Improving the governance of VET supply in Brussels

In 2019, the first governance action plan was set up, which initiated the first management cycle in the second half of 2019. The governance will take place according to a three-year cycle and a transparent and specified process, aimed particularly at the development of a common programming framework (FP 2020, measure 36), the implementation of which will be monitored annually and then evaluated.

In 2020, Bruxelles Formation coordinated an offer that covered nearly 20 areas of different training offers such as digital, management, languages, eco-construction, logistics as well as health, fashion and security, while looking after the needs of jobseekers and the labour market of the Brussels Region.

The offer coordinated by Bruxelles Formation underwent many changes in 2021 to meet the needs of job seekers and Brussels companies: the number of modules allowing the orientation of job seekers has increased, along with the number of vocational training programmes available. Prioritised training areas have also undergone a substantial change in 2021: management and administration as well as the digital sector are the two priority areas.

The Common programming framework of the training offer in Brussels continues to be enriched by the gradual addition of information related to the training calendars, the prioritised target groups and links between training courses.

The first management cycle ended in 2022 and was evaluated by Bruxelles Formation. This self-evaluation highlights in its analysis the positive outcomes of the first cycle and offer recommendations for the future, amongst which:

1. the main observation stands out very strongly: the motivation of training providers in Brussels is positive, securing training paths and getting people into employment is at the heart of all providers' concerns;
2. networks building has been identified as crucial to achieve a common development of a more coherent and secure training offer. There is a need for a more concerted and better articulated construction of the offer, which Bruxelles Formation, as manager, will work on. This includes the training prerequisites and the bridges between training paths with an approach by professional sectors;
3. the registration process for learners is still too complicated for the public and must be simplified. This should be accomplished with a future update of the registration platform;
4. ensuring the quality of training and certification: the training certification process is a guarantee of the quality of the training. It is mastered within Bruxelles Formation and gradually being extended to the training partners;
5. the access to vocational training remains a major obstacle for people with financial problems. The measures launched as part of the Plan to combat precariousness from Bruxelles Formation must be continued and expanded, not only by Bruxelles Formation but in collaboration with all the relevant actors;
6. for each field, the involvement of employers and professional sectors varies, which lead to difficulties for the training providers. There is a great need to reach employers directly to involve them more deeply in the construction of the training offer;
7. the integration of 'soft skills' modules into training courses is essential. Too great a dissonance between the expectations of the learner and the encounter with the world of work discourages many of them and makes contact with the employer more difficult, as well as retention in long-term employment.

On 27 January 2023, the Management Committee approved the 2023-25 Governance Action Plan. Like its predecessor, the new Action Plan is structured around four themes.

The four pillars of the 2023-25 Action Plan remains:

1. supply regulation

An initiative to align the training offered by the Bruxelles Formation training centres is being implemented (initially in the digital and management/accounting professions) in order to improve the clarity of the offer for users and coordination between the centres. This approach will gradually be extended to partners, through meetings of training providers networks.

1. securing training pathways

All the actions in the Plan contribute to making users' career paths more secure, by offering training paths with no gaps between modules, that are clearer, more predictable, administratively simpler and, as far as possible, faster.

Issues relating to the socio-economic and digital insecurity of trainees are the biggest obstacles to making training paths more secure, and are the subject of Bruxelles Formation's Precariousness Plan and the Autonomy and Digital Inclusion Plan.

1. guarantee of training and certification quality

The certification process for training courses and product development is the guarantor of training quality and is solid within Bruxelles Formation. It is gradually being extended to the partners respeoncsible for the social integration and is the subject of a Certification Plan, the various aspects of which are regularly discussed by the Régie's governing bodies. The widespread dematerialisation of certifications is also helping to simplify transitions between the various stages of the training pathway.

1. development of partnerships.

The networks of training providers, organised by domain, will be extended and strengthened to enable them to reach more domains.

In 2024, the Action Plan was further under implementation.