1. www.southwark.gov.uk Embedding Skills for Life at Southwark Council Slide one www.southwark.gov.uk Robert Lang27 March 2008 robert.lang@southwark.gov.uk

2. www.southwark.gov.uk We used to call it “Basic Skills” Tradition of developing staff with low/no qualifications Large scale apprenticeship programme NVQs for refuse, recycling and cleaning LLN support for education support staff Secondary information Slide two Robert Lang27 March 2008 robert.lang@southwark.gov.uk

3. www.southwark.gov.uk From Piecemeal to Whole Council Successful bid for LDA funding Skills for Life Co-ordinator Steering Group – whole organisation Lead officers in every department Strategy sign-off Working groups in priority areas Launch – “Build on Your Skills”

4. www.southwark.gov.uk The Strategy Commitment: opportunity for all to achieve Level 2 literacy and numeracy Maximise use of funding sources Shift LLN elements of corporate programme to Skills for Life Implement in priority order Build capacity – people, facilities, systems Integrate with people management and development processes Maximise use of learning technologies

5. www.southwark.gov.uk Learning: what’s working Commitment from the top Utilise all opportunities to assess Enable self-assessment and self- nomination Advocates and champions Join up with other activities, eg adult learning, education

6. www.southwark.gov.uk Learning: what’s working Corporate level co-ordinator Service personnel in working groups Celebrating success Emphasis on service quality as well as “a good thing” Learning from others Wide representation on Steering Group

7. www.southwark.gov.uk Learning: what’s working Response to learners – timing, location, approach Most of all: learner commitment and enthusiasm

8. www.southwark.gov.uk Learning: what could be improved Union involvement, union learning reps Managing expectations Realism about rate of progress Realism about scale of the challenge Service Level Agreements with providers Understanding the funding regime

9. www.southwark.gov.uk Learning: what could be improved Role of the Steering Group Misalignment: NVQ achievement versus LLN level Identifying literacy needs, esp native English speakers just below Level 2.

10. www.southwark.gov.uk Future Plans Align recruitment testing with national curriculum Use Target Skills Gold in partnership with providers Further develop champion role Build, diversify and increase flexibility of the offer