training


Doing our bit for vocational training


gareth edwards is education director at The Springboard Charity


hLF announces £15m heritage skills boost


An additional £15m worth of funding will be invested in heritage skills as part of the Heritage Lottery Fund’s (HLF) Skills for the Future scheme. The grants will support


GCSE fiasco, or treat myself to a celebra- tory drink as I review Springboard’s positive contribution to vocational education. As a former teacher I understand and


A


sympathise with teachers’ outrage against the Ofqual accusation that the profession ‘marked-up’ GCSE English coursework. Most educators I’ve spoken to think that they followed all the exam board criteria on marking and attended training as laid out by the regulator. All this seems a far cry from a few years


ago when schools were being urged, and congratulated, as they made excellent progress in teaching the three Cs, cook- ing, communication and culture. Tankfully, Te Springboard Charity


has made huge strides on all these fronts with its nationally recognised FutureChef Programme regularly getting over 8,000 young people aged 12-16 across the UK involved. Springboard recognises the vital importance of learning for life and how valuable practical, hands-on skills are. More businesses recognise the impor-


tance of signing up to Springboard’s INSPIRE work experience kitemark and are reaping the rewards for their investment with the charity. Retention rates are better, staff come motivated and knowing what to expect in the sector and, most importantly, they find a career that offers them a real pathway to job satisfaction. It’s not just students who can benefit


either, as our Into Work programmes focus on engaging with those who need our help most – whatever their barriers on the jour- ney to paid employment. Springboard offers pre-employment


training, work placements, interviews and mentoring once individuals are in work. Tis support works to ensure the transition from economic inactivity to the ranks of the employed and develops continuity for both employers and employee.


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s Halloween slips away into the shortening nights of November I‘m not sure whether to keep screaming about the current


work-based training in a wide range of skills that are needed to look aſter museum and archive collections, as well as equipping people to lead education and outreach programmes, manage volun- teers and use digital technology. Te new £15m investment adds to the £26.8m already dis- tributed by HLF via the Skills for the Future scheme since 2009. Dame Jenny Abramsky, chair of HLF, said


the initiative will have a lasting impact on the sector and the wider economy. “Tese grants – building on what has already been achieved since 2009 – are designed to


Grants will support skills needed in museum collection maintenance


address the shortage of skills and training opportunities and will provide hundreds more training places,” she said. “One of our aims is to build organisational


resilience within the sector. Ensuring people have the skills to look aſter our heritage is an important part of that. We know this works and that’s why we are making a further £15m investment.” Details: http://lei.sr?a=k3O2T


£5m for Welsh apprenticeship scheme


Welsh deputy minister for skills, Jeff Cuthbert, has announced a further £5m funding for addi- tional apprenticeship places for newly recruited young people aged 16-24. Speaking at the National Training Federation Wales conference in Llandudno, Cuthbert also set a challenge for the Work Based Learning Network to engage with those employers who do not already offer apprenticeships and find more opportunities for the young people of Wales. He said: “In today’s market an apprentice-


ship holds as much value as a place at a top university, but it is only by raising the value and profile of apprenticeships that they will gain the parity of esteem with more traditional academic routes.” Julian Leybourne, chief executive of ICON


Training and chair of CIMSPA Wales, says the announcement is a “golden opportunity” for the leisure industry. He said: “Tis announcement – alongside


the recent change in status for sport as a high priority sector – will provide an ideal oppor- tunity for employers to harness the power of


Te scheme is a “golden opportunity” for leisure


apprenticeships to make viable business invest- ments with a high rate of return. “Jeff Cuthbert gave a challenge to the


work-based learning network to engage with employers who have not been aware of or committed to the benefit of apprenticeships.” Details: http://lei.sr?a=L3a0g


FIE launches app to support fitness courses FIE will make all of its course theory con-


Online training provider Fitness Industry Education (FIE) has released an app to sup- port its certifications and CPD workshops. Te Mobile Student Desktop App allows FIE


students to access their personal online course material on mobile devices.


Read Leisure Opportunities online: www.leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital


tent, diagrams, animations, video content and podcasts available for the app which is free to download from iTunes App Store (Apple) and Google Play Store (Android). Details: http://lei.sr?a=P1r7O


Twitter: @leisureopps © CYBERTREK 2012


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