Skills Minister, Skills England and Chartered Bodies joins forces to boost UK growth, productivity

London, September 23, 2025 - Skills Minister The Rt Hon Jacqui Smith, Skills England and the UK’s Chartered bodies have come together to support a renewed push to create a high-skill, high productivity workforce capable of delivering long term growth.

Convened by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), chaired by Phil Smith CBE, Chair of Skills England, and with attendance from Joint CEO of Skills England, Sarah Maclean, 12 Chartered Bodies met to explore how best to harness the power of professional bodies to support delivery of the Industrial Strategy.

The group aims to demonstrate to employers, educators and the wider workforce the key role that Chartered Bodies play in driving excellence, enhancing career progression and improving business performance.

Long a hallmark of British excellence in the international sphere across a range of professional qualifications, Chartered status is synonymous with professional integrity and thriving workplaces.

By fostering trusted professional networks, engaging employers, promoting ethical behaviour, and supporting continuous development, Chartered Bodies play a critical role in building a highly skilled and ethical workforce equipped for both today’s challenges and capable of future-proofing the UK economy.

The evidence of the impact of Chartered status is clear, with data showing a wage premium ranging from £8-15,000 annually, most notably for early/mid-career professionals moving from non-chartered roles to becoming Chartered.

Organisations that employ more registered staff report higher productivity, demonstrated through greater efficiency, better decision-making and fewer errors. For example, organisations with Chartered Managers reported a 25-30% improvement in productive output.

Chartered status has also been shown to be a decisive social mobility tool, for example:

• BCS data has shown that 75% of those in the IT profession have experienced upward social mobility compared to their parent’s social class.
• 61% of all CMI management apprentices come from the 50% most deprived areas in the UK; 69% are from families where neither parent went to university; and 59% are female, a higher share than among the UK population of managers as a whole where only 46% of managers are female.
• 48% of ACCA’s UK students entered via a non-graduate route, demonstrating a large alternative pathway into a high-status profession.
• Rise (an ICAEW-co-founded social mobility programme) has already delivered 148 skills workshops reaching 8,500 young people in low-mobility areas, with 100% of teachers rating them good/excellent.

Phil Smith CBE, Chair of Skills England, said:

This roundtable has provided an excellent opportunity to look at how we can fully capitalise on the power and influence of professional bodies, to support growth and delivery of the Industrial Strategy. Skills England looks forward to working closely with CMI and the Chartered Bodies in future.

Ann Francke OBE, CEO of the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), said: 

Building greater recognition of the value of Chartered Bodies should be seen as a key pillar to efforts to transform the UK’s workforce into a high-skill powerhouse. Leaning on the existing skills and expertise of Chartered Bodies offers the Government an opportunity to deliver on its growth mission while also improving social mobility and ensuring that increased prosperity reaches every corner of the country.