Skills for Life Improvement Programme

Developing a Whole Organisation Approach to Skills for Life in Local Authorities

Holiday Inn, Leicester

Wednesday 7th March 2007

Funded by Skills for Life Improvement Programme

This was a FREE dissemination event, the first of two, organised by The Network and funded by the Skills for Life Improvement Programme to share our experiences so far, in pilot projects in partnerships with local authorities in developing a Whole Organisation Approach to Skills for Life.

Keynote speakers provided an update on the National Skills for Life Strategy for local government, and in particular the Get ON Local Government Award scheme and outlined how our project has supported the implementation of these initiatives.

Keynote Speakers:

- Richard Goss, Head of Learning and Skills, CfBT Education Trust
‘Introduction to the Skills for Life Improvement Programme’

- Sue Batt, Director of Regional Development, The Network
‘The Network’s Role in the Skills for Life Improvement Programme’

- Freda Grant, Senior Adviser on Skills for Life, Skills Plus, Improvement and Development Agency
‘National Skills for Life Strategy for local government and the Get ON Local Government Award scheme: adopting a Whole Organisation Approach to Skills for Life’

- Karen Maher, Organisational Development Manager, Middlesbrough Borough Council
‘Developing a Skills for Life Strategy in a Local Authority’

- Judith Alderson, Move On Up Adviser – East Midlands
‘Test the County – A case study of Derbyshire County Council’

Workshops provided an opportunity to explore different aspects of the pilot activities, their successes and challenges.

Workshops

• Carrie Bishop, London Borough of Barnet

- Preparing a Skills for Life Action Plan

- Defining your goals – aligning national targets and GO Award criteria with your organisational vision
- Writing the plan – format, style, level of detail, accountability and resources
- Making it meaningful – performance monitoring, management and review, communicating the plan

• Amanda Pavon-Lopez, Consultant Tribal Group, & Malcolm Richmond, The Network

- Making the business case: a case study from the East of England

Do you have departments or colleagues who need convincing that Skills for Life is important? Discuss with your colleagues how to talk about business benefits, what sources of information are available, what arguments can be used and what can actually work.

• Carmen Bruno, Barnet UNISON

- Partnership working: The role of Trades Unions in promoting and supporting Skills for Life in local authorities

- The Barnet ‘back-to-front’ case study – getting started, proving it works
- Barriers and enablers – navigating the organisation and working together
- The Way Ahead – the role of Trade Unions in delivering locally on the national agenda

• Isabel White, CfBT Education Trust Development Adviser

- Developing the Whole Organisation Approach in local authorities as providers

This workshop interested those local authorities who have an Adult and Community Learning service and/or an existing relationship with a training provider, as well as those who may wish to develop such a relationship. It also interested those providers who wish to work more closely with their local authority.

The workshop focused on ways in which partnership working can benefit all the organisations involved and also help them achieve their own aims through the common theme of the Whole Organisation Approach to Skills for Life.