The head of the sector skills council (SSC) said that the government was being more flexible with funding provision because it sees training as a way to support companies throughout the downturn.

Watts said: "Companies that train and develop their workforce are two and a half times less likely to go out of business than those that don't invest in their workforce."

However, he added that Proskills needed to engage more with companies if it was to deliver on its goals.

He said the SSC "isn't just a start-up anymore" and is firmly on the government's radar, but warned that this authority would be put at risk if it failed to accurately communicate the needs of the industries it serves.

"If we can't give it the right answers, it will look elsewhere. It is your sector skills council – help us make it work," added Watts.

Proskill's 'print champion' Richard Bloxam told PrintWeek: "Proskills is here to help but if you don't tell us what you want, we can't provide it. We're the deal makers – if a company comes and asks us for X, Y, Z, we'll do the deal to get it."

Delegates from across the process and manufacturing industries, including representatives of printing companies and print suppliers, attended the one-day conference at the Marriott Forest of Arden Country Club outside Birmingham.

Along with talks from Proskills and industry figures, there were a series of seminars on topics such as customer service, leadership and business improvement, followed by the 2008 Apprenticeship Awards gala dinner.

Mark Snee, managing director of Cheshire-based Technoprint, called the conference "a great opportunity to make suggestions and get your thoughts into the melting pot".

BPIF head of training Ruth Exelby added: "The conference is a chance to see that things are going on, as well as an opportunity to influence them."

Delegates also received an update on the National Skills Academy, due to launch officially in the new year, including a glimpse of the 'ProFile' tool for skills gap analysis.

This "core employer portal" has been undergoing a pilot phase, including trials at print firms, and is set to launch in early 2009, said ProFile project manager Alison Bucknell.

Meanwhile, print industry apprentices missed out at the awards ceremony, but Alcan Packaging flexographic printing apprentice Jonathon Straughton received a highly commended in the category for ‘Advanced Apprentice of the Year’.