Stafford College, Stafford’s Post

What is Brandt Vocational Enterprises (BVE) and what do they do? The mission of BVE is to develop and ensure the provision of meaningful vocational training aimed at equipping clients with skills and future work-related opportunities of their choice. A wide range of vocational training experiences is offered to clients along a continuum of complexity and difficulty. #workskills

The Beier Group showcased the significant progress the group of companies has made in training, development, and transformation. During the visit, the minister gained insight into the strong partnership between the Beier Group and the FP&M SETA.

Yesterday, SLPTG members voted overwhelmingly in favour of merging the training group with The Association of Technical Lightning & Access Specialists (ATLAS), leaving one single organisation to support the steeplejack and lightning protection sectors. It was a big moment for our members and for the industry. For five decades, SLPTG has played a vital role in ensuring the industry has access to a skilled workforce by providing a national system for training and apprenticeships. Meanwhile, ATLAS has taken great strides to improve safety, working practices and technical excellence in the same sectors. The organisations work closely together and share common goals, but there is significant duplication of effort. Joining forces means taking a more streamlined and focused approach. The steeplejack and lightning protection sectors can speak with a unified voice, better pool our resources and face the future together. The decision to merge into one legal entity follows several years of planning, discussion and healthy debate. In the end, more than 85% of SLPTG members voted in favour at the well-attended annual general meeting in Nottingham, chaired by Roy Westwick CMIOSH, Assoc. CIPD. In due course, this decision means SLPTG will wind down its activities and ATLAS will become the only membership organisation for the steeplejack and lightning protection sectors. The wheels are now in motion to make this a reality. This will include the creation of a training committee within ATLAS to carry on the work of SLPTG. Stay tuned for more details.

Another set of swift, strong decisions by #Departmentforeducation. Setting up a shadow Skills England to begin establishing its role while the legislation goes through, is a great move. Richard Pennycook will have strong connections to join the dots across the system and lay the ground for the permanent team in due course. He will want to get things moving, as shown on the DFE board, and to keep the skills agenda front and centre as it should be. Being in a position to influence key upcoming decisions including the spending review, industrial strategy and future devo deals is critical to the future of Skills England - having a shadow body in place prevents it being left to play catch up.. This move suggests the changes to the levy could come quickly. Lots to think about and prepare for in the sector in advance of that... MH&A #skills #skillsengland #newgovernment

Proud to celebrate our recent visit from Ofsted which confirmed South Tyneside Works retained our 'Good' rating. Ofsted inspectors found learners "value and enjoy learning new life skills" throughout their training. They agreed that most learners - including those with additional needs - achieve well and a high number develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours that they need to secure employment or move onto further study. The Ofsted report says: "Learners benefit from effective careers information, advice and guidance which enables them to make informed choices about their next steps and future careers. They attend talks from employers about career options in different sectors, including the opportunity to progress to an apprenticeship or other employment with training. Teachers support learners effectively to improve their skills in applying for jobs, including producing a good-quality curriculum vitae. Learners aged 16 to 19 years attend helpful careers sessions with well qualified staff about their aspirations and the opportunities available in the area. They are very positive about the quality of guidance they receive. Learners also take part in relevant work experience or other work-related activity throughout their course." You can view the full report at: https://lnkd.in/eUuyhhST

We are proud to announce that City College Plymouth has become an Associate Member of the UK Skills Partnership (UKSP). This partnership is a significant step in expanding our opportunities for collaboration with other leading organisations in workforce development and technical vocational education. As a member of UKSP, we’ll work to deliver exceptional skills solutions to support both our local and international communities. As part of this esteemed network, we’re enhancing our ability to: ✅ Collaborate with international partners on workforce development ✅ Deliver innovative technical vocational education and training (TVET) solutions ✅ Build stronger pathways for our students to access global career opportunities We’re proud to represent Plymouth and the South West in this prestigious network, connecting education and industry for a brighter future. #UKSkillsPartnership #EducationInnovation #GlobalSkills

✋ TVET emphasizes practical competencies and offers tailored support in order to gain soft and hard skills needed to excel in a career. #ACTT **Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET)**

🏆 Shoutout to SkillsUSA Johnsburg High School Chapter for achieving the prestigious title of Chapter of Distinction in the Chapter of Excellence Program! This recognition sets a high standard for success and continuous improvement, paving the way for stronger chapters and better-prepared students. In striving for greatness, they applied the Framework and aimed for the gold - This chapter deserves all the recognition it can get through CEP participation! 🥇Additionally, here are some highlights from their Framework events: 🔹Personal: The students visited the Local 150 Operators Union facility for a comprehensive presentation and tour, observing various training areas onsite and hearing firsthand from current apprentices about their experiences. 🔹Workplace: They successfully planned, organized, and managed the assembly of the skid steer rodeo skills station. An amazing chance to see the students work together efficiently to prepare and set up the materials. 🔹Technical: Students gained valuable hands-on experience with different equipment, enhancing their skills and confidence during heavy equipment operator competition preparation. . . . #SkillsUSAIL #ChapterofExcellence #CEP #Recognition #NoLimits

Growth and Skills Levy consultation (engagement) For those that have not spotted it yet, Skills England have added some more information about the stakeholder engagement that was referenced in their policy paper https://lnkd.in/eXSQCnTA They will be consulting with employers and other key organisations, as detailed on their webpage https://lnkd.in/eN-9x4NP : "The initial engagement exercise will take place in November and December 2024 and feed into DfE’s consideration of the priorities for the Growth and Skills offer. Skills England will prioritise 10 sectors in this initial engagement: - the 8 growth-driving sectors identified in the Industrial Strategy - construction and health and social care which are essential to the government’s missions" Possibly linked to this you may or may not have spotted that MAKE UK has launched its Industrial Strategy Skills Commission which is co chaired by Co-chaired by former Minster for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education Robert Halfon, and is designed to find a solution to the growing skills deficit in manufacturing and engineering

MY CONTINUED OUTRAGE WITH THE EDUCATIONAL LADERSHIP AND OFSTED   My followers will recall my outrage that OFSTED has continued its Inspections without any apparent deep review of its aims, objectives and negative effects on the quality of education for everyone n this country. Last night I saw on TV that there is another drive to get more teachers in schools to ‘Inspire’ our children. This is in addition to trying to get more part-timers from industry into FE to ‘give back and make a difference’.   After my 30 years in the Armed Forces, I can tell everyone now that you cannot get an ‘inspired’ front-line without inspired leadership to back everyone up. This is particularly true in the Royal Navy where everyone fights, wins, sinks or dies under the direct leadership of the captain of the ship. Nelson very much understood this and totally trusted his captains as individuals to fight their ships as hard as possible and win. As an experienced member of a NATO Battlestaff I am still in awe of his overall battle order at Trafalgar: "No captain can do very wrong if he places his ship alongside that of the enemy" – Nelson had every confidence that the consequence this single sentence would be the complete annihilation, or preferably, surrender of the enemy. Unfortunately, having now been in Further Education for the last 15 years I have absolutely no confidence that the Educational Leadership is unselfishly dedicated to the ensuring that every single child, young person, vulnerable adult and adult student is given the best possible educational opportunities and support in their lives. As far as I am concerned, beyond the primacy of safeguarding every learner, if you are an educational leader and you are not absolutely driven by this aim you should f**k off somewhere else where you can do less damage!   Having failed to establish any of my new teaching and learning initiatives at Exeter College, I have now moved to the Cornwall Colleges Group to have another go – and this time the signs are good that I might have more success, particularly in enabling the Group to deliver the essential modules to underpin the Engineering Apprenticeship and Higher Apprenticeship programmes. I’ll keep you informed what’s happening –FYI - I’d like to be invited back to the ETF as a Technical Expert Panel Member or as an advisor to OFSTED on how to deliver the Apprenticeship programmes, but that would mean numerous people in higher leadership positions would have to back down from their egos.