Strategy announcement
LONDON, UK – 11th July 2023 – Babington, a leading provider of apprenticeships, professional training courses, and learning solutions, today announces a move to further support organisations and individuals with critical skills development.
The organisation – which supports more than 7000 UK learners annually – will make changes to both services and structure as part of a strategic realignment programme to deliver greater focus on its core business and initiatives. The move will see Babington reduce the number of products and services it offers, narrowing focus to the delivery of apprenticeships and commercial learning solutions across key specialisms and sectors, aligned to market demand.
Since the acquisition of People Plus apprenticeships in 2020, Babington’s portfolio has grown to over forty apprenticeship standards and nearly two-hundred individual products across four service areas. Today’s announcement positions the business to better-serve customers in core development areas across Accountancy, HR, Leadership, Data, and BACS – with five specialist academies delivering deep subject matter expertise, operational excellence, and high-quality learning pathways.
Besides exiting apprenticeship standards in Property, Financial Services, and Retail, Babington will also cease delivery of Digital Skills Bootcamps and Sector-Work Academy Programmes under the Adult Education Budget (AEB.) All current learners on affected programmes will, however, be supported through to completion with no change to their learning or support.
This change is essential to continuing to deliver on our purpose to develop better futures for organisations, individuals, and the communities in which we operate. The role that skills and talent have to play not only in supporting organisational success and economic prosperity, but also in helping individuals improve their competence, confidence, and career prospects only continues to grow.
We know that industry as a whole is facing significant challenges in upskilling and reskilling at pace and scale, and the need to move to agile and continuous skills programmes will only accelerate. This is particularly true in core business functions such as finance, people management, and data, as well as in initiatives to develop genuine resilience, adaptability, and critical thinking right across the workforce.
Against this context, our decision is to simplify, strengthen, and refocus our organisation on these core areas of demand – simultaneously making improvements in our own operations to enhance the customer experience, drive sales, and position the company for long-term success.
Our purpose, values, and commitment to our customers and learners remains unchanged.
Mark Basham
Chief Executive Officer
In addition to a new Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, Babington has made several recent senior leadership appointments across operational delivery and quality, as well as investment in technology as it looks to reorganise core functions to deliver greater customer value, operational best practice, and innovation to support future customer needs.
Media contact
Abigail Pears, Marketing & Growth Director, Babington
Email: abigail.pears@babington.co.uk
