Contrary to popular belief, UK IT professionals have greater access to training than their European cousins, according to new research from IT skills body E-skills UK. However, the study also shows that levels of training are falling, with training levels for ICT staff now below the UK's national average for the first time in five years.
Based on a survey of over 1,000 employers during the last quarter of 2006, E-skills' quarterly report found that over one in four UK IT professionals had received training in the preceding month. The result compares favourably with the European average of just one in six IT professionals having received recent training.
The report also found that the UK education system may not be failing the IT industry to the extent believed by many employers, with the UK ranked in the top six European countries based on the average level of qualification held by IT professionals.
But David Davis, head of sales at IT training company The Training Camp, argued that the UK education system was still struggling to meet employers' IT needs. "There are a lot of graduates who have a lot of knowledge but not many skills," he said. "They still tend to lack practical IT experience and employers are reluctant to invest in training them."
The report also warned the UK's enlightened attitude to IT training was being eroded, with ICT staff reporting a reduction in the incidence of training compared with previous years. The report warned this was "part of a long-term trend that now puts training levels for such staff at just below the UK average for the first time in over five years".
"The UK starts from a position of considerable strength but it is vital that we do not become complacent," warned Karen Price, CEO of E-skills UK.
The fall in IT training levels is particularly concerning in the light of the worsening IT skills shortages faced by many firms. According to the E-skills study, the number of firms reporting problems filling IT vacancies increased, with senior programming professionals with skills in VoIP, Flash, .NET and Prince proving particularly difficult to recruit. As a result, ICT staff reported above-average earnings growth, with salaries rising four percent compared with the previous quarter.
David Evans of the British Computer Society warned that there was a possible link between IT skills shortages at many firms and the fall in training opportunities. "There is always a tension within organisations between short-term delivery and long-term investments," he observed. "It is possible that short-term project pressure means training opportunities become more limited – it is a troubling trend given we all know how important training is."
