Quality Information Advice And Guidance For Ulrs
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Right directions Trades Union Congress Congress House Great Russell Street London WC1B 3LS 020 7636 4030 [email protected] www.tuc.org.uk TUC Learning Services The Cotton Exchange Suite 506-510 Old Hall Street Liverpool L3 9UD 0151 236 7678 www.learningservices.org.uk
Editorial Design Print
quality IAG in union learning projects
Martin Moriarty, Astrid Stubbs wave.coop Creasey Flood
09/04/3K
www.learningservices.org.uk www.tuc.org.uk
“Good quality IAG is absolutely central to the development of workplace learning projects.”
Photos: above © Martin Jenkinson below © Paul Herrmann
foreword
What’s the best course for me? Where can I go to do my learning? How do I take the next step in my career development? That’s why dozens of union branches, learning initiatives and career advice partnerships have worked towards and achieved the matrix Quality Standard, a process which ensures the continuous development of their IAG services. All of them have benefited from the help TUC Learning Services has been able to provide through our national IAG project, with funding from the Learning and Skills Council. With the considerable expertise we have amassed in recent years, we’re able to support union projects working towards the standard by training their project workers and ULRs in IAG, preparing them for the assessment and supporting their development beyond it.
These are just some of the questions facing learners in the workplace – and it’s to their union learning representatives that they turn for the answers in the form of information, advice and guidance. Good quality IAG is absolutely central to the development of workplace learning projects. It’s what ensures learners find the course best suited to them; start at the right level; and study at a time and place that’s most convenient.
The dozen case studies in this folder show what can be achieved with the help of TUC Learning Services, local IAG Partnerships and the Employment NTO, which is now responsible for the development of the matrix Standard. I hope that they help inspire projects throughout the union learning world to continue to further improve the all-important IAG they offer their learners.
Liz Smith national officer TUC Learning Services
“The whole matrix process was really positive. It supported us in our development, in setting up a quality framework and in working together as a team.”
Photos © John Jones
case study
Partners in progress And the verdict on its work? “Effective partnerships have been developed with a range of providers, professional groups and agencies to ensure that their clients receive the most appropriate training and learning opportunities," said the matrix report on the centre. Building on this success, a small group of learners was allowed time off to undertake a maths and English programme as a pilot, with the support of CityBuild management.
Success with learning projects has come thick and fast in Newcastle – and it’s all down to working together. Newcastle City Council credits its acclaimed partnership approach to workplace learning involving its trade unions for gaining matrix. Demand for learning led to the opening of the Brinkburn learning centre, a learndirect access point within the Trade Union Hub, offering free computer and basic skills courses supported by centre staff.
The pilot received second year funding from the Learning for All Fund and over 158 learners have now taken up the offer of courses, with the project receiving national acclaim. Management and unions have now launched the Learning Council Project across the whole authority, which builds on the good practice and partnerships already established through earlier initiatives. The project has been able to to encourage people to sign up for learning with funding from eQ8, the local Employer Training Pilot which had already financed the CityBuild Skills for Life scheme.
case study “The inspection was quite rigorous but we particularly liked the emphasis on user feedback, which is really important to us. “Since gaining matrix, we continue to receive support from the network, setting targets for continuous service improvement. One of the Brinkburn staff now has Level 3 NVQ IAG, provided by the network, and we intend to send more staff to do Level 2 – eQ8 funding could be available for this. “Through eQ8 the City Council has released staff for basic skills who would not otherwise have had release,” explains Felicity Mendelson, project manager. Newcastle City Council is now committed to the development of essential skills for all staff and will continue to work with eQ8 to reach its targets.
“The whole matrix process was really positive. As a new centre it supported us in our development, in setting up a quality framework and in working together as a team. The process is ongoing – continuous service improvement leading up to the next assessment."
The project is drawing in additional funding for workplace-based learning ‘kiosks‘ providing computer access and basic skills support. “Even before Brinkburn Centre opened we were a member of Tyne and Wear IAG Network. This was really useful, as it holds regular meetings of all members for information sharing etc,” says Felicity. “Once we decided to go for matrix, we talked to a quality adviser who supports providers through the process. He visited us regularly while we were working towards the standard, which was very useful as we were a new centre. That helped us in our development, quality framework and team working.
The Brinkburn Centre was officially opened in May 2002 and became a learndirect access point in November 2002, offering free computer and basic skills courses. Since then, learning opportunities in the city have flourished. The Learning Council Project was awarded matrix in May 2003 and receives continued support from the Tyne and Wear IAG Network.
Contact: Felicity Mendelson project manager
[email protected] 0191 278 1946/7
”The passionate way in which they promote and encourage learning opportunities is infectious and has spread.”
Photos © Paul Herrmann
case study
Firm foundations Bargaining 4 Skills (B4S), Manchester City Council’s award winning partnership between unions and management in the Environmental and Operational Services Division, is making a daily difference to the lives of thousands of staff. B4S aims to supply information, advice, guidance and support to employees on lifelong learning issues. That means more than 4,500 people working for the division are able to access anything from essential skills, updating courses on literacy, numeracy and IT as well as ESOL and multi-skilling courses in bricklaying, plastering, block paving, plumbing, joinery and electrical installation.
Bricklaying, plastering and plumbing are among the many lifelong skills now on offer to Manchester City Council staff.
Through the two B4S learning centres in the city, the partnership also offers access to learndirect courses, which are free to employees and their families. "We live in an ever-changing world and we have to be prepared to update our skills and knowledge and keep abreast of technology and legislation that may affect our employment and employability. ULRs have a unique relationship with their membership because they have their trust, confidence and interests at heart,” says B4S co-ordinator Peter Shepherd.
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"All ULRs ensure confidentiality and are committed to the initiative. We are from different unions but in the network meeting and where B4S is concerned, we are all TUC ULRs who will offer advice and support and also protect the lifelong learning interests of every individual involved. I feel proud of the group and the initiative." One beneficial spin-off has been the steady improvement in industrial relations: "Since the inception of B4S in July 2000, it has not only helped recognise and meet individual employees’ needs but has also helped with industrial relations in some sections of the department," he says.
As if that were not enough, the team has also been recognised with a Manchester City Council Award of Excellence for continuous improvement. And as if to prove it is constantly improving, the project hopes to open a third learning centre in the town hall which will allow thousands more staff to acquire the learning habit. In addition it is targeting the division’s 500-plus part-time workers, which will involve finding ways to support staff who not only work many different shifts but who may also have issues with essential skills and/or have English as a second language.
B4S was awarded the matrix quality standard in 2002. The assessment report gave glowing praise to the B4S team: “It is evident that the success of the project is a result of the enthusiasm and commitment of the team.The passionate way in which they promote and encourage learning opportunities is infectious and has spread not only to the strong network of learning representatives but to those who have benefited from the scheme, particularly workers on the shop floor, who are now actively involved in encouraging and assisting others.”
Bargaining 4 Skills was established in September 2000, covering staff in the Environmental and Operational Services Division of Manchester City Council. The project was awarded matrix in 2002 and is now looking to extend services with a new learning centre reaching out to thousands more staff.
Contact: Pete Shepherd coordinator
[email protected]
0161 908 5811
“Gaining matrix has helped ensure a higher quality of management and service delivery for the benefit of members and potential members.”
Photos © Martin Jenkinson
case study
Exchange students Most people are given information and advice about computer courses, particularly learndirect computer courses, since the Exchange began delivering IAG in 2003. The LLE’s IAG service uses a number of information sources that help clients to decide on what they want to do in terms of learning, training, finding a new job, careers and redundancy support. These sources include websites like Worktrain and learndirect Futures, career books such as Occupations, and contacts with partner organisations. The LLE gained matrix in October 2003 with funding for the accreditation provided by the TUC national IAG project.
Gaining matrix has helped a new TGWU centre improve its services to learners in Leeds. The Leeds Learning Exchange at the TGWU’s new Northern regional office is open to TGWU members, their families and potential members and also supports other learning centres.
“Being partners of the Leeds Network helps to get LLE staff members to meet other members of the local learning community at network and steering group meetings. Because the LLE has a regional agenda, it is also developing partnerships with adult education providers and other IAG networks apart from those in Leeds,” says regional education officer Mick Bond.
case study
“Gaining matrix has helped the LLE ensure a higher quality of management and service delivery for the benefit of members and potential members. It verifies the standard of our administration system and makes us more professional as a team. ”Indeed, it demonstrates the success of the centre. However, it also reminds us that striving for improvement is an ongoing process and that we cannot afford to rest on our laurels. “The delivery of life skills courses to TGWU members is a key LLE aim, and the LLE’s appointment of a life skills tutor is expected to rapidly progress this aim over the next year and beyond.
“Apart from the excellent advice that it provides, LLE staff and ULRs are also given the opportunity to gain qualifications in information and advice to adult learners, basic skills awareness and CV writing. ”
The Leeds Learning Exchange opened on November 15 2002 and is one of a number of Trade Union Hub learndirect centres. It was awarded matrix in October 2003 with funding for accreditation paid for by the TUC national IAG project.
Contact: Mick Bond manager
[email protected] 0113 236 4830
"Having the matrix standard means we are able to demonstrate that we are serious about learning and that we deal with learners’ aspirations in a responsible and professional manner." Photos © Martin Jenkinson
case study
In the fast lane Recently the branch has been promoting its Skills for Life agreements, which provide a framework for employers and ULRs to develop a systematic approach to learning, with the emphasis firmly on building capacity in the workplace. The agreements work well when they are underpinned by a genuine partnership approach that harnesses the resources of local training providers, vocational training providers and local learning and skills councils.
Taking learning direct to people via a roadshow has put the GPMU streets ahead. The GPMU Central Midlands Branch was one of the first unions to gain matrix accreditation for its information, advice and guidance to adult learners. Little wonder when you find out that the standard applies to the branch’s Learning Zone initiative, which provides a learning centre at the branch office as well as a range of other learning services, including a learning lorry for employees in the print and graphical communications sector.
"We try to adopt an approach that recognises that each company is different. We spend a long time listening to our ULRs and the employer before we enter an agreement and start developing learning facilities onsite,” explains branch training and education manager, Dave Jeffery. “Having the matrix standard means we are able to demonstrate that we are serious about learning and that we deal with learners’ aspirations in a responsible and professional manner,” he says. Dave and his colleagues Julia Laird and Judith Alcock recently took Derbyshire LSC’s Learning Lorry to Amcor Flexible Packaging’s Crompton Road site in Ilkeston, Derbyshire.
case study
This gave them the opportunity to meet employees off different shifts and to offer an IAG service on site. The Learning Lorry is part of Derbyshire LSC’s strategy for promoting their Employer Training Pilot Valu£able Skills. It is equipped with 12 laptops with internet access and provides a comfortable mobile learning facility. "It is important that we take learning directly to people and it is an approach that we encourage our partners in training provision to adopt. It is difficult for our members, a lot of whom work shifts, to attend college in the same time slot week after week. Things are getting better. Colleges are more imaginative and flexible. But it has to be at the forefront of our minds when we are giving advice to potential learners," Dave says. "It is helpful to be a member of the various local IAG partnerships. In doing so we can be confident that we are pointing people in the right direction."
The GPMU Central Midlands Branch was one of the first unions to gain matrix. The standard applies to the branch’s Learning Zone initiative, which provides a learning centre at the branch office and a range of other learning services for employees in the print and graphical communications sector.
Contact: Dave Jeffery training and education manager
[email protected] 0115 958 5688
"Gaining matrix was fabulous for us because it opened the door to involvement with IAG, with resources and people who could help us."
Photos © John Jones
case study
Northern lights The project got up and running with the union in Northumberland and at that point Pam was the only project worker. But with 350 learners taking courses mainly in computers, matrix was gained within just six months, accompanied by much praise for the project’s equality of access. The following year, the project spread to Tyne and Wear and from there to Cleveland and now Durham, in the process changing its name to the North East Fire Brigades and FBU Partnership Learning Project. So successful has it been that it is now being used as a model of best practice as it rolls out nationally across the union, which in turn will seek matrix accreditation.
Success of a regional learning project has spread like wildfire across the FBU.
"Gaining matrix was fabulous for us because it opened the door to involvement with IAG which is the best thing we ever did. It opened the door to resources and to the people who could help us, for instance with resources for a learner who is disabled," says Pam.
When the learning services offered to firefighters and their families in the north-east were recognised with the matrix standard for their quality and excellence, project manager Pam Walton little expected it would be used as a model for the whole union.
Benefits of matrix include becoming a member of the local IAG partnership, information sharing, plus financial help with courses, she says.
case study
It also offers the chance for an input at regular monthly meetings with the local LSC, which in turn provides resources, for example with promotional materials, flyers and so on. "We would go for matrix again. It’s an excellent benchmark and when you are dealing with the FBU where people have staunch training backgrounds you can’t just walk in and wing it – you have to have a quality mark behind you for them to respect you and have the credence behind what you are offering." Pam also praises Chief Fire Officer for Northumberland Brian Hessler as a major partner in the scheme."Without his backing this would not have happened," she adds.
The North East Fire Brigades and FBU Partnership Learning Project was awarded matrix for its services in 2002 and is now being rolled out as a model of excellence across the whole union.
Contact: Pam Walton project manager
[email protected] or [email protected] 07876 583132
“The government’s Skills Strategy states that all LSC funded IAG providers will be required to be accredited against the matrix standard so, once again, unions are ahead of the game.”
Photos © Sean Hernon
case study
Cornish cream
From learning to make Christmas cards to life changing computer courses, hundreds of Cornish employees are on the learning ladder thanks to strong union partners.
Ros Prigg, Usdaw ULR at Tesco’s in Penzance, got to work straight away after completing her TUC ULR training course. She gently persuaded 20 colleague to register for an IT course, which resulted in each developing IT skills to enable them to design their own Christmas cards just in time for the course to finish in December. Some 13 out of the original 20 learners have now enrolled and started a CLAIT course, which will give each of them a Level 2 qualification in ICT. Their story is just one example of how, in a little over two and half years, TUC Learning Services in Cornwall has seen remarkable progress on the learning front. From a very low base, the Objective 1 supported Project has helped to create a network of 80 ULRs and offered the opportunity for over 1,000 union members to benefit from learning. It’s also been involved in 11 ULF projects, five Learning Works for All projects and one GPMU/LSC project. Four major conferences have been held and a union voice has been heard on important partnership bodies throughout the county.
case study
In Cornwall, trade unions are now seen as key partners in promoting workforce development and the learning agenda. "The success of the project has been very encouraging. Ordinary union members are bringing a real enthusiasm to learning and helping to upgrade skills and transform lives," says co-ordinator Geoff Hale. TUC Learning Services Cornwall gained matrix accreditation for the delivery of IAG from its team to its network of ULRs. “We are very proud to have achieved the standard, especially as we are the first organisation in Cornwall to have done so!“ says Geoff. “The benefit of matrix to our team has not just shown areas where our processes work well, but also ones that we can improve upon, and as the accreditation takes place every two years, it means that we can’t rest on our laurels and assume that everything we do is fine! “Having matrix means that we are now full partners in GO4, the local IAG Partnership in Devon and Cornwall, gaining access to free training for the ULRs provided by GO4, if they require it. “We also sit on the strategic planning group, the key decision-makers in the partnership. The LSC, local providers, Jobcentre Plus and Connexions also sit on this group, enabling our profile to be raised among such important groups.
“The main beneficiaries from matrix accreditation are our network of ULRs and their members, knowing that the information and advice that we give them will be of a high standard. Even if we can’t answer their query, we will endeavour to signpost them onto somebody who can. “The government Skills Strategy states that all LSC funded IAG providers will be required to be accredited against the matrix standard so it would appear that, once again, unions are ahead of the game and that we mean business and should be taken seriously when it comes to workforce development.”
April 2003 saw TUC Learning Services Cornwall gain matrix for the delivery of IAG to its network of union learning representatives. The project is now entering a new phase with the support of the TUC’s EQUAL Project, addressing fundamental issues, including: how the work of ULRs can be best sustained; how the need to develop ULR skills can be taken forward; and how unions can be more effective in promoting learning within a rural population.
Contact: Geoff Hale coordinator
[email protected] 01209 611604
“"Branch members can come to the learners’ surgeries held every Friday in the branch office and discuss any aspect of learning, from what course to go on to how to fund it.”
Photos © John Jones
case study
Caring for the community Although the project originally started at ready meals manufacturer Fenland Foods, it’s now expanded to include all the sites within the community branch boundaries, particularly the two other major workplaces where the union has recognition, poultry processing firm GW Padley and the Vaculux mouldings plant. “We’ve been running a Saturday morning literacy and numeracy class in the branch office, and none of the learners come from Fenland Foods, they’re all from other workplaces, so it is now definitely a community-based project,” says branch training and development co-ordinator Mark Bartlett.
The GMB Grantham Community branch offers members and potential members the chance for personal and professional development through its four-year-old working learning project.
It’s also clearly a successful project: one of the GMB members on the Saturday course is Margaret Leeton, who won the East Midlands learner of the year award from TUC Learning Services earlier this year; and the tutor is a union member whom Mark encouraged onto a City & Guilds basic skills teaching course at Grantham College. Branch members can come to the learners’ surgeries held every Friday in the branch office and discuss any aspect of learning, from what course to go on to how to fund it.
case study “At Fenland Foods, we deal with an agency in Lincoln who supply workers, most of whom are non-EU nationals, so we’re trying to set up an English for Speakers of Other Languages course for them,” Mark says. “We’re also able to refer them on for further help to the IAG Partnership and the Lincoln Learning Shop learndirect centre.” It can take time to build up trust with workers who can often be worried about their residency status. “We let them know about the sessions in the branch newsletter which we produce every six to eight weeks, we send posters round to the workplaces, and there’s word of mouth, as well,” he says. But the project has also reached out to dozens of other potential learners by offering information and advice to people visiting the local shopping centre one day during Adult Learners’ Week as part of a Lincolnshire & Rutland IAG Partnership initiative. “It’s getting bigger and bigger all the time – last year, there were only around nine organisations taking part, this year there were 14,” Mark says. “Grantham College, Yes 4 Learning, the Jobcentre, Action for Employment, the local library – they were all encouraging people to get enrolled on courses, whereas we focused on learning in the workplace.” With agricultural and food industry jobs attracting considerable numbers of asylum-seekers and refugees arriving into the area, Mark is keen to offer information and advice about learning opportunities that could help the migrant workers.
The branch is aiming to recruit a couple of union learning representatives from among the migrant worker groups. “If we can crack that, we’ll really prove that we’re a union which cares for people, regardless of where they come from,” Mark says.
The Grantham GMB branch originally launched its workplace learning project Recipe 4 Success in partnership between the union and the ready meals supplier Fenland Foods in 2000. The branch was one of the first union projects to secure matrix accreditation in autumn 2002. Although the branch secured backing from the government’s Union Learning Fund when it was first set up, it currently receives no substantial external funding.
Contact: Mark Bartlett GMB Grantham Community branch Training and development co-ordinator
01476 591870
“With vocational training a major issue in the industry, the centre has been offering courses in industry standard software at reduced rates to GPMU members.”
Photos © Martin Jenkinson
case study
Full colour learning The centre, which secured matrix accreditation in 2003, has helped over 200 members brush up their reading, writing, maths and IT skills and press on with their professional development. But because it’s open to everyone, not just members of the union, it’s also been able to help dozens of nonmembers access learning opportunities as well. The centre concentrates on Skills for Life and IT courses, according to co-ordinator Dave Mitchell, who started in post in May 2004, having been a union learning representative at a local print firm for a couple of years.
The Leeds & Central Yorkshire branch of print union GPMU offers a full information, advice and guidance service to everyone using the learning centre in the branch office.
The Skills for Life and introductory IT courses run on Thursdays, while the more advanced IT courses are taught on Mondays, but learners are also free to drop in to use the facilities at any other time during office hours. The centre takes promotion seriously. “It’s the marketing that makes sure people know we exist, and that we have facilities here that they can use,” Dave says. “If they don’t know we’re here, we can’t help them.” Once they do come through the doors, they can talk to Dave about what they’re interested in learning, and he can suggest what they need to do next – whether that’s a course at the centre or study with a partner organisation or a provider from the Leeds IAG Network.
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If they sign up to do a course at the centre, they take a Skills for Life assessment screening to check what level they’re working at first. But if they need to study elsewhere, Dave is able to help point them in the right direction. “Sometimes people come in wanting to do plastering, or HGV driving, and we can source some courses for them through our contacts and resources,” he says. With vocational training a major issue in an industry where too many companies plug their skills gaps by poaching from the competition, the centre has been offering courses in industry standard software including Adobe PhotoShop, Quark XPress and Microsoft PowerPoint on a Saturday morning. The courses, which are subsidised by the GPMU, are available to both members and non-members, although members are charged a discounted rate.
The network has been able to provide a lot of practical support to the centre, through meetings, courses and resources – Dave did a dyslexia awareness course through the network – and it’s also funding him through his Level 3 NVQ in IAG jointly with the branch.
The Leeds & Central Yorkshire GPMU learning centre opened in 2002 in the branch offices in Leeds, as part of the branch’s Life Skills Through Online Learning project, with money from the government’s Union Learning Fund. It secured matrix accreditation in 2003 and has received support from the TUC Building Opportunities through Workplace Learning (BOWL) Equal project.
Contact: Dave Mitchell learning centre co-ordinator
[email protected] 0113 243 6687
“Offering the IAG service has helped promote learning at the city and county councils, especially among people wanting courses in English for Speakers of Other Languages.”
Photos © Roy Peters
case study
Working in partnership “We’re used to partnership working in the GMB, it’s part of our ethos,” explains branch equality officer Dave Towers. “It’s a lot easier being a partner than someone on the outside knocking on the door trying to get in: it’s like the difference between being invited to a party and having to gatecrash!” In the first 12 months of the new scheme, 280 staff have attended open days about the training, and 70 have signed up for the corporate programme on essential skills and 22 for communication skills. “We’re keen to make people aware that these courses are available: it’s word-of-mouth from colleagues, or people saying ‘Why don’t we do this together?’ that’s usually most effective,” he says.
The GMB is working with Leicester city and county councils to promote Skills for Life courses for staff through the government’s Employer Training Pilot initiative.
“Our priority is supporting members who need Skills for Life, communication skills and ESOL courses – that’s where the effort’s going and that’s where it’s most rewarding.” The branch is also continuing to offer its information, advice and guidance service to members – which is proving particularly useful at a time when both city and county councils are undergoing further restructuring.
case study One of the first union projects to gain the matrix quality standard in autumn 2002, the branch has been busy embedding the principles in its information, advice and guidance work and developing strong links with Gain. “Our local IAG Partnership is excellent and we have full involvement,” Dave explains. “We attend their meetings and seminars, and I’m on their quality group which builds links with all the other partners.” The branch is also regularly called upon to share its experience with newer projects: Dave has recently helped Midlands TUC Learning Services support a Skills for Life initiative at precision rubber firm Dunlop. “It’s been a busy four years, but it’s been a success story,” says Dave.
“Local government is going though a period of change, departments are being reorganised and people’s jobs are at risk,” Dave says. “But we’ve got expert advice available that can help people formulate a CV, or think about their skills and get support to apply for internal jobs or try elsewhere, which is one of the essential things that we’re all about – supporting our members to stay in work.” Most of the signposting work is done from the branch office. “We’ve got all the contacts with Leicester College, with the lifelong learning department at the city council and with Gain, the Leicester and Leicestershire IAG Partnership,” Dave says. Offering the IAG service has helped promote learning at the authorities, especially among people wanting courses in English for Speakers of Other Languages, Dave reckons. “We had some members who came forward needing ESOL courses and we were able to help them study at Leicester College,” Dave says. “The trouble was that when it came to gaining employment, they had no experience, so we encouraged ESOL students to come into the branch office and work one or two days a week and now two of them have already left us because that experience we were able to offer them has helped them get jobs elsewhere.”
The GMB in Leicester kicked off its lifelong learning work four years ago with Leicester Learning Links, a programme of reading, writing, maths and IT courses for staff at the city and county councils, with money from the government’s Union Learning Fund. The branch is now continuing that work in a joint initiative with the local authority employers and the Learning and Skills Council, using money from the government’s Employer Training Pilot scheme to help staff access free Skills for Life and training up to Level 2. The branch achieved matrix accreditation in 2002.
Contact: Dave Towers equality officer GMB L37 Leicester Services branch
[email protected] 0116 223 4122
“The project is able to help staff with their personal development plans, which are being introduced for everyone on the NHS payroll.”
Photos © Paul Herrmann
case study
Skills transfusion The project operates right across the trust’s three main sites: the Royal Lancaster Infirmary in the south, Furness General Hospital to the far west and Westmorland General Hospital in Kendal to the north. Since June 2003, there’s been a team leader covering each of the sites: Edwena Mildner at RLI, Sue Brunton at Furness and Sarah Booth at Westmorland (the initiative was originally handled by a single project worker). “It’s been easier having one team leader on each site,” Sue reckons. “It’s good to have different people who are familiar with the different learning cultures in each area.”
The Morecambe Bay lifelong learning project is now in its fourth year of helping health service workers improve their reading, writing and IT skills.
The project aims to offer broadly similar learning opportunities on each site, but there are variations. “We do try to offer as many of the same things on each site, but we do make allowances for the different cultures which means some people want different things,” Sue explains. The current trio organised a series of roadshows to introduce themselves to staff when they took over and let them know about the courses and support available through the project. All three of them attended each roadshow, as did many of the ULRs, and representatives from partner organisations were also on hand to help whet people’s appetite for learning.
case study The trio find the New Frontiers network meetings very useful for keeping in touch with what’s available. “Sarah goes to the south Lakeland meeting and I cover the Furness meeting, and we share information about what’s going on,” says Sue. Network meetings are definitely not talking shops. “If someone comes to me needing advice on changing careers, I won’t be able to help them, but I will know someone through New Frontiers because of meeting everyone at the network meetings, so I can signpost them on to that person,” she says. Anyone looking for information or advice about what’s available can turn up at one of the weekly drop-in clinics which are run at each site and advertised in the project’s bi-monthly newsletter, on hospital noticeboards and through a global staff email. Staff can still approach their ULR about IAG, of course: and if the rep isn’t sure about anything, they can put the person in touch with the appropriate team leader. “Offering IAG at the workplace is good, because it’s where people spend a lot of their time and they often wouldn’t know where to go to get information otherwise,” Sue says. Now that everyone on the NHS payroll should have a personal development plan, the project is able to offer staff help on that score. The ten-strong team of union learning representatives meets with the team leaders once a month to keep everyone up to date with new developments, and one of the team leaders also attends the bi-monthly steering group meetings with representatives from all the unions, the providers, New Frontiers and the project manager.
Launched in October 2000 with money from the government’s Union Learning Fund, the Morecambe Bay Lifelong Learning Project is helping many of the 5,000-plus staff with reading, writing, maths and computer skills. The partnership comprises all the unions at the trust, including Unison, Amicus, the Royal College of Nursing and the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists, the employers and local education and IAG providers. The project achieved matrix accreditation in 2003.
Contacts: Sarah Booth [email protected] Sue Brunton [email protected] Edwena Mildner [email protected]
“The project offers one-toone guidance sessions and an email advice service delivered by a 27-strong team of working media industry freelancers who have been trained as careers advisers.”
Photos © Philip Wolmuth
case study
Making it in TV
Skillsformedia is a strategic information, advice and guidance service for the audio-visual industries, developed through a partnership between Skillset sector skills council and film and broadcasting union Bectu.
And there’s also the skillsformedia website, a massive resource full of information about working in the TV and film sector.
The service runs a telephone helpline using 30 specially trained learndirect advisers which people can call for information about developing their professional skills or moving on within the industry.
Feedback from service users is extremely positive. Freelance TV producer Lisa Williams Callaway, for instance, was out of work when she rang skillsformedia, and the adviser at the other end of the phone was able to set her up with a one-to-one session to map out a strategy to make her more marketable for the jobs she wanted.
It also offers one-to-one guidance sessions and an email advice service delivered by a 27-strong team of working media industry freelancers who have been trained as careers advisers (five of whom have recently joined the service to provide specific expertise in film).
The initiative was originally launched as a careers advice project by Bectu in 1999, with money from the government's Union Learning Fund, and then expanded into the current service through a partnership with Skillset begun in 2001. “We work very closely with Bectu,” explains client services co-ordinator Sasha Kamenetski. “We provide redundancy support in conjunction with union officials, and Bectu members accessing our services receive a 50 per cent discount.”
case study Skillsformedia has recently raised its profile with all the IAG Partnerships around the country through an awareness-raising project with funding from the Learning and Skills Council, which proved useful, according to careers co-ordinator Adrian Tolson. “We surveyed the Partnerships to let them know what we offer and find out what they needed to know from us, and quite a few told us they hadn’t realised the range of services we provide,” he explains. The service is currently exploring the possibility of providing formal follow-up to the on-to-one guidance sessions, something it’s keen to do in the light of feedback from service users, and also wants to run more personal development workshops for careers advisers.
“Talking things over with skillsformedia opened up a much wider variety of options and choices than I had previously conceived, and I feel more optimistic about my future career than I have in a long while,” she says.
Skillsformedia was originally launched to provide one-to-one guidance to experienced freelancers in the TV and film industries.
The face-to-face sessions are open to people over 18, who have work experience in the audio-visual industries or a media-related degree, which can help people break into a sector where it’s notoriously difficult even to get your foot in the door.
It’s now developed into a strategic information, advice and guidance service with a broader remit linked to Skillset's wider workforce development agenda and the government’s Skills Strategy with the help of money from the government's Union Learning Fund.
Budding scriptwriter Jason Mann, for example, was able to get a free interview with a working scriptwriter by calling the skillsformedia helpline – a fantastic opportunity for a 20-year-old learning his craft while working in a cinema.
The project secured matrix accreditation in 2003, with funding from the TUC national IAG project.
“He proceeded to give me a load of detailed advice that could only come from somebody (like him) who had actually been through the experience and walked the walk,” Jason explains. “I’ve always had faith in my ability, but never really understood the mechanics of the process of getting my work in front of the right people – now I do.”
Contacts: Sasha Kamenetski client services co-ordinator
[email protected] Adrian Tolson careers co-ordinator
[email protected]
"The process of preparing for the matrix assessment has convinced me of its value: I'm a real convert these days!"
Photos © Janina Struk
case study
Class act
The trade union studies centre at Lewisham College in south-east London became the first in the country to secure matrix accreditation for the quality of its information, advice and guidance in 2003. The centre offers a wide range of courses to shop stewards, safety reps and learning reps to a range of union members in the south-east of the capital and beyond. As well as running courses on the Deptford campus, the centre also supports workplace projects at Belmarsh Prison, Canary Wharf and South Central Trains (a supported centre at the TGWU-ACTS office on the nearby Greenwich Council site went independent in early in 2004).
Sometimes it’s union officials who contact the centre to see what they can provide, sometimes it’s workplace reps keen to kick-start learning on the ground, and sometimes it’s individual members – or even nonmembers – who get in touch to find out what’s on offer. “Someone might ring up saying they want to do the health and safety one-year course but it turns out that they haven’t done stage one or two, so they don’t have the knowledge about how all that fits together, which we can help them with,” explains Rossina Harris, trade union studies programme area leader at the college. “And sometimes people aren’t sure about what they want: they might be a new ULR and we can advise them where to start in terms of progression and make sure they’re on the right course.” Whether the initial approach is by phone, via email or simply by someone dropping in, every contact is logged together with details of what IAG has been provided. “We keep a record of every phone call and every email that comes in and everyone who drops into the office, and then we do a sample phone round of 50 per cent of them every three months to see whether they’ve followed up on what we’ve told them,” explains Rossina.
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“The ring-round is great, especially because we can then identify the people who didn’t get what they wanted, so we can make sure they do second time around; and if someone hasn’t been able to take a course for some reason, we can let them know when it’s next on, and that helps keep the numbers up.” A breakdown of the survey results shows that around 90 per cent have got what they wanted first time, with some of the remainder taking a course with another college or through their union instead, and some being prevented for personal reasons or by uncooperative managers. It’s a system the centre put in place while preparing for their matrix assessment. “We kept records before, but we keep them meticulously now, and it’s proved very useful, because we’ve got the figures to prove what we’re saying!” Rossina says. Working towards accreditation turned out well, she says. “When I first heard about the Quality Standard, I didn’t want to know, but the process of preparing for the assessment convinced me of its value: you could say I’m a real convert these days!”
It’s also given the centre vital experience of its own to use on its IAG course for union learning representatives. “We’ve recently run one for Remploy reps where I was able to pass on everything we’d learned in terms of matrix, the Code of Principles and so on,” Rossina says. The centre is set to help two of its staff gain an NVQ Level 2 in IAG through the London IAG Partnership in the autumn, another benefit from joining the network, which has also promoted the centre’s IAG courses in its own publications.
Lewisham College trade union studies centre offers a range of customised courses for shop stewards, health and safety reps and union learning representatives. It secured matrix accreditation in autumn 2003.
Contact: Rossina Harris trade union studies programme area leader Lewisham College
[email protected] 020 8694 3424
Right directions Trades Union Congress Congress House Great Russell Street London WC1B 3LS 020 7636 4030 [email protected] www.tuc.org.uk TUC Learning Services The Cotton Exchange Suite 506-510 Old Hall Street Liverpool L3 9UD 0151 236 7678 www.learningservices.org.uk
Editorial Design Print
quality IAG in union learning projects
Martin Moriarty, Astrid Stubbs wave.coop Creasey Flood
09/04/3K
www.learningservices.org.uk www.tuc.org.uk
Editorial Design Print
quality IAG in union learning projects
Martin Moriarty, Astrid Stubbs wave.coop Creasey Flood
09/04/3K
www.learningservices.org.uk www.tuc.org.uk
“Good quality IAG is absolutely central to the development of workplace learning projects.”
Photos: above © Martin Jenkinson below © Paul Herrmann
foreword
What’s the best course for me? Where can I go to do my learning? How do I take the next step in my career development? That’s why dozens of union branches, learning initiatives and career advice partnerships have worked towards and achieved the matrix Quality Standard, a process which ensures the continuous development of their IAG services. All of them have benefited from the help TUC Learning Services has been able to provide through our national IAG project, with funding from the Learning and Skills Council. With the considerable expertise we have amassed in recent years, we’re able to support union projects working towards the standard by training their project workers and ULRs in IAG, preparing them for the assessment and supporting their development beyond it.
These are just some of the questions facing learners in the workplace – and it’s to their union learning representatives that they turn for the answers in the form of information, advice and guidance. Good quality IAG is absolutely central to the development of workplace learning projects. It’s what ensures learners find the course best suited to them; start at the right level; and study at a time and place that’s most convenient.
The dozen case studies in this folder show what can be achieved with the help of TUC Learning Services, local IAG Partnerships and the Employment NTO, which is now responsible for the development of the matrix Standard. I hope that they help inspire projects throughout the union learning world to continue to further improve the all-important IAG they offer their learners.
Liz Smith national officer TUC Learning Services
“The whole matrix process was really positive. It supported us in our development, in setting up a quality framework and in working together as a team.”
Photos © John Jones
case study
Partners in progress And the verdict on its work? “Effective partnerships have been developed with a range of providers, professional groups and agencies to ensure that their clients receive the most appropriate training and learning opportunities," said the matrix report on the centre. Building on this success, a small group of learners was allowed time off to undertake a maths and English programme as a pilot, with the support of CityBuild management.
Success with learning projects has come thick and fast in Newcastle – and it’s all down to working together. Newcastle City Council credits its acclaimed partnership approach to workplace learning involving its trade unions for gaining matrix. Demand for learning led to the opening of the Brinkburn learning centre, a learndirect access point within the Trade Union Hub, offering free computer and basic skills courses supported by centre staff.
The pilot received second year funding from the Learning for All Fund and over 158 learners have now taken up the offer of courses, with the project receiving national acclaim. Management and unions have now launched the Learning Council Project across the whole authority, which builds on the good practice and partnerships already established through earlier initiatives. The project has been able to to encourage people to sign up for learning with funding from eQ8, the local Employer Training Pilot which had already financed the CityBuild Skills for Life scheme.
case study “The inspection was quite rigorous but we particularly liked the emphasis on user feedback, which is really important to us. “Since gaining matrix, we continue to receive support from the network, setting targets for continuous service improvement. One of the Brinkburn staff now has Level 3 NVQ IAG, provided by the network, and we intend to send more staff to do Level 2 – eQ8 funding could be available for this. “Through eQ8 the City Council has released staff for basic skills who would not otherwise have had release,” explains Felicity Mendelson, project manager. Newcastle City Council is now committed to the development of essential skills for all staff and will continue to work with eQ8 to reach its targets.
“The whole matrix process was really positive. As a new centre it supported us in our development, in setting up a quality framework and in working together as a team. The process is ongoing – continuous service improvement leading up to the next assessment."
The project is drawing in additional funding for workplace-based learning ‘kiosks‘ providing computer access and basic skills support. “Even before Brinkburn Centre opened we were a member of Tyne and Wear IAG Network. This was really useful, as it holds regular meetings of all members for information sharing etc,” says Felicity. “Once we decided to go for matrix, we talked to a quality adviser who supports providers through the process. He visited us regularly while we were working towards the standard, which was very useful as we were a new centre. That helped us in our development, quality framework and team working.
The Brinkburn Centre was officially opened in May 2002 and became a learndirect access point in November 2002, offering free computer and basic skills courses. Since then, learning opportunities in the city have flourished. The Learning Council Project was awarded matrix in May 2003 and receives continued support from the Tyne and Wear IAG Network.
Contact: Felicity Mendelson project manager
[email protected] 0191 278 1946/7
”The passionate way in which they promote and encourage learning opportunities is infectious and has spread.”
Photos © Paul Herrmann
case study
Firm foundations Bargaining 4 Skills (B4S), Manchester City Council’s award winning partnership between unions and management in the Environmental and Operational Services Division, is making a daily difference to the lives of thousands of staff. B4S aims to supply information, advice, guidance and support to employees on lifelong learning issues. That means more than 4,500 people working for the division are able to access anything from essential skills, updating courses on literacy, numeracy and IT as well as ESOL and multi-skilling courses in bricklaying, plastering, block paving, plumbing, joinery and electrical installation.
Bricklaying, plastering and plumbing are among the many lifelong skills now on offer to Manchester City Council staff.
Through the two B4S learning centres in the city, the partnership also offers access to learndirect courses, which are free to employees and their families. "We live in an ever-changing world and we have to be prepared to update our skills and knowledge and keep abreast of technology and legislation that may affect our employment and employability. ULRs have a unique relationship with their membership because they have their trust, confidence and interests at heart,” says B4S co-ordinator Peter Shepherd.
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"All ULRs ensure confidentiality and are committed to the initiative. We are from different unions but in the network meeting and where B4S is concerned, we are all TUC ULRs who will offer advice and support and also protect the lifelong learning interests of every individual involved. I feel proud of the group and the initiative." One beneficial spin-off has been the steady improvement in industrial relations: "Since the inception of B4S in July 2000, it has not only helped recognise and meet individual employees’ needs but has also helped with industrial relations in some sections of the department," he says.
As if that were not enough, the team has also been recognised with a Manchester City Council Award of Excellence for continuous improvement. And as if to prove it is constantly improving, the project hopes to open a third learning centre in the town hall which will allow thousands more staff to acquire the learning habit. In addition it is targeting the division’s 500-plus part-time workers, which will involve finding ways to support staff who not only work many different shifts but who may also have issues with essential skills and/or have English as a second language.
B4S was awarded the matrix quality standard in 2002. The assessment report gave glowing praise to the B4S team: “It is evident that the success of the project is a result of the enthusiasm and commitment of the team.The passionate way in which they promote and encourage learning opportunities is infectious and has spread not only to the strong network of learning representatives but to those who have benefited from the scheme, particularly workers on the shop floor, who are now actively involved in encouraging and assisting others.”
Bargaining 4 Skills was established in September 2000, covering staff in the Environmental and Operational Services Division of Manchester City Council. The project was awarded matrix in 2002 and is now looking to extend services with a new learning centre reaching out to thousands more staff.
Contact: Pete Shepherd coordinator
[email protected]
0161 908 5811
“Gaining matrix has helped ensure a higher quality of management and service delivery for the benefit of members and potential members.”
Photos © Martin Jenkinson
case study
Exchange students Most people are given information and advice about computer courses, particularly learndirect computer courses, since the Exchange began delivering IAG in 2003. The LLE’s IAG service uses a number of information sources that help clients to decide on what they want to do in terms of learning, training, finding a new job, careers and redundancy support. These sources include websites like Worktrain and learndirect Futures, career books such as Occupations, and contacts with partner organisations. The LLE gained matrix in October 2003 with funding for the accreditation provided by the TUC national IAG project.
Gaining matrix has helped a new TGWU centre improve its services to learners in Leeds. The Leeds Learning Exchange at the TGWU’s new Northern regional office is open to TGWU members, their families and potential members and also supports other learning centres.
“Being partners of the Leeds Network helps to get LLE staff members to meet other members of the local learning community at network and steering group meetings. Because the LLE has a regional agenda, it is also developing partnerships with adult education providers and other IAG networks apart from those in Leeds,” says regional education officer Mick Bond.
case study
“Gaining matrix has helped the LLE ensure a higher quality of management and service delivery for the benefit of members and potential members. It verifies the standard of our administration system and makes us more professional as a team. ”Indeed, it demonstrates the success of the centre. However, it also reminds us that striving for improvement is an ongoing process and that we cannot afford to rest on our laurels. “The delivery of life skills courses to TGWU members is a key LLE aim, and the LLE’s appointment of a life skills tutor is expected to rapidly progress this aim over the next year and beyond.
“Apart from the excellent advice that it provides, LLE staff and ULRs are also given the opportunity to gain qualifications in information and advice to adult learners, basic skills awareness and CV writing. ”
The Leeds Learning Exchange opened on November 15 2002 and is one of a number of Trade Union Hub learndirect centres. It was awarded matrix in October 2003 with funding for accreditation paid for by the TUC national IAG project.
Contact: Mick Bond manager
[email protected] 0113 236 4830
"Having the matrix standard means we are able to demonstrate that we are serious about learning and that we deal with learners’ aspirations in a responsible and professional manner." Photos © Martin Jenkinson
case study
In the fast lane Recently the branch has been promoting its Skills for Life agreements, which provide a framework for employers and ULRs to develop a systematic approach to learning, with the emphasis firmly on building capacity in the workplace. The agreements work well when they are underpinned by a genuine partnership approach that harnesses the resources of local training providers, vocational training providers and local learning and skills councils.
Taking learning direct to people via a roadshow has put the GPMU streets ahead. The GPMU Central Midlands Branch was one of the first unions to gain matrix accreditation for its information, advice and guidance to adult learners. Little wonder when you find out that the standard applies to the branch’s Learning Zone initiative, which provides a learning centre at the branch office as well as a range of other learning services, including a learning lorry for employees in the print and graphical communications sector.
"We try to adopt an approach that recognises that each company is different. We spend a long time listening to our ULRs and the employer before we enter an agreement and start developing learning facilities onsite,” explains branch training and education manager, Dave Jeffery. “Having the matrix standard means we are able to demonstrate that we are serious about learning and that we deal with learners’ aspirations in a responsible and professional manner,” he says. Dave and his colleagues Julia Laird and Judith Alcock recently took Derbyshire LSC’s Learning Lorry to Amcor Flexible Packaging’s Crompton Road site in Ilkeston, Derbyshire.
case study
This gave them the opportunity to meet employees off different shifts and to offer an IAG service on site. The Learning Lorry is part of Derbyshire LSC’s strategy for promoting their Employer Training Pilot Valu£able Skills. It is equipped with 12 laptops with internet access and provides a comfortable mobile learning facility. "It is important that we take learning directly to people and it is an approach that we encourage our partners in training provision to adopt. It is difficult for our members, a lot of whom work shifts, to attend college in the same time slot week after week. Things are getting better. Colleges are more imaginative and flexible. But it has to be at the forefront of our minds when we are giving advice to potential learners," Dave says. "It is helpful to be a member of the various local IAG partnerships. In doing so we can be confident that we are pointing people in the right direction."
The GPMU Central Midlands Branch was one of the first unions to gain matrix. The standard applies to the branch’s Learning Zone initiative, which provides a learning centre at the branch office and a range of other learning services for employees in the print and graphical communications sector.
Contact: Dave Jeffery training and education manager
[email protected] 0115 958 5688
"Gaining matrix was fabulous for us because it opened the door to involvement with IAG, with resources and people who could help us."
Photos © John Jones
case study
Northern lights The project got up and running with the union in Northumberland and at that point Pam was the only project worker. But with 350 learners taking courses mainly in computers, matrix was gained within just six months, accompanied by much praise for the project’s equality of access. The following year, the project spread to Tyne and Wear and from there to Cleveland and now Durham, in the process changing its name to the North East Fire Brigades and FBU Partnership Learning Project. So successful has it been that it is now being used as a model of best practice as it rolls out nationally across the union, which in turn will seek matrix accreditation.
Success of a regional learning project has spread like wildfire across the FBU.
"Gaining matrix was fabulous for us because it opened the door to involvement with IAG which is the best thing we ever did. It opened the door to resources and to the people who could help us, for instance with resources for a learner who is disabled," says Pam.
When the learning services offered to firefighters and their families in the north-east were recognised with the matrix standard for their quality and excellence, project manager Pam Walton little expected it would be used as a model for the whole union.
Benefits of matrix include becoming a member of the local IAG partnership, information sharing, plus financial help with courses, she says.
case study
It also offers the chance for an input at regular monthly meetings with the local LSC, which in turn provides resources, for example with promotional materials, flyers and so on. "We would go for matrix again. It’s an excellent benchmark and when you are dealing with the FBU where people have staunch training backgrounds you can’t just walk in and wing it – you have to have a quality mark behind you for them to respect you and have the credence behind what you are offering." Pam also praises Chief Fire Officer for Northumberland Brian Hessler as a major partner in the scheme."Without his backing this would not have happened," she adds.
The North East Fire Brigades and FBU Partnership Learning Project was awarded matrix for its services in 2002 and is now being rolled out as a model of excellence across the whole union.
Contact: Pam Walton project manager
[email protected] or [email protected] 07876 583132
“The government’s Skills Strategy states that all LSC funded IAG providers will be required to be accredited against the matrix standard so, once again, unions are ahead of the game.”
Photos © Sean Hernon
case study
Cornish cream
From learning to make Christmas cards to life changing computer courses, hundreds of Cornish employees are on the learning ladder thanks to strong union partners.
Ros Prigg, Usdaw ULR at Tesco’s in Penzance, got to work straight away after completing her TUC ULR training course. She gently persuaded 20 colleague to register for an IT course, which resulted in each developing IT skills to enable them to design their own Christmas cards just in time for the course to finish in December. Some 13 out of the original 20 learners have now enrolled and started a CLAIT course, which will give each of them a Level 2 qualification in ICT. Their story is just one example of how, in a little over two and half years, TUC Learning Services in Cornwall has seen remarkable progress on the learning front. From a very low base, the Objective 1 supported Project has helped to create a network of 80 ULRs and offered the opportunity for over 1,000 union members to benefit from learning. It’s also been involved in 11 ULF projects, five Learning Works for All projects and one GPMU/LSC project. Four major conferences have been held and a union voice has been heard on important partnership bodies throughout the county.
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In Cornwall, trade unions are now seen as key partners in promoting workforce development and the learning agenda. "The success of the project has been very encouraging. Ordinary union members are bringing a real enthusiasm to learning and helping to upgrade skills and transform lives," says co-ordinator Geoff Hale. TUC Learning Services Cornwall gained matrix accreditation for the delivery of IAG from its team to its network of ULRs. “We are very proud to have achieved the standard, especially as we are the first organisation in Cornwall to have done so!“ says Geoff. “The benefit of matrix to our team has not just shown areas where our processes work well, but also ones that we can improve upon, and as the accreditation takes place every two years, it means that we can’t rest on our laurels and assume that everything we do is fine! “Having matrix means that we are now full partners in GO4, the local IAG Partnership in Devon and Cornwall, gaining access to free training for the ULRs provided by GO4, if they require it. “We also sit on the strategic planning group, the key decision-makers in the partnership. The LSC, local providers, Jobcentre Plus and Connexions also sit on this group, enabling our profile to be raised among such important groups.
“The main beneficiaries from matrix accreditation are our network of ULRs and their members, knowing that the information and advice that we give them will be of a high standard. Even if we can’t answer their query, we will endeavour to signpost them onto somebody who can. “The government Skills Strategy states that all LSC funded IAG providers will be required to be accredited against the matrix standard so it would appear that, once again, unions are ahead of the game and that we mean business and should be taken seriously when it comes to workforce development.”
April 2003 saw TUC Learning Services Cornwall gain matrix for the delivery of IAG to its network of union learning representatives. The project is now entering a new phase with the support of the TUC’s EQUAL Project, addressing fundamental issues, including: how the work of ULRs can be best sustained; how the need to develop ULR skills can be taken forward; and how unions can be more effective in promoting learning within a rural population.
Contact: Geoff Hale coordinator
[email protected] 01209 611604
“"Branch members can come to the learners’ surgeries held every Friday in the branch office and discuss any aspect of learning, from what course to go on to how to fund it.”
Photos © John Jones
case study
Caring for the community Although the project originally started at ready meals manufacturer Fenland Foods, it’s now expanded to include all the sites within the community branch boundaries, particularly the two other major workplaces where the union has recognition, poultry processing firm GW Padley and the Vaculux mouldings plant. “We’ve been running a Saturday morning literacy and numeracy class in the branch office, and none of the learners come from Fenland Foods, they’re all from other workplaces, so it is now definitely a community-based project,” says branch training and development co-ordinator Mark Bartlett.
The GMB Grantham Community branch offers members and potential members the chance for personal and professional development through its four-year-old working learning project.
It’s also clearly a successful project: one of the GMB members on the Saturday course is Margaret Leeton, who won the East Midlands learner of the year award from TUC Learning Services earlier this year; and the tutor is a union member whom Mark encouraged onto a City & Guilds basic skills teaching course at Grantham College. Branch members can come to the learners’ surgeries held every Friday in the branch office and discuss any aspect of learning, from what course to go on to how to fund it.
case study “At Fenland Foods, we deal with an agency in Lincoln who supply workers, most of whom are non-EU nationals, so we’re trying to set up an English for Speakers of Other Languages course for them,” Mark says. “We’re also able to refer them on for further help to the IAG Partnership and the Lincoln Learning Shop learndirect centre.” It can take time to build up trust with workers who can often be worried about their residency status. “We let them know about the sessions in the branch newsletter which we produce every six to eight weeks, we send posters round to the workplaces, and there’s word of mouth, as well,” he says. But the project has also reached out to dozens of other potential learners by offering information and advice to people visiting the local shopping centre one day during Adult Learners’ Week as part of a Lincolnshire & Rutland IAG Partnership initiative. “It’s getting bigger and bigger all the time – last year, there were only around nine organisations taking part, this year there were 14,” Mark says. “Grantham College, Yes 4 Learning, the Jobcentre, Action for Employment, the local library – they were all encouraging people to get enrolled on courses, whereas we focused on learning in the workplace.” With agricultural and food industry jobs attracting considerable numbers of asylum-seekers and refugees arriving into the area, Mark is keen to offer information and advice about learning opportunities that could help the migrant workers.
The branch is aiming to recruit a couple of union learning representatives from among the migrant worker groups. “If we can crack that, we’ll really prove that we’re a union which cares for people, regardless of where they come from,” Mark says.
The Grantham GMB branch originally launched its workplace learning project Recipe 4 Success in partnership between the union and the ready meals supplier Fenland Foods in 2000. The branch was one of the first union projects to secure matrix accreditation in autumn 2002. Although the branch secured backing from the government’s Union Learning Fund when it was first set up, it currently receives no substantial external funding.
Contact: Mark Bartlett GMB Grantham Community branch Training and development co-ordinator
01476 591870
“With vocational training a major issue in the industry, the centre has been offering courses in industry standard software at reduced rates to GPMU members.”
Photos © Martin Jenkinson
case study
Full colour learning The centre, which secured matrix accreditation in 2003, has helped over 200 members brush up their reading, writing, maths and IT skills and press on with their professional development. But because it’s open to everyone, not just members of the union, it’s also been able to help dozens of nonmembers access learning opportunities as well. The centre concentrates on Skills for Life and IT courses, according to co-ordinator Dave Mitchell, who started in post in May 2004, having been a union learning representative at a local print firm for a couple of years.
The Leeds & Central Yorkshire branch of print union GPMU offers a full information, advice and guidance service to everyone using the learning centre in the branch office.
The Skills for Life and introductory IT courses run on Thursdays, while the more advanced IT courses are taught on Mondays, but learners are also free to drop in to use the facilities at any other time during office hours. The centre takes promotion seriously. “It’s the marketing that makes sure people know we exist, and that we have facilities here that they can use,” Dave says. “If they don’t know we’re here, we can’t help them.” Once they do come through the doors, they can talk to Dave about what they’re interested in learning, and he can suggest what they need to do next – whether that’s a course at the centre or study with a partner organisation or a provider from the Leeds IAG Network.
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If they sign up to do a course at the centre, they take a Skills for Life assessment screening to check what level they’re working at first. But if they need to study elsewhere, Dave is able to help point them in the right direction. “Sometimes people come in wanting to do plastering, or HGV driving, and we can source some courses for them through our contacts and resources,” he says. With vocational training a major issue in an industry where too many companies plug their skills gaps by poaching from the competition, the centre has been offering courses in industry standard software including Adobe PhotoShop, Quark XPress and Microsoft PowerPoint on a Saturday morning. The courses, which are subsidised by the GPMU, are available to both members and non-members, although members are charged a discounted rate.
The network has been able to provide a lot of practical support to the centre, through meetings, courses and resources – Dave did a dyslexia awareness course through the network – and it’s also funding him through his Level 3 NVQ in IAG jointly with the branch.
The Leeds & Central Yorkshire GPMU learning centre opened in 2002 in the branch offices in Leeds, as part of the branch’s Life Skills Through Online Learning project, with money from the government’s Union Learning Fund. It secured matrix accreditation in 2003 and has received support from the TUC Building Opportunities through Workplace Learning (BOWL) Equal project.
Contact: Dave Mitchell learning centre co-ordinator
[email protected] 0113 243 6687
“Offering the IAG service has helped promote learning at the city and county councils, especially among people wanting courses in English for Speakers of Other Languages.”
Photos © Roy Peters
case study
Working in partnership “We’re used to partnership working in the GMB, it’s part of our ethos,” explains branch equality officer Dave Towers. “It’s a lot easier being a partner than someone on the outside knocking on the door trying to get in: it’s like the difference between being invited to a party and having to gatecrash!” In the first 12 months of the new scheme, 280 staff have attended open days about the training, and 70 have signed up for the corporate programme on essential skills and 22 for communication skills. “We’re keen to make people aware that these courses are available: it’s word-of-mouth from colleagues, or people saying ‘Why don’t we do this together?’ that’s usually most effective,” he says.
The GMB is working with Leicester city and county councils to promote Skills for Life courses for staff through the government’s Employer Training Pilot initiative.
“Our priority is supporting members who need Skills for Life, communication skills and ESOL courses – that’s where the effort’s going and that’s where it’s most rewarding.” The branch is also continuing to offer its information, advice and guidance service to members – which is proving particularly useful at a time when both city and county councils are undergoing further restructuring.
case study One of the first union projects to gain the matrix quality standard in autumn 2002, the branch has been busy embedding the principles in its information, advice and guidance work and developing strong links with Gain. “Our local IAG Partnership is excellent and we have full involvement,” Dave explains. “We attend their meetings and seminars, and I’m on their quality group which builds links with all the other partners.” The branch is also regularly called upon to share its experience with newer projects: Dave has recently helped Midlands TUC Learning Services support a Skills for Life initiative at precision rubber firm Dunlop. “It’s been a busy four years, but it’s been a success story,” says Dave.
“Local government is going though a period of change, departments are being reorganised and people’s jobs are at risk,” Dave says. “But we’ve got expert advice available that can help people formulate a CV, or think about their skills and get support to apply for internal jobs or try elsewhere, which is one of the essential things that we’re all about – supporting our members to stay in work.” Most of the signposting work is done from the branch office. “We’ve got all the contacts with Leicester College, with the lifelong learning department at the city council and with Gain, the Leicester and Leicestershire IAG Partnership,” Dave says. Offering the IAG service has helped promote learning at the authorities, especially among people wanting courses in English for Speakers of Other Languages, Dave reckons. “We had some members who came forward needing ESOL courses and we were able to help them study at Leicester College,” Dave says. “The trouble was that when it came to gaining employment, they had no experience, so we encouraged ESOL students to come into the branch office and work one or two days a week and now two of them have already left us because that experience we were able to offer them has helped them get jobs elsewhere.”
The GMB in Leicester kicked off its lifelong learning work four years ago with Leicester Learning Links, a programme of reading, writing, maths and IT courses for staff at the city and county councils, with money from the government’s Union Learning Fund. The branch is now continuing that work in a joint initiative with the local authority employers and the Learning and Skills Council, using money from the government’s Employer Training Pilot scheme to help staff access free Skills for Life and training up to Level 2. The branch achieved matrix accreditation in 2002.
Contact: Dave Towers equality officer GMB L37 Leicester Services branch
[email protected] 0116 223 4122
“The project is able to help staff with their personal development plans, which are being introduced for everyone on the NHS payroll.”
Photos © Paul Herrmann
case study
Skills transfusion The project operates right across the trust’s three main sites: the Royal Lancaster Infirmary in the south, Furness General Hospital to the far west and Westmorland General Hospital in Kendal to the north. Since June 2003, there’s been a team leader covering each of the sites: Edwena Mildner at RLI, Sue Brunton at Furness and Sarah Booth at Westmorland (the initiative was originally handled by a single project worker). “It’s been easier having one team leader on each site,” Sue reckons. “It’s good to have different people who are familiar with the different learning cultures in each area.”
The Morecambe Bay lifelong learning project is now in its fourth year of helping health service workers improve their reading, writing and IT skills.
The project aims to offer broadly similar learning opportunities on each site, but there are variations. “We do try to offer as many of the same things on each site, but we do make allowances for the different cultures which means some people want different things,” Sue explains. The current trio organised a series of roadshows to introduce themselves to staff when they took over and let them know about the courses and support available through the project. All three of them attended each roadshow, as did many of the ULRs, and representatives from partner organisations were also on hand to help whet people’s appetite for learning.
case study The trio find the New Frontiers network meetings very useful for keeping in touch with what’s available. “Sarah goes to the south Lakeland meeting and I cover the Furness meeting, and we share information about what’s going on,” says Sue. Network meetings are definitely not talking shops. “If someone comes to me needing advice on changing careers, I won’t be able to help them, but I will know someone through New Frontiers because of meeting everyone at the network meetings, so I can signpost them on to that person,” she says. Anyone looking for information or advice about what’s available can turn up at one of the weekly drop-in clinics which are run at each site and advertised in the project’s bi-monthly newsletter, on hospital noticeboards and through a global staff email. Staff can still approach their ULR about IAG, of course: and if the rep isn’t sure about anything, they can put the person in touch with the appropriate team leader. “Offering IAG at the workplace is good, because it’s where people spend a lot of their time and they often wouldn’t know where to go to get information otherwise,” Sue says. Now that everyone on the NHS payroll should have a personal development plan, the project is able to offer staff help on that score. The ten-strong team of union learning representatives meets with the team leaders once a month to keep everyone up to date with new developments, and one of the team leaders also attends the bi-monthly steering group meetings with representatives from all the unions, the providers, New Frontiers and the project manager.
Launched in October 2000 with money from the government’s Union Learning Fund, the Morecambe Bay Lifelong Learning Project is helping many of the 5,000-plus staff with reading, writing, maths and computer skills. The partnership comprises all the unions at the trust, including Unison, Amicus, the Royal College of Nursing and the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists, the employers and local education and IAG providers. The project achieved matrix accreditation in 2003.
Contacts: Sarah Booth [email protected] Sue Brunton [email protected] Edwena Mildner [email protected]
“The project offers one-toone guidance sessions and an email advice service delivered by a 27-strong team of working media industry freelancers who have been trained as careers advisers.”
Photos © Philip Wolmuth
case study
Making it in TV
Skillsformedia is a strategic information, advice and guidance service for the audio-visual industries, developed through a partnership between Skillset sector skills council and film and broadcasting union Bectu.
And there’s also the skillsformedia website, a massive resource full of information about working in the TV and film sector.
The service runs a telephone helpline using 30 specially trained learndirect advisers which people can call for information about developing their professional skills or moving on within the industry.
Feedback from service users is extremely positive. Freelance TV producer Lisa Williams Callaway, for instance, was out of work when she rang skillsformedia, and the adviser at the other end of the phone was able to set her up with a one-to-one session to map out a strategy to make her more marketable for the jobs she wanted.
It also offers one-to-one guidance sessions and an email advice service delivered by a 27-strong team of working media industry freelancers who have been trained as careers advisers (five of whom have recently joined the service to provide specific expertise in film).
The initiative was originally launched as a careers advice project by Bectu in 1999, with money from the government's Union Learning Fund, and then expanded into the current service through a partnership with Skillset begun in 2001. “We work very closely with Bectu,” explains client services co-ordinator Sasha Kamenetski. “We provide redundancy support in conjunction with union officials, and Bectu members accessing our services receive a 50 per cent discount.”
case study Skillsformedia has recently raised its profile with all the IAG Partnerships around the country through an awareness-raising project with funding from the Learning and Skills Council, which proved useful, according to careers co-ordinator Adrian Tolson. “We surveyed the Partnerships to let them know what we offer and find out what they needed to know from us, and quite a few told us they hadn’t realised the range of services we provide,” he explains. The service is currently exploring the possibility of providing formal follow-up to the on-to-one guidance sessions, something it’s keen to do in the light of feedback from service users, and also wants to run more personal development workshops for careers advisers.
“Talking things over with skillsformedia opened up a much wider variety of options and choices than I had previously conceived, and I feel more optimistic about my future career than I have in a long while,” she says.
Skillsformedia was originally launched to provide one-to-one guidance to experienced freelancers in the TV and film industries.
The face-to-face sessions are open to people over 18, who have work experience in the audio-visual industries or a media-related degree, which can help people break into a sector where it’s notoriously difficult even to get your foot in the door.
It’s now developed into a strategic information, advice and guidance service with a broader remit linked to Skillset's wider workforce development agenda and the government’s Skills Strategy with the help of money from the government's Union Learning Fund.
Budding scriptwriter Jason Mann, for example, was able to get a free interview with a working scriptwriter by calling the skillsformedia helpline – a fantastic opportunity for a 20-year-old learning his craft while working in a cinema.
The project secured matrix accreditation in 2003, with funding from the TUC national IAG project.
“He proceeded to give me a load of detailed advice that could only come from somebody (like him) who had actually been through the experience and walked the walk,” Jason explains. “I’ve always had faith in my ability, but never really understood the mechanics of the process of getting my work in front of the right people – now I do.”
Contacts: Sasha Kamenetski client services co-ordinator
[email protected] Adrian Tolson careers co-ordinator
[email protected]
"The process of preparing for the matrix assessment has convinced me of its value: I'm a real convert these days!"
Photos © Janina Struk
case study
Class act
The trade union studies centre at Lewisham College in south-east London became the first in the country to secure matrix accreditation for the quality of its information, advice and guidance in 2003. The centre offers a wide range of courses to shop stewards, safety reps and learning reps to a range of union members in the south-east of the capital and beyond. As well as running courses on the Deptford campus, the centre also supports workplace projects at Belmarsh Prison, Canary Wharf and South Central Trains (a supported centre at the TGWU-ACTS office on the nearby Greenwich Council site went independent in early in 2004).
Sometimes it’s union officials who contact the centre to see what they can provide, sometimes it’s workplace reps keen to kick-start learning on the ground, and sometimes it’s individual members – or even nonmembers – who get in touch to find out what’s on offer. “Someone might ring up saying they want to do the health and safety one-year course but it turns out that they haven’t done stage one or two, so they don’t have the knowledge about how all that fits together, which we can help them with,” explains Rossina Harris, trade union studies programme area leader at the college. “And sometimes people aren’t sure about what they want: they might be a new ULR and we can advise them where to start in terms of progression and make sure they’re on the right course.” Whether the initial approach is by phone, via email or simply by someone dropping in, every contact is logged together with details of what IAG has been provided. “We keep a record of every phone call and every email that comes in and everyone who drops into the office, and then we do a sample phone round of 50 per cent of them every three months to see whether they’ve followed up on what we’ve told them,” explains Rossina.
case study
“The ring-round is great, especially because we can then identify the people who didn’t get what they wanted, so we can make sure they do second time around; and if someone hasn’t been able to take a course for some reason, we can let them know when it’s next on, and that helps keep the numbers up.” A breakdown of the survey results shows that around 90 per cent have got what they wanted first time, with some of the remainder taking a course with another college or through their union instead, and some being prevented for personal reasons or by uncooperative managers. It’s a system the centre put in place while preparing for their matrix assessment. “We kept records before, but we keep them meticulously now, and it’s proved very useful, because we’ve got the figures to prove what we’re saying!” Rossina says. Working towards accreditation turned out well, she says. “When I first heard about the Quality Standard, I didn’t want to know, but the process of preparing for the assessment convinced me of its value: you could say I’m a real convert these days!”
It’s also given the centre vital experience of its own to use on its IAG course for union learning representatives. “We’ve recently run one for Remploy reps where I was able to pass on everything we’d learned in terms of matrix, the Code of Principles and so on,” Rossina says. The centre is set to help two of its staff gain an NVQ Level 2 in IAG through the London IAG Partnership in the autumn, another benefit from joining the network, which has also promoted the centre’s IAG courses in its own publications.
Lewisham College trade union studies centre offers a range of customised courses for shop stewards, health and safety reps and union learning representatives. It secured matrix accreditation in autumn 2003.
Contact: Rossina Harris trade union studies programme area leader Lewisham College
[email protected] 020 8694 3424
Right directions Trades Union Congress Congress House Great Russell Street London WC1B 3LS 020 7636 4030 [email protected] www.tuc.org.uk TUC Learning Services The Cotton Exchange Suite 506-510 Old Hall Street Liverpool L3 9UD 0151 236 7678 www.learningservices.org.uk
Editorial Design Print
quality IAG in union learning projects
Martin Moriarty, Astrid Stubbs wave.coop Creasey Flood
09/04/3K
www.learningservices.org.uk www.tuc.org.uk
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