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The Train to Gain service is intended to build upon the experience of Employer Training Pilots, and is available to employers as an independent and impartial brokerage service to diagnose business needs and source appropriate training provision. Brokers are contracted by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) to deliver the service, which is presently moving from its pilot phase towards full national roll out. Train to Gain is available to all employers, but brokers will primarily target new, small and 'hard to reach' businesses. This report documents the first of three waves of evaluation of the pilot phase of the service, and covers employers contacted in April and May 2006. Evaluation is intended to ascertain employer ratings of importance and satisfaction about 11 key measures related to the service.

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This report presents findings from a research project carried out in the East Midlands between January and June 2002 under the remit of the regional Learning and Skills Research Network (LSRN). The project focused on researching the extent of alternative educational provision for young people aged 14-16 years and on both their experiences and those of the practitioners involved. Alternative provision was defined as that which was provided by schools, colleges, training providers and employers of young people aged 14-16 who were not attending mainstream school full-time and following the National Curriculum. The primary aim was to determine the modes and levels of provision on offer. In addition, the project sought to gain views as to the provision’s effectiveness from young people and practitioners involved in the planning and delivery of programmes.

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This report documents the conclusions and recommendations of the 'end to end' review of the delivery of Modern Apprenticeships (MAs) in the UK that was undertaken between October and December 2003. The report outlines how the review was conducted and the assessment of the strengths of the current delivery system, barriers to effective delivery, and the likely impact of changes in the pipeline. The review, commissioned by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), examined the delivery chain for MAs and three 'cross cutting' themes: electronic government; equal opportunities; and the burden of bureaucracy. The formal objectives were to: review the effectiveness, flexibility, agility and robustness of processes used to promote and deliver MAs against the policy objectives set by government; make recommendations, as appropriate, for a change program to ensure that delivery processes are well attuned to achieving policy objectives; and report to DfES and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). The review process involved extensive analysis of existing documentation, interviews with people engaged in delivering MAs, four local case studies, and discussions about emerging conclusions and recommendations with a wide range of stakeholders. The review identified significant strengths in the delivery system, which provides real benefits to employers and learners, and a strong base on which to build further improvements. It is suggested that action is required on branding, relevance to individual employers and trainees, product development, quality improvement and impact on the economy. The recommendations of the review will inform the 2004 Spending Review. Show less

Pick up any learning and skills sector policy document and you will find an emphasis on the partnership. Sharing resources, know-how and the ideas offers the possibility of finding new ways to engage learners and get the provision right for them. Partnership is not easy - with the opportunity comes the challenge of working well with difference. This publication explores the nature of partnership working within the sector and how partnership can add value for more and different adult learners. It draws on the practical examples from the sector to show how the rhetoric becomes reality. A number of questions will be discussed: Why work in partnership? What is partnership, in practice? What makes partnership and collaboration work best? How can we translate good will and good intentions into effective partnership that makes a difference for learners, and for partners too?

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This report documents the findings from the third wave of the learner evaluation of Train to Gain, a service managed by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) that is designed to help employers improve the skills of their workforce. The evaluation is taking place over two years and will conclude in 2009. This wave, the third of four, comprised both qualitative and quantitative research. The main activity was a survey of learners carried out by telephone in May and June 2008. Key messages include: learner satisfaction is very high; awareness of Train to Gain continues to increase; Train to Gain brings about real, tangible change; a more collaborative approach to training is evident; learners are driven by the qualification, i.e. strongly motivated to take part in training by the prospect of gaining a recognised qualification; benefits are in line with expectations; independent providers are becoming more prevalent; pre-entry assessment and discussions are valued and widespread; information, advice and guidance could be more learner-focused; support from the tutor/assessor is key; learners are happy with the time taken to complete; training is challenging but rewarding; participation builds confidence; and further learning is a key goal for many participants.

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The Framework for Excellence (the Framework) is a comprehensive performance assessment framework for the further education (FE) system. The main aims of the Framework are to provide a single, unified framework for assessing and reporting achievement in all key areas of performance. The Framework is being developed by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), in partnership with the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS), Ofsted [Office for Standards in Education] and the Quality Improvement Agency (QIA). From June 2007 to April 2008, the LSC engaged with 100 learning providers to test and trial the Framework as a 'pilot programme' in readiness for the Framework's implementation (Version 1) in the summer of 2008. The aims of this evaluation are to report on whether: (a) the pilot met its objectives; (b) stakeholders have been engaged effectively; and (c) the pilot process has been effective. An independent review of the Framework and its outputs will be undertaken during 2008. The pilot process appears to have been a fairly effective, if time-consuming process. As a result of the pilot, the LSC and its partners are much clearer about the potential issues which may be faced by the sector when the Framework is applied fully. Also, the LSC now has a better understanding of the support needed by stakeholders to ensure the Framework develops into a robust performance assessment tool.

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An overview of the Framework is indexed at TD/TNC 87.507. Show less

Following the broadening of the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) from full-time education to include young learners on two programmes within the [Learning and Skills Council] LSC funded work-based learning family, Entry to Employment (E2E) and Programme Led Apprenticeships (PLA), from April 2006, the LSC commissioned Experian and Ipsos MORI to undertake an evaluation of the extension roll out in September 2007. The objective of this research is to understand the effectiveness of the rollout of the extension of EMA, in particular in relation to the communication of EMA into the programmes; the operational procedures; and the impact on overarching LSC policy. The research was undertaken through a combination of learner and provider surveys, and [in-depth] interviews with providers. The communication of EMA into the programmes has been effective overall, although there is room for improvement in achieving higher initial awareness amongst providers of the rollout. The initial preparation procedures, providing information regarding the administration of EMA to providers, are suitable and effective. The extension of EMA to E2E and PLA has contributed to some of the core LSC targets and policies, by helping raise participation, achievement and progression, as well as creating a more level playing field, although there is potential to further enhance these impacts in the future.

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The Train to Gain service, run by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), provides impartial, independent advice on training to businesses through a network of Skills Brokers across England. The service was launched nationally in August 2006, and by the end of June 2007, 119,153 learners were registered for Train to Gain on the LSC's Individual Learner Record (ILR). Ipsos MORI and the Institute for Employment Studies were commissioned by the LSC to conduct the learner element of the evaluation of Train to Gain in accordance with an overall evaluation framework. This report covers the findings from the first wave of research. Key messages: (1) overall, learners were very satisfied with the training they have received through Train to Gain. Their satisfaction levels were 10 percentage points higher than those expressed by learners in the FE [further education] sector more generally; (2) learners felt the training was benefiting both themselves and their employer. Specific benefits included greater awareness of the tasks they carried out at work and greater confidence in their ability to learn and handle difficult situations; and (3) following completion of their Train to Gain learning, 69 per cent hoped to continue on to further qualifications. The majority of learners, whether they had completed or not, felt they had received good quality training.

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Train to Gain is one of the most important developments in skills policy in recent years. Introduced in April 2006, and fully rolled out in August of that year, Train to Gain is a national service for businesses that provides help in identifying and sourcing such training as will improve the skills of their workforce and their business performance. It aims to encourage employers to invest in the development of the skills and qualifications of their employees. It is particularly concerned with increasing the proportion of adults in the workforce who have Level 2 qualifications and good basic skills. Among the key guiding principles of the Train to Gain service is the idea that training provision and skills development should be individually tailored to the needs of the employer. To ensure that these objectives are being met and that the service meets the needs of employers, the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) has initiated an ongoing employer evaluation of the Train to Gain service. This document reports the findings from sweep 1 of this employer evaluation.

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This research examined the response of Further Education (FE) colleges to delivering employment related skills to the unemployed. The research explored how colleges have responded to a number of programmes in this area and sought to understand colleges' experiences of early implementation. Further Education colleges are at different stages of involvement in a number of funding offers that encourage them to deliver employment focussed training to those who are out of work, and to support these learners in securing sustainable employment. The FE colleges' contribution is an important part of the Government's Integrated Employment and Skills (IES) agenda. This evaluation of implementation focussed on four programmes. The National Voluntary Training Pilots (NVTP) which ran in the West Midlands until July 2009; for this programme fieldwork was conducted shortly after the offer had finished. The remaining three programmes (the Training Offer for those Unemployed for Six Months (Six Month Offer); Adult Learner Responsive Pilots (ALR Pilots) and the Sector Employability Toolkits Pilot (SET Pilot) were all launched around April 2009 and therefore were at an early stage at the time the evaluation took place.

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