Our future - it's in our hands

Sep 24 2007 The Journal

A CAMPAIGN has been launched which will have a major impact on the way people think, feel and act towards learning and skills. The Skills Campaign, which will run for at least three years, encompasses every aspect of learning.

The campaign was launched in the North East by former England goalkeeper Peter Shilton, who visited the region to encourage individuals and businesses to back the campaign and spread the word about the importance of skills.

Business leaders and individuals in the region placed their handprints on a giant poster, with the word skills written on it, as a sign of their commitment to the campaign and support for the overarching theme – Our future. It’s in our hands.

The campaign, which is managed by the LSC but involves partners and providers from across the whole of the learning and further education sector, is initially focusing on reaching adults and employers who may not traditionally learn or train their staff.

Regional director of LSC North-East Chris Roberts said: “The Skills Campaign aims to create a belief in people that they have the capability and drive to learn better skills and by doing so, improve their working life, both now and in the future.

“This is the biggest ever drive by the Government to change the way people think, feel and act towards learning and skills and we are hoping it will bring huge benefits to individuals, employers and the North-East economy.

“It is more important now than ever before to have the skills to make us both personally fulfilled and employable. Everyone has the potential to succeed.”

A major part of the skills campaign aimed at employers is the jointly funded LSC and One NorthEast Train to Gain service. Train to Gain is designed to improve the nation’s skills and urges employers to take control of their businesses’ future by investing in skills. Employers are put in touch with impartial skills brokers who will assess their training needs and come up with an action plan to meet those needs.

The LSC in the North-East celebrated the one-year anniversary of the launch of Train to Gain this month. Coronation Street’s Roy and Hayley, actors David Neilson and Julie Hesmondhalgh, who launched the service last year and who are keen supporters of it, were in the region attending the “birthday party” and visiting employers. Next month, the focus will be on targeting employers in the sectors highlighted in the Regional Economic Strategy, concentrating on those who have not previously engaged with Train to Gain.

“Our future. It’s in our hands” is a message as important for young people as it is for adults and employers. A summer campaign took place in the region last month to encourage young people to stay in learning and achieve qualifications. The campaign focused on the Education Maintenance Allowance, a grant of up to £30 a week available to 16- to 19-year-olds to help them stay in learning.

Adults in the region have also been encouraged never to stop learning, with help from the Adult Learning Grant, which pays up to £30 a week to help those 19 and over, studying full-time and for their first full qualification of five good GCSEs or two A-levels or equivalent. Areas in the region with low Level 2 achievement have been targeted with teams hitting shopping centres, factories and other workplaces typically employing part-time staff with scope for developing their skills.

The aim was to get up to 1,000 people below Level 2 interested in going back to learning and honing their skills.

Information

FOR more information about the Skills Campaign and for help and advice about the learning options available for all, contact 0800 011 30 30 or visit www.lsc.gov.uk/inourhands

More information about Train to Gain can be obtained by contacting 0800 015 55 45 or visiting www.traintogain.gov.uk