Businesses are built on talented, well-trained people – now more than ever. So the Venture ‘Rise & Shine’ breakfast event is ‘must-attend’ for any employer and enterprise looking to improve their talent pipeline, nurture skills amongst existing employees – or simply make their business the best ‘people business’ it can be.

March brought major headlines from FinTech Wales, USW and de Novo Solutions, Women in STEM, Chwarae Teg and City & Guilds

February brought news of a major skills funding boost for Creative Industries in our region, together with two studies showing a surge in apprenticeship uptake and the importance placed by Gen Z on training and development. Those reports made Welsh Water’s record apprenticeship offering look inspired - but celebrations were muted by news of a continued gender pay gap, even in female-dominated industries ...

2023 started on a celebratory note, with 41 finalists revealed for the CIPD Wales Awards. January also brought the sobering news that Wales needs 9,100 more Construction Workers by 2027 - reminding us of both the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead ….

2023 promises to be a year of challenge and opportunity for Skills & Talent in South East Wales. The Venture team will be at the heart of it all, working with employers of all sizes and sectors to help them recruit and develop the talent they need - and these are the five defining factors that we see shaping the year ahead …

There was much to celebrate across the CCR skillscape in November, with Coleg Gwent posting a record performance at WorldSkills UK 2022, Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board being recognised for its pioneering apprenticeship programme, Educ8 leading the Training Sector as ‘Best Company to Work For’ in the UK, ITEC investing in bespoke mental health support for learners, and the Principality supporting 3,000 pupils to gain vital money management qualifications …

Autumn has brought some heart-warming headlines on the skillscape of South East Wales, featuring the Apprenticeships Awards Cymru 2022, FE Colleges establishing Employment & Enterprise Bureaus, CITB Wales investment extension, 2B Enterprising and Redrow bringing skills to life in Caerleon and Welsh Government commit more to Digital and Green reskilling.

The latest Venture Graduate cohort launches today, offering employers across Southeast Wales a free and expert end-to-end recruitment service, aimed at delivering the graduate talent that’s ‘right’ for each individual business - with a unique ‘Career Accelerator Programme’ included for each graduate, to accelerate their progress and enable them to make the optimum impact in their role.