FAQs
What is the Skills Brokerage Service?
The Business Link Skills Brokerage Service is a service operated by Business Link Yorkshire to find training opportunities for Employers. The benefits of this service to Training Providers include:
- Increased, targeted referrals for your courses
- A simplified, easy-to-use and efficient response system
- Feedback on referrals
- Comprehensive reports on employer demand for training
What is the Skills Brokerage Platform?
The Platform is a web-based system used by the Skills Brokerage Service to search for relevant courses and bespoke training for Employers in the Yorkshire & Humber region.
Who and how will the Skills Brokerage Platform be used?
The Skills Brokerage Platform will be used by Advisers at Business Link Yorkshire and the public sector brokerage STAR Training & Consultancy to search for training opportunities. The Platform will be used for sourcing courses, qualifications and bespoke training. In order for this to take place, the Platform draws data from three sources; the National Learning Directory (NLD), a Supplementary Database (extension to NLD) and the Y&H Suppliers Database. The Platform also provides a communication facility between Advisers and Training Providers, which uses email and secure web pages. Advisers can then present this information to the Employer.
How does it work?
This page explains how the system works.
What do I need to do as a Provider?
In order to receive referrals, you must ensure that your course details are up to date and available on the Skills Brokerage Platform. This page explains how.
When you receive a referral from us, respond to the referral, as described here.
How often will Providers be expected to update their courses?
As your course information changes the onus will be on you the provider to maintain your records, and ensure that they are up to date. The date that course and provider details were last amended and the responsiveness of providers will be recorded on the Platform and these details will be available to Business Link Advisers when searching.
How will providers be selected by Business Link Advisers?
The Skills Brokerage Service is impartial. The order of search results will be randomised. However, courses with the most complete details will be displayed above those with less information, as follows:
Business Link Advisers will review the course information in the order that the results are returned to select at least three Providers that can meet the needs of the Employer.
Each selected Provider will be sent an email by the Skills Brokerage Service to which you can respond, as described here. Only Providers that review and submit training briefs will be presented to the employer for consideration and selection.
At what stage in the process will the Provider know who the company is?
At the stage where you review the Training Brief you will have information about the size, sector and location of the business as well as a description of their requirements.
As soon as the Employer has made their decision they will inform their Business Link Adviser. The Adviser will email the chosen Provider with full Employer contact details. The Provider should then initiate contact with the Employer if the employer has not already contacted them directly.
Will I get any feedback if I’m not selected?
Yes - we request feedback from the Employer on their reasons for selection and non-selection. This information will be available on an individual basis to all Providers involved in the process.
There is some administration involved in updating courses; will we be guaranteed referrals from Business Link?
The Skills Brokerage Service is impartial but prioritises the search results in favour of Providers who provide more information. Advisers will select at least three Providers after reviewing course information and assessing whether they meet the needs of the Employer.
You will be emailed and asked to review your course details and confirm they are correct before we can refer them to the Employer.
The Employer will select their preferred Provider from the information you confirmed as correct.
It is important that your course information is up to date and as detailed as possible in order to improve your chances of being selected through this process.
Will Providers be able to update/delete course info as we move through the year, for example if courses will not be running?
Yes - find out how to do this here
Will Business Link be seeking advice from Providers before recommending funding for specific courses?
Yes, Business Link will ask you to confirm details of each training opportunity before referring to the Employer. You will have the opportunity to clarify funding availability on an individual basis.
Advisers will discuss with the Employer the different types of funding and any eligibility criteria. But you will need to confirm the eligibility of individuals for certain types of funding when you first make contact/are contacted by the Employer.
What consultation has taken place to ensure this Service is better than previous ones?
The new and improved Skills Brokerage Service has been developed through consultation with Providers and funders and based on experience with the previous brokerage systems both in this region and throughout the UK.
A mixture of large and small, Train To Gain (TTG) and non-TTG, public and private, engaged and disconnected from the service, bespoke and course providers have participated in the consultation process.
The new Skills Brokerage Service is based on an altogether different premise to previously. The new process takes information from existing data sources and asks that you confirm those details are correct, which is much simpler and quicker for you than responding to opportunities on an open tender board.
When emailed by a Business Link Adviser through the platform you know that a limited number of other Providers are involved at this stage so your chances of being selected are high. This is different to an open tender board where large numbers of Providers can respond to an opportunity, reducing your chances of being selected and ultimately bombarding the Employer with too many options.
As well as a more straightforward process, the new Skills Brokerage Service will capture feedback from Employers which will be passed back to you.
