance to look at it till today. Found relatively little reference to the games industry – there is a note in the executive summary about reviewing tax breaks for the industry – as the games industry in the UK has dropped into fourth place on world rankings this is probably due. Looking at the Education/Research sections (chapter 6) the following paragraphs jumped out:
55. Student demand for computing courses has fluctuated in recent years. There was a steep rise in demand and provision through the 1990s, followed by an equally steep fall in the first half of the present decade. The decline might be a reflection of perceived employment opportunities after the collapse of the dotcom boom and the waning of concerns about the ‘Millennium Bug’. Since 2006-07 numbers have levelled off and accepted applicants have started to rise again for the current year, but we should not be complacent and should continue to promote the sector as an area with good opportunities for those with the right aptitudes.
56. There are around 13,000 media programmes at FE and HE levels serving an estimated 50,000 students. This is oversupply in terms of the digital media sector but provides valuable skills into the wider economy. However, too many courses produce graduates with general digital media skills but with insufficient specialisms to meet employer needs.
Coupled with notes that many IT specialist companies have challenges recruiting suitably qualified staff (20% of such companies), this is clearly a problem of some national significance. Its not as simple as ensuring digital literacy, but encouraging students to consider more technical and specialist careers.
