Those who have not chosen to go to university will be willing and enthusiastic to learn new skills, as they enter the workplace and start the process towards building a satisfying career. In some aspects they will find that they are very well equipped, undoubtedly some will be more IT-savvy than their bosses.

But too few will have achieved the required level of literacy and numeracy. More than half of 16-year-olds fail to get a C grade in both English and maths GCSE. For them, long-term success in the labour market is much more challenging. And about 200,000 will become "NEET" – not in education, employment or training, perhaps facing a bleak life of unemployment and social exclusion.

Employers are clear about what they expect from our school leavers. It is not people skilled-up and ready to start a job the day they leave school – business recognises its responsibility to train employees to do their roles. And most young people are eager to learn, and many achieve excellent results.

But employers have a right to expect school and college leavers to be literate and numerate and have some knowledge of the world of work. We have therefore fully supported more specialist numeracy teachers for primary schools and the Government's new functional skills modules to GCSEs to be introduced in 2010.

Of course, business must play its part too by providing worthwhile work experience and by supporting the new applied diploma subjects such as engineering, hospitality and construction. There has been strong employer input into their design and employers are committed to making them a success. We now need specialist teachers to deliver the diplomas, and excellent careers advisers.

However, business believes the Government should rein in the proposed three "academic" diplomas.

Supporters of the humanities, sciences and languages diplomas suggest they will end the historic academic-vocational divide – with "parity of esteem" between the two routes. We agree that for too long, vocational qualifications and work-related qualifications have been seen by many as having second-class status. But these new academic diplomas will move us away from the original diploma ambition as they lack the clear sector focus that should be their hallmark, and they could be a damaging distraction with little employer buy-in. Business needs Government to focus on strengthening existing academic provision, as well as improving literacy and numeracy.

Business advocates a twin-track approach, with GCSE and A-levels running alongside the sector-specific diplomas. Academic GCSEs and A-levels are already valued and understood by businesses and provide the academic rigour that business also values.

On science, CBI members are clear. Demand for science, technology, engineering and maths skills are high and expanding, but supply at all levels is simply failing to keep pace. Employers want young people to develop a strong foundation of "pure" science knowledge – physics, chemistry, biology and maths. Subjects such as physiology, psychology, or "science and society" are not a priority for business. We want more young people studying triple science as this is the best foundation for study at A-level.

According to a recent Government assessment, a significant proportion (about a third) of current student choices, in particular at A-level, cannot be accommodated within the diplomas. In other subjects too, business does not want to see academic rigour watered down by more generic, applied qualifications and there is still a role for academic study of subjects such as geography and English literature.

So here in Yorkshire and Humber we have a very clear message. We need to improve GCSE and A-levels and ensure students develop vital literacy, numeracy and employability skills. Moreover, it is important to make the sector-related diplomas a success, and encourage more pupils to study science subjects that the economy needs.


Andrew Palmer is deputy regional director of the CBI