Major skills boost at the heart of transformative new Defence Industrial Strategy

• £182 million boost for defence talent pipeline, delivering on economic growth through the Plan for Change.
• In-demand defence technical skills to be boosted through five Defence Technical Excellence Colleges, offering new opportunities into defence jobs.
• Landmark Defence Industrial Strategy set to back British business and adopt innovation lessons from Ukraine.

UK jobs and skills will be the driving force behind making the country a defence industrial leader under a transformative new strategy to be launched next week [Monday 8 September], including the creation of five defence-focused Technical Excellence Colleges to ensure industry has the workforce needed for the future.

It follows Prime Minister Keir Starmer's visit to BAE Scotstoun where he met shipyard workers to celebrate the UK securing a £10 billion deal with Norway for Type 26 frigates, which will support 4,000 British jobs well into the next decade. The deal highlights the government's work to back British companies on the global stage and secure working people's futures.

The Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) will further back British businesses, putting the UK at the leading edge of defence innovation in NATO and ensuring this government's record uplift in defence spending delivers a lasting dividend for people in every nation and region.

It will deliver a more integrated, innovative, and resilient defence sector and better equipped Armed Forces - supported by the historic increase in defence spending to 2.6% of GDP by 2027 and the ambition to hit 3% in the next Parliament.

New funding of £182 million will support a comprehensive package aimed at harnessing the skills needed for the future, from submarine engineers to specialist welders, and the cyber warfare specialists defence will need in the years to come. Defence is the engine room of national renewal, and this investment is focused on the future of the people who will be driving that work.

The DIS will support more opportunities for young people, help our Veterans into employment and equip the UK workforce with the expertise needed to meet the new era of threat set out in the Strategic Defence Review (SDR), and the demands of a rapidly evolving defence sector to innovate at a wartime pace.

Defence Secretary, John Healey MP said:

It's British workers who gave UK companies the leading edge in defence innovation and industry.

Our Defence Industrial Strategy puts skills at the heart of the Government's plans to make the country safer and boost jobs across the UK.

This is the biggest defence skills plan in decades, a plan to boost Britain's security and create well paid, high-skilled jobs for young people for generations to come.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said:

The defence sector doesn't just keep the British people safe; it drives growth and unlocks opportunities for young people to learn pioneering skills and pursue a great career.

This investment and our new Defence Technical Excellence Colleges will break down barriers to opportunity for people in every corner of our country, drive economic growth as part of our Plan for Change and secure the UK's place in the world, putting us at the cutting edge of innovation and new technology.

The Government's comprehensive defence skills package centres on establishing five Defence Technical Excellence Colleges, training people in the skills needed to secure new defence jobs in this growing industry, with applications to go live by the end of this calendar year, and successful TECs to be launched in 2026.

The package will fund thousands of short courses so that defence employers can upskill new hires and existing staff more quickly. Investing £80 million in our world leading universities will mean they can invest in cutting edge facilities and expand places for more people to study subjects like engineering and computer science that are critical to defence innovation.

This flagship initiative is complemented by ambitious regional STEM programmes designed to engage thousands of school-age students across four years, actively encouraging them to pursue defence careers.

Retention and career mobility are addressed through a new apprenticeship and graduate clearing system launching in 2026, plus scoping an innovative Defence Skills Passport which could facilitate smoother transitions for mid-career professionals between the Armed Forces, defence industry, and related sectors.

The package is a strong demonstration of making defence an engine for growth, delivering on the Government's Plan for Change.

Background

The skills package includes:

• Establishing five Defence Technical Excellence Colleges with applications to go live by the end of this calendar year, and with successful TECs to be launched in 2026.
• Regional STEM initiatives to engage thousands of school-age students over the next four years to pursue careers in defence.
• Targeted short courses for people working in specific defence industries looking to progress their careers by boosting their skills.
• Investing in the higher education sector to boost places on defence-related courses.
• Establishing a Defence Universities Alliance, which will support and encourage defence sector careers and ethical defence research.
• Explore working with partners, such as UCAS, to provide a wealth of online information, advice, and guidance for prospective students interested in a career in the defence sector.
• A new apprenticeship and graduate clearing-style system to help support career opportunities across the defence supply-chain.
• Helping retain our people by scoping a Defence Skills Passport that could enable smoother transfer of mid-career professionals between the Armed Forces, the defence industry and those looking to re-enter from neighbouring industries.
• Launching a new Destination Defence campaign, working with industry to promote the breadth of exciting roles available across the sector and the opportunities for people to keep our nation safe.