Skills for the Future: Demand for and Supply of High-Skilled Labour Across England

This study maps employer demand for higher-level qualifications (at Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) Level 4 and above), the supply of residents with these qualifications, and the resulting demand-supply gaps across England’s 38 Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) areas (as defined in 2023). It combines online vacancy data and official labour market sources to examine patterns of higher-level skills demand, supply and mismatches across places. By combining spatial analysis, correlation evidence and econometric modelling, the analysis identifies structural factors associated with local demand-supply gaps and highlights the importance of place-based skills policies.

“High-level skills mismatches differ significantly by place. Large demand-supply gaps appear in both dynamic areas, such as Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and Greater Manchester, and in some structurally weaker economies. A large gap does not always signal labour market failure, and a small gap does not always signal success. Context matters.”

Dr Konstantinos Kollydas

The findings show that high-level skills mismatches differ significantly by area and that policy responses should reflect local differences in demand, supply and labour market structure. LSIPs provide a framework to coordinate these actions locally. In high-demand areas, there is a need to expand higher-level pathways and graduate retention. In low-demand and low-supply areas, skills policy could connect more closely with local growth strategies, business support and sector development.

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Meet the Author

Dr Kostas Kollydas is a Research Fellow who joined City-REDI in 2021. He is an applied economist, and his research fields lie broadly in skills, labour economics and the economics of education. He has strong experience using large UK survey and administrative datasets, including the Annual Population Survey, the Employer Skills Survey and Graduate Outcomes. Kostas was seconded to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) between 2022 and 2023, where he led the analysis for the R&D Workforce and Skills project. At City-REDI, he has worked on projects covering graduate retention and attraction, local labour supply, and skills for innovation. He currently leads the Skills theme within the Local Policy Innovation Partnership Hub.

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Publications

Towards A Place-Based Qualitative Data Observatory

This research briefing responds to Local Policy Innovation Partnership (LPIP) Hub work on data devolution, transparency, and place productivity. Building on this existing research, it argues that current UK data infrastructures do not yet accommodate the heterogeneous forms of qualitative data on which local, regional and national policymakers increasingly rely.

Outside-In: The Role of Social Entrepreneurs in Public Sector Transformation

This policy paper explores the role of social entrepreneurs as “outside-in” actors in public sector transformation. It argues that, in a period of profound institutional transition, public systems need to learn not only from within formal structures but also from actors operating at their boundaries. The briefing examines how social

Building Intergovernmental Capability Through Secondments: Lessons From Japan for the UK

This policy briefing explores how England’s devolution reforms could work more effectively by using staff secondments as a core part of the delivery system. Drawing on lessons from Japan’s structured, legally grounded approach, it shows how predictable and reciprocal staff movement can strengthen local capability, improve coordination across government tiers,

Policy Fragmentation and Place-Based Opportunity in UK Fashion and Textiles

This report analyses the positioning of the UK fashion and textiles sector within national, devolved and local policy frameworks to assess its capacity to operate as a stable, place-based economic system that supports skills retention, inclusive growth and regional resilience. Using fashion and textiles as a case study for the