Skills and Training

Low pay and low skills does not only impact upon individuals. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation Report ‘Experiences of poverty and educational disadvantage’ demonstrates that low qualifications in adulthood helps transmit poverty across generations.

But progress is being made. Substantial investment in adult skills training is paying dividends - over the last decade the proportion of the working age population without any qualifications has decreased from 19% in 1997 to 13% in 2007.

A4e delivers services that provide individuals with the skills and qualifications demanded by employers to provide a clear pathway out of poverty.

A4e delivers Train to Gain across the UK. Train to Gain enables employers to access quality assured vocational, literacy and numeracy training that is appropriate to their business needs. Over the last two years we have engaged over 1,100 employers and nearly 8,000 learners. Key to our success has been the management of training provider consortiums - which have enabled us to offer tremendous choice to employers and learners.

Vocational Training and Alternative Education - A4e delivers vocational centres for 11-16 yr olds via 7 Vox Centres across the UK. The centres work in partnership with local schools to offer vocational training linked to local labour market demand. Centres are equipped with hairdressing salons, cafes, construction workshops and gyms. These are run as social enterprises, by the young people themselves. We seek to raise self esteem and demonstrate to learners that academic qualifications are not the only route to employment. The success of our approach is demonstrated in our Grimsby centre - last year 59 students achieved 125 recognised qualifications.

Business Success for Childcare

Over the last six years A4e’s Business Success for Childcare team has worked with over 40,000 childcare practitioners and 150 Local Authorities, developing and nurturing the business, management and leadership skills of childcare practitioners and professionals.

The programme is designed to improve the business sustainability of the childcare sector, looking to safeguard the future of such an important industry. The success of the programme was well documented with independent research showing 95% of ‘team managed’ childcare business reported that they had managed their business more effectively as part of the training.

For more information please visit: http://www.a4e.co.uk/childcare

If you’d like to know more about these services please get in touch or call us on 0800 345 666