The Data Lab upskills more than 1000 learners to address growing digital skills gap

The Data Lab, Scotland’s innovation centre for data and AI, has announced it has upskilled almost 1,000 learners in data literacy through its Data Skills for Work programme. The vast majority of which are based in Edinburgh and South East Scotland.

Led by The Data Lab, the Data Skills for Work programme is part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal’s DDI (Data Driven Innovation) Data Skills Gateway at the University of Edinburgh. It aims to address the tech skills gap by offering a series of digital and data courses to support workers adapting to increasingly digitised, automated and data-driven workplaces.

In addition to tackling the skills gap, the programme also aims to encourage more diversity in the workplace. Only 24% of the UK’s tech workforce are women and 14% of UK employees are from BAME backgrounds. Data Skills for Work bucks the trend with almost 70% of learners being women or gender diverse, nearly a quarter being from a minority background, and 10% being disabled or neurodiverse.

The Data Skills for Work programme has received funding from the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, the Scottish Government, and the Tay Cities DigiTay project to fund training places for individuals across Scotland. The Data Lab has extended its work with DigiTay and will offer more data and upskilling courses to Tay Cities learners in 2024/25, aiming to reach upwards of 200 additional people across Tay Cities, Edinburgh and South East Scotland.

Anna Ashton Scott, Programme Manager for Professional Development at The Data Lab, said: “The pace of technological change shows no signs of slowing down. Workplaces are becoming increasingly reliant on technology and, with data now at the heart of many aspects of our professional lives, those who can’t keep up risk being left behind. While these changes certainly bring positives, it’s crucial we don’t let others fall by the wayside. The Data Skills for Work programme ensures those most impacted by the changes in digitalisation and AI can learn the skills they need, not only to survive in their chosen fields but to thrive in them.

“And the initial feedback we’ve received tells us it’s working. It has been extremely satisfying to see a significant number of learners either secure a data related role or progress in their careers following completion of the course.

“We’re excited to expand the programme further and look forward to seeing more learners join the scheme. Diversity has been a major focus for us, and we hope to continue empowering individuals regardless of their background, gender, or location to create a more diverse, skilled and inclusive workforce for all.”

Dilraj Sokhi-Watson, Director at Equate Scotland and a graduate of the Data Skills for Work programme, said: “With more than 10 years of experience in my field, there is still much more to data skills than I had realised. Before joining the programme, I was keen to bridge the gap between my existing expertise and the rapidly changing technology the team are using daily. I was also keen to develop skills that would allow me to implement strong practice in data governance, management and strategy across my team.

“Being part of Equate Scotland, diversity and encouraging more women into STEM careers has always been important to me. It’s rewarding to see the meaningful change being driven by the Data Skills for Work programme and how it contributes to achieving a more inclusive and innovative STEM sector for Scotland.”

The Data Skills Credits scheme, funding run by Data Skills for Work to ensure learners can undertake courses for free, will be open for training providers to apply this April. It will help to create over 200 training places across Tay Cities, Edinburgh and South East Scotland.

Gateway to Success

The Data-Driven Innovation Skills Gateway was a finalist at this year’s Digital Leaders 100 awards.

The Skills Gateway made it into the final three for Digital Skills Initiative of the Year, out of hundreds of entries from across the UK. With over 700 nominations, judges recognised the Skills Gateway‘s innovative and cross-sector approach to improving data skills as a key component of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal’s skills and employability programme.

The growth of Scotland’s technology ecosystem and changing world of work has led to a rapid increase in demand for workers with appropriate data skills. The Scottish Futures Institute estimates that 175,000 new digital jobs alone will have been generated in Scotland by 2030, with 37,000 of those based in Edinburgh. Yet, around 60% of digital organisations in Southeast Scotland say limited supply of talent is their biggest challenge.

Alison Muckersie, Programme Lead for the DDI Skills Gateway, commented: “The DDI Skills Gateway set out to be innovative and inclusive, but we have also learnt the importance of being responsive. We are all about ensuring that our citizens are well equipped to recognise and understand the opportunity provided by the data revolution – regardless of their gender, background or location – and that they are given options and support to develop the wide-ranging data literacy skills which we will all need.”

The Skills Gateway is tackling digital skills shortages by growing the data skills of the region’s citizens, and helps to deliver targeted activities in local schools, colleges, universities and across employability and work settings. The team has already developed the first school-based data science qualification in Britain, is offering a wider range of data training at all levels and can provide individuals and organisations with grants to be used for upskilling activities.

Borders College Shortlisted for leading the way in Data Science learning

An innovative partnership programme funded through the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal is benefitting students across the region, by allowing not only full-time students to learn about Data Driven Innovation (DDI) but also those who are unemployed or facing redundancy. 

The programme at Borders College has been shortlisted for a national award at the annual CDN (College Development Network) Awards – one of the most prestigious awards in the sector. Core Skills staff at Borders College developed a project-based approach to their course delivery and assessment. This approach has enabled the lecturers to develop the digital, data and meta-skills of the learners that relate more specifically to the needs of the employers. The shortlisting recognises a college that has anticipated the importance of wider skills development and reflected this across the curriculum. The winners will be announced at a virtual celebration on Thursday 3 December 2020.  

Borders College Principal Angela Cox said: 

“I am delighted that the creativity and hard work of the staff is being recognised in this way. Borders College prides itself on providing our community with the skills they need now and in the future. Accessing and interpreting data is an essential skill irrespective of the sector you want to work in and we are delighted to be working with University of Edinburgh on developing these skills, alongside other City Region Deal partners.”  

Alison Muckersie from University of Edinburgh, the Data-Driven Innovation Skills Gateway lead, commented: 

“The team at the Borders College has embraced the opportunity provided by the significant City Region Deal investment to prepare their students for the fast-changing world of work. Data skills are becoming increasingly important across all jobs and sectors, and are key to ensuring ongoing competitiveness for businesses. By embedding data literacy in their core skills programme the College is recognising this trend and is helping their students to be better equipped for the world of work, regardless of the roles they move into.” 

The programme consists of a pilot group of unemployed individuals that are developing data literacy skills online and meet up with their tutor on a weekly basis for support and advice. This pilot group is learning about Data Citizenship, Data Science, Information Technology Skills and Communication. The group will complete their course in December, with the hope that they will have the skills to gain employment in an increasingly competitive and changing jobs market.  

The digital technology and data revolution has put data at the core of many things, from personal privacy to public health, wealth creation to environmental protection. This is particularly important for employers, whether large or small businesses, public sector organisations or charities, because using data to create or improve products and services is key to unlocking economic growth and job creation. 

By moving to more digital solutions and using data to update business models, organisations can develop and take advantage of new and innovative ways of operating. To do this successfully, businesses need to have a workforce that is fit for purpose. 

Rapidly evolving technologies like artificial intelligence and robotics are increasing the demand for highly-skilled workers, but every type of work is affected. It is estimated that 90% of jobs already require digital skills. And while some jobs will disappear altogether as automation spreads, new jobs and whole new areas of work will emerge. 

The college has recognised the importance of developing these skills and has embedded the programme into their core curriculum. It is currently being taught online to over 170 full time students across a range of subjects (Construction, Business, Hospitality, Hairdressing, Beauty Therapy, Sport and Horse care). 

City Region Deal makes key appointment for data skills targets

The City Region Deal is gearing up to help people across Edinburgh and South East Scotland improve their data skills.

The Data-Driven Innovation (DDI) Skills Gateway has appointed Anna Scott as its Project Delivery Manager, to take the lead on Data Education for Work activities.

ANNA SCOTT - project lead manager

Anna will be based in The Data Lab, Scotland’s Innovation Centre for Data and AI, but will work with a wide range of stakeholders from across the region, including employers and training providers.

The Data Education for Work project will develop a suite of programmes to help empower at-risk employees and low-paid workforce across the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region to prepare and equip themselves with the skills to take advantage of jobs that will be shaped by data-driven innovation.

Commenting on her new role, Anna said: “I am delighted to be joining the programme at this exciting time and look forward to working with the DDI Skills Gateway team and colleagues at The Data Lab to bring the Data Education for Work programme to life. Automation is changing the way organisations operate and I'm really excited by the opportunity to lead on the development a new employee-focussed skills programme that aims to empower workers in Edinburgh, South East Scotland and beyond to take full advantage of the changing world of work and the data training opportunities available to them to upskill or retrain.”

The DDI Skills Gateway programme is aiming to enhance data literacy across the skills pathway, including working with school pupils, college and university learners and those in work. A range of approaches are being developed including working alongside teachers to enhance the data curriculum in schools, developing short courses for college learners including women returners, and embedding data skills in undergraduate courses.

Anna joins the DDI Skills Gateway from the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (Scotland's ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership), where she led on programmes of activity designed to connect doctoral research with policy and industry. This included working closely with the Scottish Government and Skills Development Scotland on a national internships programme, the creation of a mentoring scheme with the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and the delivery of industry-focused skills training initiatives to increase business engagement with the social sciences.

Relevant links:

• Data Driven Innovation website

• The Data Lab website

Universities unveil City Region Deal plan to tackle digital skills gap

The University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University will work together to train 100,000 people in data skills and help 1,000 organisations through data.

The University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University have launched a major initiative that includes plans to improve digital skills across south east Scotland. The new venture is set to transform Edinburgh and its surrounding area into the data capital of Europe.

The £661m Data-Driven Innovation initiative is a key part of the recently-announced Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. It aims to train 100,000 people in data skills over the next decade, from computer science specialists to traditional jobs that will increasingly use data.

It is estimated that Scotland needs around 13,000 extra workers each year with data skills as the workplace is transformed. The Scottish Government’s Digital Strategy, published in 2017, included plans to tackle this digital skills gap while growing the Scottish economy.

Together, the two universities will increase the provision of data science teaching for their students, and support schools and colleges across the region to provide digital skills teaching and training. The region’s supercomputing capabilities will also be strengthened with investment in a data analysis facility, which will help 1,000 organisations use data to innovate within their sectors.

Secretary of State for Scotland, David Mundell, said:

 This exciting project – backed by £270m of UK Government investment – will ensure that the UK leads the world in technologies of the future and benefits from the economic growth opportunities this brings.

“By giving 100,000 people, and 1,000 companies, the skills and capability they need to drive innovation through big data and artificial intelligence, this partnership working will help maximise the potential of these sectors – a key goal of the UK Government’s Modern Industrial Strategy.”

The Scottish Government’s Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity, Michael Matheson said:

“The £300m Scottish Government investment in the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal will help deliver inclusive economic growth across the region. The Data-Driven Innovation programme will be key to this, providing a significant step-change in our productivity.

“We are working to ensure Scotland is an internationally recognised vibrant, inclusive, open and outward-looking digital nation. I welcome the contribution that Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt Universities are making to ensure the new opportunities and benefits created by City Region Deal investment are spread across the region, providing individuals with the digital skills and aptitudes necessary to succeed while helping industry source the talent they need to grow and flourish.”

Professor Charlie Jeffery, Senior Vice Principal, University of Edinburgh, said:

“The University's strengths in data science have been driving innovation in the public and private sectors, for the past decade and more, through our research and the skills our graduates bring into the regional economy. The City Region Deal will now give us the capacity to do much more across a wider range of sectors, including healthcare, robotics and fintech. But perhaps the most important part of the Deal is our commitment to ensure people in the region can build the skills to flourish in the data-driven economy.

“So we are working not just in our universities, but also with schools, colleges and businesses so people have the opportunities to develop data skills across their life-course. This could include young people about to enter the workforce, women returning after career breaks, or people looking to reskill in mid-career. We know that data-driven innovation will bring economic growth - we want that growth to be inclusive and open to all.”

Professor Richard A Williams, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University, said:

“By working in partnership we can ensure our city community can prosper and achieve its obvious potential as the leading international research hub for digital innovation. Our frontier research and educational skills in digital technology and its application in artificial intelligence and robotics are already shaping and driving the future and taking Scottish innovation to the world.”

Jarmo Eskelinen has been appointed to lead the Data-Driven Innovation initiative. He comes to Edinburgh from his previous role as Chief Innovation and Technology Officer of the London-based Future Cities Catapult initiative. Welcoming his new role, Jarmo Eskelinen said:

“Data is the new soil, and collaboration the seeds. The Data-Driven Innovation initiative is unique in its ambition and scale. It’s been designed to reach out to the whole City Region, so we can develop and test new services to meet the needs of our citizens. 

“I am extremely honoured to join the programme team and have the chance to collaborate with and learn from the world-leading experts of the two Universities. I look forward to helping a diverse range of organisations benefit from the fast-developing field of data-driven innovation.”

The £1.3bn Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal was announced by the Prime Minister and First Minister at the University of Edinburgh on 7 August. It aims to drive growth for everyone across the area and includes investment in transport, housing, culture and skills and employability.

Further Information

Data-Driven Innovation website

Data-Driven Innovation launch short video