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The Network's 8th Annual Conference

The Whole Organisation Approach to Workplace Skills for Life

8th and 9th February 2006, The Radisson SAS, Liverpool

The Minister for Skills, Phil Hope, gave his backing to the whole organisation approach to Skills for Life when he spoke at the National Conference of The Network in Liverpool in February.

Phil Hope

Fully endorsing the theme of the 8th National Conference, he said: “The whole organisation approach is the key to the successful delivery of Skills for Life. Employers must be at the heart of this initiative, which is to create new markets and make workers as flexible as possible. The skills of our people are our fundamental asset and every person should be able to achieve their potential.”

Making a presentation via DVD because of parliamentary duties, he said as much as £10bn was lost each year in Britain as a result of poor skills, but four years of government SfL funding was now having a positive effect on people’s lives. He thanked The Network for its “valuable support it has given my department in delivering SfL”.

A range of high-profile experts in workplace language, literacy and numeracy issues spoke at the conference, which was held in Liverpool’s Radisson SAS on 8th and 9th of February. Among the keynote speakers were Fran Hulbert, Director of Skills Policy, Northwest Regional Development Agency; Monica Turner, from the Centre for British Teachers; Neil Scales, Chief Executive of Merseytravel; Tracey Theo from Business in the Community; Peter Keith from Walkers Snack Foods; and Christine Troughton from the LSC North West.

DelegatesMore than 200 delegates comprising providers, practitioners, advisers, employers and union learning reps attended 14 workshops that focused on specific aspects of SfL delivery.

An important part of the conference were presentations by employers who have engaged with SfL and found that it benefited both the company and staff. “It is absolutely essential for UK plc that companies fully embrace SfL,” said Neil Scales. “Both their own and their country’s future prosperity depend on it.”

The event also saw the launch of “Natural Allies”, a DVD/CD Rom that shows how Investors in People can support the development of LLN in the workplace. Filmed in Merseyside and produced by The Network on behalf of LSC Greater Merseyside, it profiles employers and employees and their positive experiences in SfL. The aim is to make it available for awareness-raising sessions with employers, as a resource for practitioners, and a promotional tool at award ceremonies and conferences.

“This was one of the most successful National Conferences yet,” said Neil Chatterjee, Marketing Manager for The Network. “We received very positive feedback from participants, who said the choice of sessions was wide-ranging, while individual events remained sharply focused.”

A number of stalls in the hotel foyer did a steady trade, and the convivial bar area ensured that a huge amount of networking – the staple fare of such conferences – was achieved.

WorkshopDelegates had the chance to sign up for three different workshops over the two days. These included Helen Kaczmarek, of Asset Skills, presenting a session on how the whole organisational approach is relevant to the work of the Sector Skills Councils. Frances Graham, of Investors in People UK, showed how SfL can achieve a whole organisation approach in the workplace, while two representatives from Knowsley College, in Kirkby, discussed their work in developing and embedding SfL for 14- to 19-year-old students.

Freda Grant, of the Employers’ Organisation, explained how the award scheme, “Get On Local Government”, is helping local authorities to introduce a whole organisation approach. And Mark Adams, of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, identified the success factors in embedding SfL in the workplace, as part of the award scheme.

Christine Troughton, LSC North West and Barbara Gill, of LSC Lancashire shared their experience and good practice of the Employer Training Pilot scheme in the north-west of England. Meanwhile, Liz Chandler, of Merseytravel, explained how SfL had improved the way staff dealt with documentation and workplace practices in her organisation.

WorkshopSara Whalley, of The Network, gave the background to her involvement with embedding SfL into the working practices of staff at Lewes Prison. Dominic Rapley, a Network consultant, introduced delegates to the Provider Toolkit website, which aims to be a one-stop shop of information, guidance and resources for workplace LLN practitioners and those planning to deliver in the workplace.

The strategies that should be adopted for developing workplace LLN was the theme of Fiona Wells’s workshop. She emphasised the importance of the sharing of skills and knowledge and the identification of relevant resources. Sandra Evans, of NVQ Training, talked about the importance of producing meaningful workforce development plans that address both business and individual needs.

A three-strong team - Bruce Cavalier, Alex Bradell and Tessa Bowden, of SEEDA - explored some of the innovative projects the development agency is sponsoring to move the access to workforce learning agenda forward. Nicola Woods, of TUC Learning Services, reviewed the union contribution to workplace SfL and in particular union learning reps. She shared some of the benefits of the TUC learn Direct Hub. A group from Walkers Snack Foods laid out how the company had implemented successful strategies in SfL learning.

Overall the event was considered a great success. The Network would like to thank its sponsors without whom the conference could not have taken place.


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