Human resources professionals in local government have expressed their disppointment that the sector has not been given a Sector Skills Council.

Five new "trailblazing" SSCs were announced before Christmas. They will act for retail, agriculture and other land-based activities, the audio-visual industries, textiles, and the petrochemical industries. The councils are replacing NTOs, and are intended to give employers a greater say in directing vocational training provision.

In many parts of the UK local government is experiencing difficulties recruiting, and HR representatives have said that an SSC could have raised the sector's profile and encouraged more people to develop the appropriate skills for it.