EAST MIDLANDS SKILLS FOR LIFE
STRATEGY FORUM BULLETIN
Bulletin 25
May 2005
Newsflash
The national strategy for improving adult literacy and numeracy, translated in the East Midlands
Events and Conferences
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· to produce findings which will give new insights into adult literacy, numeracy and ESOL
· to build research capacity and to strengthen networks which links practice, research, development and policy. Applications are invited from locally based consortia, led by those who are directly involved with Skills for Life learners in any organisational setting in England.
For information contact Kathryn James at kathryn.james@lancaster.ac.uk.
Delivering Skills for Life, Fact Sheet 6
Funding, recording and coding the Certificates in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Skills for Life. This Factsheet provides clarification on the funding, recording and coding of the new Certificates in ESOL Skills for Life.
It is available on the LSCs website www.lsc.gov.uk Publication enquiries: 0870 900 6800 Publication reference: LSC-P-NAT-050267.
Lessons from the Adult and Community Learning Fund
This project identified what could be learned from the Adult and Community Learning Fund about how informal, community-based learning contributes to the social inclusion of young adults aged 19-24. Findings indicate that for many young adults involved in projects the benefits were substantial and wide ranging. They included enhanced confidence and self esteem, improved language, literacy and numeracy skills, greater social awareness and access to wider opportunities. Project workers were also enthusiastic. They considered the programme to be effective and flexible in engaging some of the most disaffected young adults.
For more information visit www.niace.org.uk/research/
YALP/Projects/ACLF.htm.
Skillsforlifenetwork.com has now gone national
Skillsforlifenetwork.com aims to help you keep up with what is new in Skills for Life. To receive free, fortnightly e-news updates highlighting the latest Skills for Life news, developments, events and resources, register with the National Skills for Life Network at www.skillsforlifenetwork.com.
Learning from experience
A new website aimed at giving voluntary and community organisations information and support to develop voluntary and community learning consortia and to get involved in supporting or delivering embedded literacy, language and numeracy. The website offers step by step guides, checklists and case studies. The website was developed as part of a project funded by the Active Community Unit at the Home Office and managed by NIACE:
www.niace.org.uk/projects/
LearningfromExperience.
News on the national tests
Teacher Training Association now recognise the value of the National Qualifications and are asking for them for individuals who want to achieve the HLTAC. In addition the qualifications are being accepted by the Open University for Nursing and Social Work and other universities are recognising their value as an equivalent to a GCSE C grade.
The New National Test Toolkit is now available FREE in its entirety (three files, practise test file, 9 new sets of tests in both paper based and CD form, NTT update file and teaching and learning file with resources for tutors which include new modules i.e. Move your CV On, Preparation for Testing and more). A MUST for all organisation and tutors
For more information about Move On and Get on at Work see the Move On website www.move-on.org.uk.
Adult Basic Skills Strategy Unit now Skills for Life Unit
Basic Skills Agency
www.basic-skills.co.uk
DfES Lifelong Learning
www.lifelonglearning.co.uk
Get On Campaign
www.dfes.gov.uk/geton
LearnDirect
Learning and Skills Council
www.lsc.gov.uk
Learning and Skills Development Agency
National Literacy Trust
National Research Development Centre for adult literacy, language and numeracy
www.nrdc.org.uk
NIACE (National Institute for Adult and Continuing Education)
www.niace.org.uk
Nottinghamshire Skills for Life Partnership now has a website www.ns4lp.org.uk/homepage
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
Skills for Life Quality Initiative
Skills for Life Unit
Ufi
www.lancs.ac.uk/wbsnet
East Midlands Skills for Life Website launched
The website which was trailed in the last edition of the Bulletin is now functioning and will be formally launched on May 31st. It is set to become one of the most useful resources for Skills for Life staff in the region. You can search for training opportunities and jobs; find out about resources, news, events and good practice and join in discussions with other practitioners in the region. In the near future you will be able to use it to produce a CV based on your registration details. To gain the full benefit of this new service Register NOW and encourage your colleagues to register.
Welcome to the new Regional Skills For Life Director
Jane Peacock has recently joined the Regional Team of the LSC as the Skills for Life Director. She will be working with colleagues from across the region to develop and coordinate the delivery of the Regional Skills for Life strategy in the East Midlands. Jane’s background is in teaching and management in Sixth Forms, Further Education, Offender Learning and in Specialist Schools and Colleges and she has recently worked as a facilitator with the Skills For Life Quality Initiative.
Jane says “I am looking forward to meeting and working with Skills For Life colleagues across the region.”
Nottinghamshire Skills for Life Partnership
The Strategic Group of the partnership has agreed the priorities for the partnership for 2005-6 and responsibilities for developing these have been allocated to groups within the partnership. Improving the Service The Greater Nottingham and North Nottinghamshire Groups will lead on improving the service. This will focus on ensuring that supply meets demand - particularly of ESOL provision and for Learners with Learning Difficulties and Disabilities- and student retention and progression. This reflects concerns that over 500 people are waiting for ESOL provision in Greater Nottingham, and the length of the wait is currently estimated at four months. Workforce Development and Expansion The County Council led CPD group will be tackling the capacity of the workforce to deliver the services needed. This will also include the establishment of a countywide tutor bank to allow better use of existing teachers, interpreters and IAG staff. Employer Engagement The Nottinghamshire LSC’s Employer Engagement Practitioners Group will be tasked with engaging more employers - particularly in target sectors such as Social Care, Retail and Construction that suffer low skills - in Skills for Life training for their staff.
For more information contact Nick Payne 0115 934 9561/nick@enable.uk.net.
Derbyshire S4L Professional Development Centre, ROWA! Has been successful in its bid for ESF Co-financing funds to develop CPD in Derbyshire. The new Skills for Life Professional Development Co-ordinator; Annette Lowe, is employed by ROWA! and based at the LSC. Annette’s role will include writing Derbyshire SfL Professional Development strategy; ensuring that training and development needs are identified and met, linking local plans to regional activities and SfLQI, and encouraging the sharing of expertise, resources, research and good practice.
The bid will also develop The Virtual Resource Centre which will promote local professional development activity, provide information about accredited prior learning and progression routes, answer questions on professional development issues, be a vehicle for recruitment, provide information on resources and research and allow discussions and inter-change of ideas.
Satellite CPD Centres will be sited at Derby College, Chesterfield College and the University of Derby College Buxton and will provide internet and ICT facilities to ensure access to online training e.g. Core Curriculum modules, provide access to paper based resources and publicise professional development opportunities
The Leicester City Skills for Life Consortium
The Consortium is a collaborative group of providers facilitated by the Leicestershire & Leicester City Learning Partnership. Recent projects supported by the Consortium include:
· The development of a leaflet, funded through the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG) to raise awareness of ESOL and provide a dedicated telephone number where learners can be signposted to existing local provision. This leaflet has been distributed to a wide range of agencies.
· The Initial Interview Project. Front line workers in a wide range of agencies have been trained to identify and refer potential learners within their client group. A referral system is in place which increases collaboration between providers, reduces competition and allows for equitable access to new learners.
· A handbook about how the Leicester City Skills for Life strategy works was launched on Wednesday March 16th 2005.
East Midlands Move On Get on at Work
Nationally over 138,000 learners have been developing their skills through the Move On approach and the approach continues to contribute to high levels of success for learners nationally and in the East Midlands. Some regional examples include:
- Employees from Nottinghamshire companies including Pork Farms Nottingham, Boots, BT, British Bakeries, Field Boxmore, Riverside Bakery and Nottingham City Council are achieving the National Qualifications through the Get on at Work following training the Union Learning Representatives to inform and recruit colleagues in the workforce.
- Boston Borough Council has adopted the Get on at Work approach following involvement from the UNISON Union Learning Representative. The Council is now involved in a whole organisation approach to Skills for Life and Get On at Work. A new learning centre has been set up in the workplace and SfL courses are being delivered by Boston College
- Over 100 Union Learning Representatives have received training in Get on at Work across the East Midlands and are active in the workplace
National news
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Sharing the Skills!
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Events and Conferences
Making use of research
The Learning and Skills Research Networks East Midlands summer conference - Wednesday 8 June 2005 9.30 am - 3.00 pm
National College for School Leadership, Nottingham.
For further information on the content of this event, or about the LSRN for the East Midlands region, please contact Jennifer Fearon-Beckford, Regional Director for the East Midlands, 0115 9299066 or jfbeckford@lsda.org.uk. Please click on the below link for the booking form.
http://www.lsda.org.uk/files/lsda
/events/052045FL_LSRNflyer.pdf
Free three-day training programme for E-Guides working in Adult and Community Learning
This programme aims to increase the use of e-learning in ACL through developing the skills and knowledge of E-Guides so that they are able to support colleagues in their use of technology in teaching and learning across the curriculum. Each E-Guide is encouraged to cascade their skill and knowledge by developing a cascade training programme.Training in the East Midlands will take place in Derby 8 and 9 June, Nottingham 4 July.
For further information and details of how to apply email mailto:eguides@niace.org.ukor visit the website at http://www.niace.org.uk/
conferences/eguides.htm.
How to embed or integrate literacy, language and numeracy: sharing experience
Thursday 16 June 2005
The Resource Centre, 356
Holloway Road, London N7 6PA.
NIACE in partnership with Northern College for Residential Adult Education and South Yorkshire Skills for Life Professional and Development Network (PDNet) is running this conference, that aims to offer opportunities to share experiences and practices, explore issues and identify key messages, including further research and development. The first event was held in Leeds in February 2005 and was oversubscribed.
For further information visit the NIACE website
http://www.niace.org.uk/
Conferences/EmbedLLN.htm
Or contact Gurjit Kaur on 0116 2042833
How to embed or integrate literacy, language and numeracy: sharing experience
Thursday 16 June 2005
The Resource Centre, 356
Holloway Road, London N7 6PA.
NIACE in partnership with Northern College for Residential Adult Education and South Yorkshire Skills for Life Professional and Development Network (PDNet) is running this conference, that aims to offer opportunities to share experiences and practices, explore issues and identify key messages, including further research and development. The first event was held in Leeds in February 2005 and was oversubscribed.
For further information visit the NIACE website
http://www.niace.org.uk/
Conferences/EmbedLLN.htm
Or contact Gurjit Kaur on 0116 2042833
Working Together for Skills for Life’ Literacy, Numeracy and Language - Friday 17th June 9.00am - 3.15pm, 2005 Highpoint Conference Centre, Leicester
The first Skills for Life conference organised by The Leicestershire and Leicester City Learning Partnerships’ (LLCLP) Skills for Life Group.
The conference aims to promote collaborative working between the voluntary and community sector and learning providers It is intended for people and organisations in Leicester and Leicestershire who are currently involved in Skills for Life - literacy, numeracy and language, and for those who are interested in becoming involved.
For more details contact esfproject@lec.ac.uk.
Dyslexia: Training for Employers
NIACE is offering 3 training sessions to help employers ensure that they address the needs of dyslexic people in their organisations. More information on the training options available to employers is available via www.niace.org.uk/Conferences/
TrainingCourses/dyslexia.htm.
LSC Local contacts
Eryl Prentice
Eryl.Prentice@lsc.gov.uk
0845 019 4183
Leicestershire
Gill King
0116 228 1870
Lincolnshire and Rutland
Di Pudney diana.pudney@lsc.gov.ukk
01522 508547
Northamptonshire
Gordon Sergent gordon.sergent@lsc.gov.uk 01604 533031
Nottinghamshire
Elaine Beckford elaine.beckford@lsc.gov.uk
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This bulletin does not represent the views of the DfES or other organisations in the Skills for Life East Midlands Regional Strategy Forum.