- 2015Approved/Agreed
- 2016Implementation
- 2017Implementation
- 2018Implementation
- 2019Implementation
- 2020Implementation
- 2021Implementation
- 2022Implementation
- 2023Completed
Description
Vocational training for employment in the labour scope was last reformed in 2015. The reform aimed at an efficient system for monitoring and prospecting the labour market, based on coordination of all actors (administrations, social agents, experts). It also aimed at:
- promoting the assessment of the impact of training (on accessing and maintaining employment);
- enhancing enterprise competitiveness;
- improving workers' skills;
- meeting labour market needs;
- ensuring efficient use of resources.
A subsequent regulation followed, but needs further development and regulations. There is a process of continuous improvement applicable at all levels of the national employment system. Annual evaluation plans are drawn up with the Autonomous Regions and social partners. Their results, including proposals for improving the training offer, are used in planning the training for the following year. Several reports evaluated different initiatives that promote training at work:
- the Report on the annual plan for evaluation of the quality, impact, and efficiency of the vocational training system for employment 2015/16 was presented to the General Council of the national employment system (CGSNE) in November 2018;
- reports by the State Foundation for Training in Employment (Fundae) on evaluations carried out throughout 2018: evaluation report on the efficacy and efficiency of company training, in 2015/16; evaluation report on the quality of company...
Vocational training for employment in the labour scope was last reformed in 2015. The reform aimed at an efficient system for monitoring and prospecting the labour market, based on coordination of all actors (administrations, social agents, experts). It also aimed at:
- promoting the assessment of the impact of training (on accessing and maintaining employment);
- enhancing enterprise competitiveness;
- improving workers' skills;
- meeting labour market needs;
- ensuring efficient use of resources.
A subsequent regulation followed, but needs further development and regulations. There is a process of continuous improvement applicable at all levels of the national employment system. Annual evaluation plans are drawn up with the Autonomous Regions and social partners. Their results, including proposals for improving the training offer, are used in planning the training for the following year. Several reports evaluated different initiatives that promote training at work:
- the Report on the annual plan for evaluation of the quality, impact, and efficiency of the vocational training system for employment 2015/16 was presented to the General Council of the national employment system (CGSNE) in November 2018;
- reports by the State Foundation for Training in Employment (Fundae) on evaluations carried out throughout 2018: evaluation report on the efficacy and efficiency of company training, in 2015/16; evaluation report on the quality of company training courses from the results of the questionnaire completed by participating workers, in 2015; evaluation report on the quality of the training providers of continuous training, in 2016;
- reports by SEPE's Observatory of Occupations on prospective sectoral studies (retail trade sector); job opening profiles; forecasting and identification of training needs.
Continuous monitoring is a tool for public authorities and policy makers to shape training policies for the benefit of learners, trainers and companies involved in the system of vocational training for employment under the labour remit.
The main evaluation areas in 2019 focus on effectiveness, efficiency and impact of training initiatives within the VET for employment system under the remit of the labour ministry, and assessing the quality of the training actions and of certain aspects of the system:
- an evaluation of the VET for employment system, which is part of the Annual plan for evaluation of the quality, impact, effectiveness and efficiency of the VET for employment system. The plan comprises significant innovations to improve and feed the indicators used in the final report;
- an evaluation of the private provision (without public funds) of the professional certificates programmes in 2017/18 which aims to help monitor implementation of such programmes;
- an analysis of the regional evaluation systems with reference to the quality of the training providers, relevant and useful to develop the State registry of training providers, regulated by a Ministerial Order;
- integration of the main results, conclusions and recommendations from the specific Evaluation report on training in companies 2017/18.
A technical group - coordinated by the State Public Employment Service (SEPE) in collaboration with the regions, social partners and Fundae - is working on the annual plan with main areas of work: design of the plan, data collection to feed the indicators to be used in the final report, and further assessment on improving the indicators' system. The final report to be submitted to the General Council of the national employment system is expected to be published in 2020.
Other evaluations carried out by the State Foundation for Training in Employment (Fundae):
Evaluation of the impact assessments of the specific programmes for the improvement of employability, qualification and job placement of young people under 30 and of young people enrolled in the National youth guarantee register (calls for proposals published in 2015). The following areas are considered: evaluation of outcomes (effects on qualification and competences; effects on employability) and impact assessment (entry into the labour market, return to the education system, entrepreneurship, institutional effects).
Evaluation of training organised by companies for their employees, and of individual training leave corresponding to 2017 and 2018, started at the end of 2019. The main results, expected in 2020, will be incorporated into the 2017-18 annual evaluation plan report. This evaluation aims to assess effectiveness, impact and quality of the initiatives, their efficiency and transparency regarding public resources' management, and will offer conclusions, recommendations and proposals for action.
Evaluation of the quality of training actions delivered via e-learning: this considers training actions financed by the company training initiative (for the companies' own employees) (2017-18) within the VET for employment system. The evaluation focused on analysing the technological, didactic and learning quality of the actions in this modality, as well as assessing the adequacy of its cost model.
Quality evaluation of training activities by participants (companies): this is based on quality assessments made by the companies at the end of the training actions. This evaluation is periodically carried out, analysing different aspects, such as: organisation and contents of the course, duration and scheduling, trainers and tutors, teaching and technical means, facilities, learning evaluation mechanisms and assessment and overall satisfaction of the course. The evaluation report covers training actions in 2016 and 2017 and was published in 2019.
SEPE's Observatory of Occupations also published a report on forecasting and identification of training needs 2019 and a prospective study of the economic activities related to the circular economy in Spain 2019.
The final report of the Annual evaluation plan of the national employment system (Sistema national de empleo, SNE) for the 2017/2018 financial years was approved by the Council of the national employment system in the last quarter of 2020. This report presents the results of the evaluation of the training for employment system as a whole and was coordinated by the State Public Employment Service.
At the same Council meeting, the 2019 Annual evaluation plan was approved for the whole of the training for employment subsystem, which is expected to be developed throughout 2021.
In March 2020, the final report of the evaluation of the Training initiative in companies 2017/2018 was completed, which included, as a focus of interest, the feasibility study of the Individual training leave, within the current credit scheme based in the application of social security bonuses. This report is currently pending presentation to the Board of Trustees of the Foundation and dissemination.
In the second quarter of 2020, the main results of the quality evaluation of the training actions in the distance learning mode were published online. The evaluation reports on the Youth programme and the Youth guarantee programme are expected in 2021.
An evaluation of the first State-wide subsidised training programmes (delivered through public calls) launched in 2016 after introduction of the VET reform (Law 30/2015) has been conducted by Fundae. The final report is expected in 2021; some first results indicate that distance learning delivery accounts for more than 60% of all training actions.
In the framework of the evaluation of the quality of training for employed workers, the participants' satisfaction survey results in the 2018 in-company training initiatives and in the 2016 State-wide calls for subsidies were analysed in 2020 and are expected in 2021.
In 2021, several evaluation reports on training actions funded within the framework of the system of vocational training for employment in the labour scope have been in operation:
- the report of the in-company training initiative 2017/18 was published and the report for 2019/20 is expected in 2022;
- the report on the State-wide initiative for supplying training aimed primarily at employed workers and job-seekers is expected in 2022. It was the first initiative governed by Law 30/2015. It was implemented in the 2016 budget for 2017-20 in line with the principle of competitive concurrence for financial aid established by the 2015 Law;
- an evaluation of the call for public subsidies to acquire and improve professional skills related to technological changes and digital transformation is continuing; projects were funded from the 2018 budget for 2018-20.
The evaluation report of the 2017 annual evaluation plan (plan annual de evaluación - PAE) was also published in 2021. To assess the quality, impact and efficiency of the vocational training system for employment in 2017/18, a system of indicators was developed within the framework of this evaluation to enable comparative analysis over time of the performance and assessment of in-company training funded through social security contributions. The system consists of 58 indicators (sheets) on the efficiency of the physical and financial execution of the actions and the impact and quality of the training offer. Each indicator follows a common structure and methodology for the selection and interpretation of data (coding, name and definition, source of information, unit of measurements, scope, justification and disaggregation variables).
A new evaluation category was included in the development of the national employment system annual evaluation plan (PAE) 2019 by the State Public Employment Service, with the participation of the Autonomous Communities and the collaboration of Fundae. The new indicators facilitate the measurement of the training system matching the needs of specific groups, such as the rural population and young people.
The annual plan for the quality, impact, effectiveness and efficiency of the entire Vocational Training System for employment in the workplace 2019, was submitted to a report by the General Council of the National Employment System on September 30, 2020. It has been published on April, 8th 2022.
The Annual plan implementation report on the quality, impact, effectiveness and efficiency of the entire training system for employment in the labour scope in 2020 and 2021 is to be submitted to the General Council of the National Employment System in 2023.
Also from March 2022 to February 2023, these different evaluation activities have been carried out within the framework of the national training system for employment:
1. Evaluation of the effectiveness, efficiency, quality and impact of the 2019 and 2020 company training scheme and individual training leaves. Once presented to the governing bodies, it was published on the website Fundae website. Highlighted outcomes are as follows:
2019 was a year of economic and labour stability, so the participation of workers in company training continued the positive trend of previous years, with the worker coverage rate standing at 22%. However, the arrival in 2020 of the COVID-19 pandemic marked a change in trend caused by confinement and social distance preventive measures. There was a reduction in the percentages of outreach and coverage of trained workers, a drop that, without being drastic (-2.6%), placed coverage below 20% for the first time after many years.
One of the exceptional measures taken by the Spanish Public Employment Service (SEPE) to ensure the continuity of training during the pandemic was the introduction of virtual classrooms as an alternative to face-to-face training. Most companies considered the virtual classroom to be an effective teaching tool (82%) and efficient in terms of cost (86%), and around half thought that the learning results achieved were very similar to those of face-to-face training. However, only 4 out of 10 companies said that the virtual classroom encouraged participation or that the virtual classroom was a sufficient resource to replace face-to-face training for all content.
According to this report, more than 80% of the companies considered training in digital skills necessary, fundamentally directing efforts towards digital literacy.
2. Evaluation of the effectiveness, efficiency, quality and impact of 2018 training programmes for the acquisition of professional skills related to technological changes and digital transformation (ICT call). The evaluation was carried out in 2022 and published in January 2023.
The evaluation of the effectiveness of the ICT call presents good results, since between 75%-80% of the trained workers perceive improvements in competence areas defined in the European framework (DigComp): information and basic digital literacy (6.61 out of 10); communication and digital collaboration (6.41); security, work in safe, sustainable digital environments and with adequate privacy parameters (6.27); and the most moderate effects are perceived in the area of digital content creation (5.90 out of 10).
The effects of this call in terms of prioritised participating groups are very remarkable: 58.15% of the total were women, followed by workers over 45 years of age (35.01%); low qualified workers (32.20%); and, among the unemployed, those under 45 years of age accounted for 19.89%.
3. Evaluation of the effectiveness, quality and impact of the call for the granting of public subsidies for the execution of state-wide training programmes aimed primarily at employed workers. Call 2018. Its presentation and publication is scheduled for March 2023.
4. Evaluation of the effectiveness, efficiency, quality and impact of the training initiatives scheduled by the companies and individual training permits, financial year 2021. This evaluation began in November 2022 and is expected to be completed by the end of April 2023.
Work continued on monitoring and validating the final products of the ex-post efficiency, effectiveness, impact and quality evaluations.
In November, according to RD 829/2023 on the restructuring of ministerial departments, the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports is in charge of proposing and executing the Government's policy on education and vocational training in the education system and for employment. The responsibilities for vocational training in Spain, both in education and employment, fall to the education ministry as part of the single and integrated VET system, providing lifelong training opportunities for the entire population (students and workers).
Bodies responsible
- Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports
- State Public Employment Service (SEPE)
- Autonomous Communities (CC.AA.)
- Social partners (main businesses and trade unions organisations)
Target groups
Learners
- Adult learners
- Unemployed and jobseekers
- Persons in employment, including those at risk of unemployment
Education professionals
- Trainers
Entities providing VET
- Companies
- VET providers (all kinds)
Other stakeholders
- Social partners (employer organisations and trade unions)
Thematic categories
Governance of VET and lifelong learning
This thematic category looks at existing legal frameworks providing for strategic, operational – including quality assurance – and financing arrangements for VET and lifelong learning (LLL). It examines how VET and LLL-related policies are placed in broad national socioeconomic contexts and coordinate with other strategies and policies, such as economic, social and employment, growth and innovation, recovery and resilience.
This thematic category covers partnerships and collaboration networks of VET stakeholders – especially the social partners – to shape and implement VET in a country, including looking at how their roles and responsibilities for VET at national, regional and local levels are shared and distributed, ensuring an appropriate degree of autonomy for VET providers to adapt their offer.
The thematic category also includes efforts to create national, regional and sectoral skills intelligence systems (skills anticipation and graduate tracking) and using skills intelligence for making decisions about VET and LLL on quality, inclusiveness and flexibility.
This thematic sub-category refers to the integration of VET into economic, industrial, innovation, social and employment strategies, including those linked to recovery, green and digital transitions, and where VET is seen as a driver for innovation and growth. It includes national, regional, sectoral strategic documents or initiatives that make VET an integral part of broader policies, or applying a mix of policies to address an issue VET is part of, e.g. in addressing youth unemployment measures through VET, social and active labour market policies that are implemented in combination. National skill strategies aiming at quality and inclusive lifelong learning also fall into this sub-category.
This thematic sub-category refers to the ways VET is funded at the system level. Policies include optimisation of VET provider funding that allows them to adapt their offer to changing skill needs, green and digital transitions, the social agenda and economic cycles, e.g. increasing the funding for VET or for specific programmes. They can also concern changing the mechanism of how the funding is allocated to VET schools (per capita vs based on achievement or other criteria). Using EU funds and financial instruments for development of VET and skills also falls into this sub-category.
This thematic sub-category refers to further development of national quality assurance (QA) systems for IVET and CVET, for all learning environments (school-based provision and work-based learning, including apprenticeships) and all learning types (digital, face-to-face or blended), delivered by both public and private providers. These systems are underpinned by the EQAVET quality criteria and by indicative descriptors applied both at system and provider levels, as defined in Annex II of the VET Recommendation. The sub-category concerns creating and improving external and self-evaluation of VET providers, and establishing criteria of QA, accreditation of providers and programmes. It also covers the activities of Quality assurance national reference points for VET on implementing and further developing the EQAVET framework, including the implementation of peer reviews at VET system level.
Modernising VET offer and delivery
This thematic category looks at what and how individuals learn, how learning content and learning outcomes in initial and continuing VET are defined, adapted and updated. First and foremost, it examines how VET standards, curricula, programmes and training courses are updated and modernised or new ones created. Updated and renewed VET content ensures that learners acquire a balanced mix of competences that address modern demands, and are more closely aligned with the realities of the labour market, including key competences, digital competences and skills for green transition and sustainability, both sector-specific and across sectors. Using learning outcomes as a basis is important to facilitate this modernisation, including modularisation of VET programmes. Updating and developing teaching and learning materials to support the above is also part of the category.
The thematic category continues to focus on strengthening high-quality and inclusive apprenticeships and work-based learning in real-life work environments and in line with the European framework for quality and effective apprenticeships. It looks at expanding apprenticeship to continuing vocational training and at developing VET programmes at EQF levels 5-8 for better permeability and lifelong learning and to support the need for higher vocational skills.
This thematic category also focuses on VET delivery through a mix of open, digital and participative learning environments, including workplaces conducive to learning, which are flexible, more adaptable to the ways individuals learn, and provide more access and outreach to various groups of learners, diversifying modes of learning and exploiting the potential of digital learning solutions and blended learning to complement face-to-face learning.
Centres of vocational excellence that connect VET to innovation and skill ecosystems and facilitate stronger cooperation with business and research also fall into this category.
VET standards and curricula define the content and outcomes of learning, most often at national or sectoral levels. VET programmes are based on standards and curricula and refer to specific vocations/occupations. They all need to be regularly reviewed, updated and aligned with the needs of the labour market and society. They need to include a balanced mix of vocational and technical skills corresponding to economic cycles, evolving jobs and working methods, and key competences, providing for resilience, lifelong learning, employability, social inclusion, active citizenship, sustainable awareness and personal development (Council of the European Union, 2020). The thematic sub-category also refers to establishing new VET programmes, reducing their number or discontinuing some. It also includes design of CVET programmes and training courses to adapt to labour market, sectoral or individual up- and re-skilling needs.
This thematic sub-category is about the way learners learn, how the learning is delivered to them, and by what means. Programmes become more accessible through a combination of adaptable and flexible formats (e.g. face-to-face, digital and/or blended learning), through digital learning platforms that allow better outreach, especially for vulnerable groups and for learners in geographically remote or rural areas.
Supporting lifelong learning culture and increasing participation
Lifelong learning refers to all learning (formal, non-formal or informal) taking place at all stages in life and resulting in an improvement or update in knowledge, skills, competences and attitudes or in participation in society from a personal, civic, cultural, social or employment-related perspective (Erasmus+, Glossary of terms, https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/programme-guide/part-d/glossary-common-terms). A systemic approach to CVET is crucial to ensure adaptability to evolving demands.
This broad thematic category looks at ways of creating opportunities and ensuring access to re-skilling and upskilling pathways, allowing individuals to progress smoothly in their learning throughout their lives with better permeability between general and vocational education and training, and better integration and compatibility between initial and continuing VET and with higher education. Individuals should be supported in acquiring and updating their skills and competences and navigating easily through education and training systems. Strategies and campaigns that promote VET and LLL as an attractive and high-quality pathway, providing quality lifelong guidance and tailored support to design learning and career paths, and various incentives (financial and non-financial) to attract and support participation in VET and LLL fall into this thematic category as well.
This thematic category also includes many initiatives on making VET inclusive and ensuring equal education and training opportunities for various groups of learners, regardless of their personal and economic background and place of residence – especially those at risk of disadvantage or exclusion, such as persons with disabilities, the low-skilled and low-qualified, minorities, migrants, refugees and others.
This thematic sub-category refers to all kinds of incentives that encourage learners to take part in VET and lifelong learning; VET providers to improve, broaden and update their offer; companies to provide places for apprenticeship and work-based learning, and to stimulate and support learning of their employees. It also includes measures addressing specific challenges of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) willing to create work-based learning opportunities in different sectors. Incentives can be financial (e.g. grants, allowances, tax incentives, levy/grant mechanisms, vouchers, training credits, individual learning accounts) and non-financial (e.g. information/advice on funding opportunities, technical support, mentoring).
This thematic sub-category refers to providing the possibility for individuals who are already in the labour market/in employment to reskill and/or acquire higher levels of skills, and to ensuring targeted information resources on the benefits of CVET and lifelong learning. It also covers the availability of CVET programmes adaptable to labour market, sectoral or individual up- and reskilling needs. The sub-category includes working with respective stakeholders to develop digital learning solutions supporting access to CVET opportunities and awarding CVET credentials and certificates.
Subsystem
Further reading
Country
Type of development
Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Monitoring and evaluation of vocational training in the labour scope: Spain. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].
https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/28689