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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

This research is based on a series of 10 focus groups with over 100 learners who are either under-represented in the apprenticeship program as a whole or under-represented in certain sectors. The overall outstanding finding from the focus groups was that issues concerning under-representation in apprenticeships are multiple and complex. However, the evidence of under-representation within apprenticeships was acknowledged by apprentices and potential apprentices alike and [the research] came across individuals who have had to tackle subtle forms of discrimination in order to succeed within a specific sector. It was also apparent to participants that barriers to employment at a national level could continue to be barriers at an apprenticeship level.

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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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This report sets out the findings of a pilot project to investigate the needs of carers as learners, current provision for carers wanting to study in further and adult education, and support for carers’ learning available from social services, carers centres and other voluntary organisations. It sets out recommendations on how mainstream educational provision could be made more accessible to carers. The study identifies practical, psychological and systemic barriers to mainstream education for carers. It analyses in detail the range of policies and practices in further and adult education that contribute to systemic difficulties, and how they could be modified. It discusses key drivers for change and presents specific recommendations for government departments, government agencies, further and adult education providers, social services and carers centres and other voluntary organisations that support carers.

Carers have a range of reasons for wanting to study and an equally wide range of educational and employment aspirations. Individual needs for support vary but one thing that all carers have in common is the unpredictability of their caring situation. A carer’s capacity to attend regularly, complete assignments and sit exams is not dependent on their own commitment and self-discipline but on the health of someone else, and the needs of the person they care for which can change suddenly and dramatically. To enable carers to access and succeed in education, educational providers need to understand the impact of unpredictability, and to adapt their policies and practices to offer carer-students tailored flexibility and supportive learning arrangements, at the key points where these are needed. Recent commitments by government to support more flexible opportunities for lifelong learning by carers and to introduce measures such as greater flexibility of provision or home-based learning are to be welcomed. There is now an opportunity for all organisations with an interest in learning for carers to contribute ideas to the shaping of that commitment into national and local policies, and models of good practice, to improve carers’ access to mainstream education.

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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). This brief report share the national headline results for the Framework in 2008/09, its first year of implementation. The assessment was applied to 1,218 colleges and private training providers and comprised the following performance aspects: learner and qualification success; learner views; learner destinations; responsiveness to employers; financial health and management; and use of resources. The outcomes show high levels of quality in many areas across the sector.

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

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 second wave of research that surveys learners involved in workplace training through Train to Gain. The sample is made up of two elements: (1) re-interviews with respondents to the first survey (Wave 1) and referred to in this report as the longitudinal group; and (2) a new sample of learners who had recently started their qualification, termed the new entrant group. Key messages include: learners' awareness of Train to Gain is rising; recent learners are spread more broadly across occupational groups and are less concentrated in personal service jobs than are the earlier starters, suggesting that Train to Gain is reaching a more diverse range of employers and, through them, learners; good practice is spreading as learners engage with the Train to Gain process; half of the learners in the longitudinal group who had completed their qualification reported that they had acquired new skills, and the vast majority of them (92 per cent) said they had used these skills in their current job; almost a fifth (17 per cent) of completers had started further training, and 57 per cent of the rest thought it likely that they would start within the next three years; a quarter of completers got a financial reward (e.g. bonus, promotion or pay rise) as a direct result of gaining their qualification; and over nine learners in 10 (92 per cent) are satisfied with their learning, and the same proportion is satisfied with the quality of teaching they had experienced.

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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 for them 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. 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 met, the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) initiated an ongoing employer evaluation of the Train to Gain service. The employer evaluation has been conducted by IFF Research on a twice yearly basis since 2007. This document reports the findings from the latest new user 'sweep' of this employer evaluation (sweep 4), conducted by IFF Research between January and March 2009. This consisted of a structured telephone survey to obtain the views of 3,750 employers who were initially in contact with a Train to Gain skills broker between May and October 2008. Central to the evaluation has been a longitudinal element, designed to allow more effective tracking of how Train to Gain has evolved over time. This report includes discussion of the findings from the second longitudinal survey element of the employer evaluation, which looked at employer experiences of the service and the impact of Train to Gain between 13 and 20 months after the employer's initial contact with the skills brokerage service (in May to October 2007). A total of 1,906 employers were followed up between January and March 2009.

Throughout the report, time series comparisons are made between the current situation, as measured at sweep 4, and the trends evident across earlier sweeps of the employer evaluation. The key issues covered by the employer evaluation relate to: (1) how employers first heard of, and became involved with, Train to Gain, and their expectations and motivations in becoming involved; (2) the extent to which they found their skills broker to be responsive and accessible; (3) employer views on the impartiality and relevance of advice given, and the skills brokers' knowledge of potential training and funding opportunities; (4) the impact Train to Gain has had on the ability and willingness of employers to engage with training and on the numbers of employees trained; (5) employer satisfaction with the training provision accessed through Train to Gain, and with the training providers responsible for delivery; (6) the benefits of involvement with the skills broker and of any training conducted under Train to Gain; and (7) the likelihood of future involvement with Train to Gain.

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This report documents the findings from the fifth wave of the learner evaluation of Train to Gain - service managed by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) that is designed to help employers improve the skills of their workforce. The evaluation has been running since 2007. This wave comprised a telephone survey of a representative sample of learners, carried out in July 2009. The survey invited the views of Train to Gain learners on Level 2 and Level 3 programmes. In total, 7,431 learners were interviewed, as follows: (1) a cohort of 1,357 Level 2 and 274 Level 3 learners who had also been interviewed during wave 4 six months earlier - this group is referred to as the 'longitudinal learners' group; and (2) a cohort of 4,800 Level 2 and 1,000 Level 3 learners; these learners had enrolled on their training more recently and had not previously taken part in the survey, and is referred to as the 'new entrant' group. Each of the five waves of the Train to Gain learner evaluation have demonstrated that training and qualifications funded or facilitated through Train to Gain are valued by, and demonstrates benefits to, the learners who take part.

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One of the Learning and Skills Councils's (LSC's) key priorities is to raise demand for learning amongst both adults and young people. Raising demand for, and participation in, learning and training will enable more people to enhance their employment and career prospects and to improve their quality of life. From 2008/09, new funding models have been introduced (demand-led funding) to ensure that money follows learner and employer choice. In the context of this fundamental move to a model of learning provision that is centred on choice and on the empowerment of learners to make effective decisions, it is important to gain a clearer understanding of how people make their choices in the learning and skills sector. The LSC therefore commissioned a research project to meet this need for greater understanding of choice and the empowered learner. The research need cuts across policies for both 14-19 and adult learning, and is also of interest to those involved in the development of advisory and guidance services and marketing campaigns. The research consisted of two separate strands, each with its own objectives: (1) understanding how adult learners (aged 19 and above) make informed choices, looking at: those who are considering embarking upon a learning programme; those who are currently studying a Pre-Level 2, Level 2, Level 3 vocational/ workbased or non-vocational classroom based course; those who are currently studying for pleasure or leisure (personal or community based) learning; and those who are not currently studying but who are open to the idea of learning; and (2) understanding how young people make choices in relation to their destinations following compulsory education, focusing on those aged 15-19, in particular: those studying A or AS Levels in school sixth forms and further education (FE) or sixth form college; those studying vocational or Apprenticeship schemes either through FE college or employers; those on Entry to Employment (E2E) provision; and those who have entered employment and are not currently in education. The experiences of these key targets were firstly explored qualitatively, to give a full and detailed understanding of the different experiences and then quantitatively, to support the qualitative findings.

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