Oil and Gas Transition Training Fund - Island Communities Impact Assessment

5. Summary

From this assessment it is determined that the policy as it proceeds to delivery will have either no effect on island communities which is significantly different from its effect on all Scottish communities including other island communities or may have a small positive effect on island communities which have strong links to the industrial sectors which are covered in the eligibility.

TTF will be either neutral when considering islands against the rest of Scotland or may have a small net positive impact, mainly on an individual worker level but potentially with an effect on business, due to supporting upskilling in sectors that are relatively strong and established on islands such as Orkney and Shetland.

Monitoring in place with our delivery partner will address future workforce demand and account for local campaigns or collaborative initiatives such as Workforce North^[14] as noted in the National Islands Plan. This brings together SDS, HIE and UHI to align skills planning with the social and economic priorities of the Highlands and islands.

It is not considered necessary to conduct a more detailed Island Communities Impact Assessment on the implementation of this policy at this stage due its focused direct impact on a limited number of individuals. However, monitoring of demographic data, including residency of applications and locations of potential jobs will continue through operations led by SDS. Data will be revisited on an annual basis to consider impacts on sectors, jobs and workforce opportunities within Scottish island communities.