Colleges of further education have joined forces with Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC) to provide a link between business and academia.

The Skills Hub, which has been launched by Lord Heseltine in Birmingham tonight, is aiming to give employers a single point of access when searching for courses suitable for their employees.

Also attending the launch event are Norman Cave, principal of Bournville College of Further Education, and Tim Pile, president of Birmingham Chamber.

Mr Cave chairs the FE Chamber Consortium responsible for the development of the hub and other colleges in the consortium are Birmingham Metropolitan College, Burton and South Derbyshire College,  Heart of Worcestershire College, Solihull College, South and City College Birmingham, South Staffordshire College and University College Birmingham.

Mr Cave said: "We're delighted to be working with partner colleges and the chamber in putting together this important service.

"The funding for the project is provided by the EU and we now look forward to making it work for both the long- and short-term benefit of jobs growth in our city region.

"The collaboration agreement meets the need of business and the wider local economy. It will continue to develop a shared response to the needs of employers and provide a single map of existing vocational skills opportunities.

"We have developed a formal and integral partnership with the Chamber to engage even more effectively with the business community across the city region.

"One of the wider advantages will be making the case for increased investment in skills development to the business community."

GBCC has appointed a manager to run the hub which comes into operation next month.

Russell Jeans, GBCC director of membership and business services, said: "The hub is our joint response to support employers in their search for skills development, courses and programmes.

"An employer will be able to quickly access the programmes available for an employee and select the most suitable in terms of skill requirements and geography."