Co-investing in Learning - Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands by unionlearn

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Co-investing in Learning Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands

Co-investing in Learning Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands Case Studies

Foreword by Mary Alys, Regional Manager unionlearn

Collective Learning Funds (CLFs) are union-led initiatives to stimulate co-investment in the personal development of the workforce. They have been piloted by unionlearn in the East Midlands to test different models in different contexts. The pilots involve increasing funding from employers, obtaining greater support from unions and enhancing employee commitment. Such co-investment can help tackle skills shortages as well as providing training to hard-to-reach groups within the region. Although they are in their early stages, CLFs are establishing learning partnerships between employers, unions and providers, which are opening up learning opportunities in workplaces. Although the idea of co-funded learning is still at an early stage of development, the evaluation of the project by the Centre for Employment Relations Innovation and Change (CERIC) at the University of Leeds University found that CLFs have considerable value. That is why unionlearn is extending the project to continue to support the existing pilots, test other models and disseminate the concept throughout the region.

Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands

Introduction

Collective Learning Funds (CLFs) are not just about putting cash into an account to pay for learning. The concept is much wider, including in-kind contributions such as time and learning facilities. CLFs are arrangements where employers might provide cash, time off to study or in-kind provision such as a learning centre. Employees might study in some of their own time or contribute to the fees. Colleges might subsidise courses and provide laptops. Unions could put in resources and time. Union learning representatives can help support learners. Cash contributions are held either in the company account or in the union account. Eight pilots were set up in the East Midlands covering seven private companies and one public sector organisation. The sectors included transport, logistics, construction, manufacturing and the civil service (Jobcentre Plus). Each project was given £4,000 by unionlearn to kick-start their CLF. All projects were successful in gaining employer support. In seven out of the eight workplaces, employers made in-kind contributions, and two made additional cash contributions. The initial investment from unionlearn has had a ‘multiplier effect’, which has led to an increase in affordable learning to meet the needs of both the workforce and the employer.

Amanda Stevenson, Unite Coordinator says “The CLF project has had a positive influence on the learning agenda at Stagecoach. We now are able to engage with new potential learners. Unite and Stagecoach working together is generating a solid learning future.”

Co-investment also involves state contribution. The government scheme, Train to Gain, provides full funding for employees who don’t already have a full Level 2 qualification and who wish to improve their literacy, numeracy and English language skills, plus take their first Level 2 qualification. It also part funds NVQ training at higher levels. In some pilots, there was evidence that the presence of a CLF stimulated employers to use the Train to Gain scheme to fund NVQs and Skills for Life courses. In other workplaces NVQs and Skills for Life were in place before the pilot and the CLF served to extend provision. Early results from the pilots have shown enhanced contributions to CLFs leading to almost 950 learning opportunities ranging from Skills for Life to bricklaying. Learning centres were set up in half the pilots. The Stagecoach CLF even funded the conversion of a bus into a mobile learning centre to provide Skills for Life courses to employees located in its depots. Learning partnerships between employers and unions were the key factor in the pilots’ success. Five out of eight workplaces established joint union–employer learning committees to manage the funds and monitor the learning.

Co-investing in Learning

Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands

Question 1

Why co-investment in learning? Employers want their workforce trained to do their present job effectively. This increases productivity and profitability. But employees need broader transferable skills for internal promotion and career progression. Many employees will invest more in their personal development provided that the employers make a contribution and the state provides a subsidy, for example through Train to Gain. In its publication Towards Ambition 2020 the UK Commission for Employment and Skills stated: “we must leverage significantly more co-investment from individuals and employers, alongside public expenditure” while the European Commission’s Experts’ Report New Skills for New Jobs calls for “co-investment as part of collective agreements”. All it requires is for employers and their employees to get together to assess what training is needed, what contributions they could make and what state funding is available. This is best done collectively and trade unions have taken the initiative through CLFs. The 2006 Leitch Review of Skills commissioned by the Government recognised the potential of such arrangements:

Graham Peck, Lead ULR, PCS “CLF has clearly kicked started learning opportunitites that staff would not have had before. This has shown a positive working relationship between employer/TU which has been a great benefit to all staff.”

Collective learning funds would encourage joint employer–union initiatives to increase the scope of training and development opportunities for their workforce and to commit new investment to this. In addition, these funds could encourage employees to co-invest their time along with the employer in a wider range of non job-specific training and development. The pooling of contributions from employers, employees, colleges and unions maximises investment in workforce development, improving employees’ transferable skills and motivation. The evaluation found that companies identified the most common benefits as ‘soft’ outcomes, such as ‘improved morale’ and ‘improved employee engagement.’ Union involvement ensures that learning opportunities are accessible to the entire workforce, including those with few or no qualifications.

Co-investing in Learning

“As the funding regime changes began to bite, it was noticeable that the facilities tended to be used more by the ‘white collar’ staff. The CLF project, through subsidising learning, aimed to involve more ‘blue collar’ staff in learning at the site.” Union Learning Representative, Bombardier

Chris Johnson, Customer Services Operations Manager, Jobcentre Plus “I have been working alongside the union on the CLF project and have enjoyed being involved in this agenda. In my eyes the working relationship has been enhanced through the CLF project.”

Early results show that employees have taken up 946 learning opportunities as a result of CLFs. These include 202 Skills for Life, 197 ICT and 320 NVQ courses. There has also been a large take up of informal adult learning for personal development: 245 learning opportunities including British Sign Language, Spanish, bricklaying and plastering. The number of learners on courses will increase throughout the life of the project and also afterwards as the CLF sustains ongoing learning.

Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands

Question 2

What makes co-investment work well? The success of the CLF pilots should not just be judged in terms of learning outputs alone. There are wider benefits being derived from sustaining CLF work beyond the life of the project. CLFs played an important role in a number of workplaces in terms of initiating partnership working between unions and management for the first time. Setting up learning committees and signing learning agreements helped to embed a learning culture within the workplace. In some cases it took some time for the employer to engage fully with the union but this increased when management saw something tangible taking effect.

“When I was first approached by the rep I was initially sceptical, but with the learning centre established and the learning starting it has begun to work” HR Manager, Caledonian Building Systems Ltd, Carlton-on-Trent

All players – employees, unions and managers – appeared to acknowledge and appreciate the added value of the CLF. Certainly, ULRs initiated and led the CLF work, but to be effective union branches and shop steward structures also needed to believe in the credibility and value of the CLF. This was equally the case with employees and managers. There are good examples of co-funding that have developed from the initial CLF investment. There are also good examples where employees that were previously excluded from government initiatives, such as Train to Gain, have benefited from the CLF offer.

Co-investing in Learning

Collective Learning Funds were used for a variety of purposes: Levering in other resources Simply having a small pot of money has been enough to open doors to other resources in cash or kind – such as a company agreeing to provide a learning centre or a college helping make learning affordable, for example by offering course discounts.

Pilot DHL Mothercare, Northampton Little training had been previously undertaken by the company. The CLF acted as a catalyst to developing a learning partnership. A joint union management steering group was set up. The union negotiated employer contributions – £25 into the fund and £50 to the learner for each course completion. The company also equipped a learning centre. The existence of the CLF acted as a catalyst for the employer to apply for Train to Gain funding to deliver Skills for Life courses. The local college provided laptops and conducted a learning needs analysis, which included requests for ESOL and Skills for Life courses. ULRs were recruited and trained, including three Polish reps, to support the learners.

John Hughes, Lead ULR, Unite “I would like to express my thanks to the company for allowing the CLF pilot to start last year. The introduction of the learning centre has given the opportunity for all workers to access learning which is the basis of a happy and motivated workforce.”

Extending job training In some workplaces the CLF was the stimulus for employers to provide affordable training leading to a recognised qualification such as an NVQ; sometimes funding came from the Train to Gain scheme.

Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands

Pilot Jobcentre Plus, Lincolnshire The civil servant union – PCS – has a high membership in the benefits office. PCS reps made it clear that the CLF was primarily to meet the needs of the workforce to gain NVQs to improve their employability. The fund was ‘kick started’ with the £4,000 from unionlearn. The employer provided travel expenses for events. The employer also gave assistance in kind – time for assessments/debriefing, flexibility, printing costs, rooms and facilities. The learning was usually in the employee’s own time, and the union gave ULR time and resources. State funding was used to meet part of the cost of the NVQ assessor training through Train to Gain. Initiating learning partnerships Learning partnerships have been set up between unions and management for the first time in some of the workplaces as a result of CLFs. They took the form of learning agreements and joint learning committees that plan, organise and deliver learning at workplace learning centres.

Sue Randall, HR Manager, Caledonian Buildings “The CLF project has enabled a positive way to work alongside the union instead of opposing sides. For once we are working together on the same agenda.”

Pilot Caledonian Building Systems Ltd, Carlton-on-Trent It was agreed to set up a Learning Committee/Steering Group of the Human Resources Manager, the ULR and the Unite Learning Organiser to manage the CLF. It was also agreed to establish a learning centre and sign a learning agreement. The agreement included some paid time off for Skills for Life and ESOL with matched time off for ICT Learning. The Skills for Life provision was delivered through Train to Gain. All the other contributions have been ‘in kind’ from either the employer (the learning centre, broadband access), the union (project support), the provider (laptops) or the individual learner (time for study). The ICT provider also agreed to fund some Construction Skills Certificate Scheme training.

Co-investing in Learning

Raising the profile of unions in learning The most obvious benefit for the unions in the projects was that it increased their visibility and presence in the workplace and in some cases the credibility of the union role in learning and the value of ULRs. Union learning representative structures developed as a result of some of the projects, while in one case the CLF helped to convince branch reps of the added value of a union role in learning. In some cases the union was prepared to take up case work specifically aimed at supporting Skills for Life learners. One union reported that staff felt more confident in talking to their union rep as well as being more willing to involve the union in personal case work. In a number of cases it was claimed the CLF had helped to recruit new union members. Pilot R F Brookes, Leicester There had been some learning activity at this bakery before the introduction of the CLF. But there was a huge untapped demand for a wide range of learning opportunities. The initiative led to the recruitment of more ULRs by the union, the upgrading of the learning centre, time off for learning and a joint learning committee. As a result, the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union gained greater visibility within the organisation, and 11 additional members of staff joined the union. Improving productivity In a number of cases, managers claimed that learning undertaken through the CLF had contributed to improvements in the quality of work, reduced absence and improved customer service. In one case, the pilot had explicitly assisted the company in meeting the targets it had set for levels of NVQ accreditation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; something that had previously been a problem. The CLF also helped to achieve more positive employment relations and constructive engagement between management and unions.

Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands

Top tips

✓ Set clear goals and achievable targets within a realistic timetable for establishing a CLF. ✓ Make sure you have an effective team of ULRs and involve the wider branch and representative structure. ✓ Run the CLF as a joint venture between managers and the union in an equal partnership. ✓ Include the CLF within an existing learning agreement with management or negotiate an agreement if one does not exist. ✓ Establish a joint workplace learning committee to manage the CLF. ✓ Organise a learning needs analysis of the whole workforce to find out which courses, locations and study times are needed for both personal development and job training. ✓ Find out what contributions employees are able to make, particularly how much studying could be done in their own time. ✓ Demonstrate to the employer what the union and learner can contribute (such as ULR support and study time) then negotiate what the employer might provide. ✓ Make sure employers access state funding for courses such as those covered by Train to Gain. ✓ Negotiate subsidised courses with local colleges. ✓ Choose providers which give maximum support to union learners, particularly those with the unionlearn Quality Award.

Co-investing in Learning

Contact details

CLF Pilots Bombardier (Derby) Danny White, CSEU danny_a.white@uk.transport.bombardier.com Caledonian Building Systems Ltd (Carlton-on-Trent) Pam Stringer, Unite pam.stringer@unitetheunion.com DHL Mothercare (Northampton) Sean Kettle, Unite sean.kettle@unitetheunion.com East Midlands Airport (Castle Donington) Lesley Stevenson, Unite lesley.stevenson@unitetheunion.com East Midlands Trains (Derby) Chris Nutty, ASLEF cnutty@hotmail.co.uk Jobcentre Plus (Lincolnshire) Graham Peck, PCS graham.peck@jobcentreplus.gsi.org.uk RF Brookes (Leicester) Karen Benger, BFAWU karenbenger@yahoo.co.uk Stagecoach (Chesterfield) Pam Stringer, Unite pam.stringer@unitetheunion.com

CLF Regional Project Manager Mary Alys, unionlearn regional manager malys@tuc.org.uk

Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands

Jobcentre Plus Lincolnshire

collective learning fund case study 1

Background

Co-investment

Jobcentre Plus in Lincolnshire employs about 550 staff, spread across nine sites varying from 20 – 100 staff each. Staff are mainly involved in clerical and customer-facing work. PCS, the relevant civil servant union, has about 80 per cent density of membership, with 15 union reps and four ULRs. Very little union-led learning had taken place until the Collective Learning Fund pilot was set up, and both local management and the union were supportive.

In the words of the union learning co-ordinator, “the Collective Learning Fund has contributions from all parties in cash, kind or time”, but it was clear that the opportunity of affordable learning was a key motivator to set up the fund.

Engaging with the employer The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has a library of e-learning materials. It runs some job specific training programmes but they do not lead to qualifications. It also has a very limited number of NVQs available. A learning survey and Learning at Work event identified a high level of interest among staff to do NVQs. While discussing with management the possibility of putting in for funding to set up a CLF, the PCS reps made it clear that NVQs would need to be part of the offer. This led to a slow start because the DWP nationally wanted to have complete ownership of NVQ training in order to monitor quality and numbers. However, management eventually agreed to sign up to the initiative, and so the CLF went ahead, albeit with a slightly delayed start.

“I have been working alongside the union since July 2009 on the CLF project and have enjoyed being involved in this agenda. In my eyes the working relationship has been enhanced through the CLF project.” Chris Johnson Customer Services Operations Manager Jobcentre Plus

The fund has been ‘kick started’ with the £4,000 grant from unionlearn. The employer provides travel expenses for events. The employer also gives assistance in kind – time for assessments/ debriefing, flexibility, printing costs, rooms and facilities. The learning is usually in the individual’s own time. The union contributes rep time and resources. State funding was used to meet part of the cost of the NVQ assessor training through Train to Gain. The fund is managed by a steering group made up of the learning co-ordinator from PCS, two ULRs, the PCS branch secretary and two managers, one of whom is the human resource manager. The steering group meets every six weeks. It plans the various learning events and is a forum for discussing and resolving difficulties and deciding how to use the resources available.

Outputs and outcomes From the outset, the steering group agreed to focus energy on the arrangements for NVQ learners, although other learning was also encouraged. As a result, a significant number of employees either started or finished studying during the pilot: ❚ 22 learners signed up to NVQs in Customer Service or Information, Advice and Guidance at Levels 2, 3 and in one case Level 4 ❚ 4 learners completed Skills for Life at Level 2 ❚ A series of deafness and dyslexia awareness sessions were held in work time.

collective learning fund case study 1

Benefits While all parties agree it is too early to assess the benefits of the NVQ programme, certain benefits from the process can be seen and all the parties are considering how the co-funding arrangement can be sustained in future. The district manager’s previous experience made him positive about the value of training (and the NVQ in particular) and he was keen for the initiative to succeed. On the union side, the branch secretary felt that the existence of the fund had been empowering – and that it had enabled the union to be an equal party to learning-related decisions, rather than have to go ‘cap in hand’ to management.

stereotypes about union activities. Staff are now more likely to talk to ULRs about personal cases, or will use the opportunity of a learning promotion to raise personal cases – all of which can then be taken up by the normal union rep.

Challenges There remain key challenges ahead. The Collective Learning Fund has been in place for barely a year so there will be sometime before the initiative can be said to have been embedded. The project is very much a local partnership within a large organisation. This kind of bottom-up initiative will need to find its place in what is instinctively a top down training environment. The steering group is also starting to look at ways to build sustainability into the CLF.

“CLF has clearly kicked started learning opportunities that staff would not have had before. This has shown a positive working relationship between employer/union which has been a great benefit to all staff.” Graham Peck Lead ULR PCS

While the CLF helped develop a new joint relationship on training between the union and the employer, the branch secretary also felt it was helping to build a different relationship between the union and its members and potential members – with new members and reps being recruited as a result. Staff also began to see PCS as having a broader role: the union gained credibility by being at the forefront on learning promotion days, as did management for facilitating the learning. Union reps felt that they were reaching new people for the first time and breaking down old-fashioned

Jobcentre Plus (Lincolnshire) Graham Peck PCS graham.peck@jobcentreplus.gsi.org.uk CLF Regional Project Manager Mary Alys malys@tuc.org.uk March 2010 www.unionlearn.org.uk

Caledonian Building Systems Ltd Carlton-on-Trent

collective learning fund case study 2

Background

Co-investment

CBS Ltd manufactures prefabricated buildings – often large public sector structures like schools and hospitals. The company employs about 250 staff at any one time doing a range of construction and manufacturing jobs spread across two adjacent sites. About 90 per cent of the shop floor staff are members of the union, Unite. The union/management relationship had been described as ‘hard work’, but was improving.

The learning agreement included some paid time off for employees on Skills for Life and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses, with matched time off for ICT learning. The general consensus is that without the £4,000 funding, the company would not have agreed to a joint learning initiative.

Engaging with the employer Management representatives recognised that there were certain basic skills needs within the workforce, which didn’t affect the actual work process but did cause problems in other areas, such as filling in timesheets. One union member was even being disciplined for a mistake arising from difficulties with basic skills. The shop steward trained as a union learning rep (ULR) and, together with the Unite learning organiser, persuaded the company to agree to apply for £4,000 pilot funding for a CLF. As part of the application, it was agreed to set up a learning committee/steering group to manage the initiative, to establish a learning centre and to sign a learning agreement.

“I would like to express my thanks to the company for allowing the CLF pilot and a learning agenda to start last year. The introduction of the learning centre has given the opportunity for all workers to access learning. It is the basis of a happy and motivated workforce through this unstable economic environment.” John Hughes Lead ULR Unite

The fund is managed by a small learning committee. It consists of the human resource manager, the ULR and the Unite learning organiser. The committee meet every two months. There are different perspectives, but matters are usually decided by consensus. The committee’s remit covers practical matters, learning within the framework of the learning agreement and participation in learning events (such as the Festival of Learning). In order to identify the learning that staff wanted, a promotion day was held – with 84 staff completing a questionnaire and signing up for some learning. The majority wanted ICT courses. The CLF has been used to purchase some hardware, booklets and pay for publicity material, paper resources etc. In the future, the learning committee may consider some part loans/part grants to help make learning affordable. At this stage, all other contributions have been ‘in kind’ from either the employer (the learning centre, broadband and matched time for Skills for Life and resources, the union (project support), the provider (laptops) or the individual learner (time). The ICT provider also agreed to fund some Construction Skills Certificate Scheme (CSCS) courses. The Skills for Life provision was provided through Train to Gain.

collective learning fund case study 2

Outputs and outcomes It was a Skills for Life issue that was the catalyst for the project, but members had a keen interest in learning ICT skills. To date the following outputs have been achieved: ❚ 31 employees attended Skills for Life courses working at either Level 1 or Level 2 involving both shop floor and office staff at managerial, supervisory and shop floor grades. ❚ Five employees attended introduction to ICT training. ❚ 59 employees attended other courses, including those obtaining the CSCS card.

Benefits Initially there was some scepticism about the initiative from both management and the shop floor. Some managers were not sure the initiative would work or even that the staff would want to engage in learning. Some on the shop floor saw the initiative as a prelude to redundancy. Even after this short time, these doubts have been set aside. There is now a form of joint working that requires new skills and ways of discussing things.

“The CLF project has enabled a positive way to work alongside the union instead of being on opposing sides. For once we are working together on the same agenda.” Sue Randall HR Manager Caledonian Building Systems Ltd

There are signs that, at a difficult economic time of reduced orders and the subsequent introduction of short time working, this initiative has helped morale and raised the union’s profile on site. It has also been recognised as “the company doing something for the staff”. There is an expectation that the learning will lead to fewer paperwork errors, as well as helping current staff get promoted to jobs which require more skills and are better rewarded.

Challenges The site is quite isolated, with workers travelling many miles by car to get to the site. There is little public transport available, and so there is a lot of car sharing. Three-day working and layoffs have been introduced following a fall in demand for building work in the current economic climate. These two factors have made it very difficult to organise training sessions, and this will inevitably remain a challenge for learning outside working hours. Teaching and funding ICT learning for nonICT users is also likely to be an ongoing challenge.

Caledonian Building Systems Ltd Pam Stringer Unite pam.stringer@unitetheunion.com CLF Regional Project Manager Mary Alys malys@tuc.org.uk March 2010

Already participants talk about the benefits of the grant and the CLF. There is little doubt that co-funders would not have been drawn together without the CLF project as a catalyst. The small grant has been multiplied several fold by the contributions it has stimulated.

www.unionlearn.org.uk

East Midlands Trains Derby

collective learning fund case study 3

Background East Midlands Trains has 2,500 staff spread over a wide area, including 800 office staff with the remainder being operational. East Midlands Trains (and the former operator Midland Mainline) have a five year history of unions working with management on learning including a learning agreement and paid time off (up to 35 hours each year) for Skills for LIfe. Following the take-over, the on-set of the recession and a change of attitude of the employer, the CLF has helped the existing learning initiative continue to offer learning to members – and it has also helped it to respond to the company’s extended area of operation (following absorption of new routes). The company organise their own job-related vocational training and legally required training. The company offers NVQs in customer service and ITQ in association with the unions.

Engaging with the employer The CLF was initiated by the rail union ASLEF. Following discussions with the other relevant unions and the company, an application was submitted to unionlearn with the company and the union agreeing to make a contribution to the fund. The CLF was seen as a way of building on and developing the workplace learning initiative that had existed for five years in the context of the company takeover and the changing funding regime. The steering group is made up of a representative from management, the original rail union learning project worker, the lead ULR from each of the three rail unions and a representative from unionlearn. The fund is held in a separate bank account and income/expenditure is reported to the steering group. Although the other union reps (e.g. the convenor) are not represented on the group, regular reports are given to the company council rep (convenor) and the union reps committee.

The steering group reviews the identified training needs and plans the arrangement of courses, bearing in mind the resources available either in the CLF or in kind. The fund has been used to pay for publicity materials and to subsidise learning.

Co-investment The fund received a grant of £4,000 from unionlearn, £1,600 from the employer and £1,000 from the lead union (ASLEF). Individuals also co-fund their learning if a fee is involved – contributing a total of £1,080 to date. The amount of the individual fee contribution varies from course to course depending on the arrangements negotiated with the provider. For example, the individual fee for the British Sign Language course was set at £30. The Government also funds some learning through Train to Gain, such as Skills for Life, NVQs, ITQ. There are in-kind contributions from the employer (use of rooms and travel passes for learners), unions (representative time, office resources) and from the individual (their study time).

Outputs and outcomes The company already provided legally required training for train operators and some NVQs. They did not see the need for union involvement with job-related training (for example, the NVQs), so the range of learning tended to be of a broader career and personal development kind. Early in the project, the company withdrew its commitment to provide 35 hours time for Skills for Life learners. During the period of the project, the following courses were taken up: ❚ ICT: 32 learners ❚ NVQ Business Admin Level 2: 5 learners ❚ Personal development/other learning: 109 learners, including 13 on Bricklaying and Plastering taster courses, 57 on British Sign Language (Level 1), and 19 on Introductory Spanish (Entry Level 3).

collective learning fund case study 3

Benefits

Challenges

But as well as these particular learning outcomes, the CLF pilot has had some broader effects. Learners have become more confident. There is some evidence of greater confidence in taking internal tests that are required for promotion within the company (for example moving up to train driver grades). Employees have become more positive about learning with some evidence of progression (for example, moving from taster course to a numeracy Skills for Life certificate to an Open University course).

A fundamental and structural problem is the dispersed nature of the employment. This for example means that the learning needs to be established at a number of different locations – in the case of Skills for Life, five venues were used. This was partially eased by the employer agreeing to provide travel passes to learners.

“We have been through difficult times with new owners and with the changes to adult learning funding policies. The CLF helped us to keep learning going in these difficult circumstances” Chris Nutty Union Learning Co-ordinator ASLEF

The fund helped to develop solid relationships – particularly between the unions – at a time of fragmentation, and has kept a point of contact going with the company. It has helped to keep learning going when funding has been cut elsewhere. It has also helped to give the ULRs some flexibility – knowing that if there is an emergency (e.g. course numbers drop), courses can carry on. It has given the unions more of a ‘presence’ in the workplace and has led to the recruitment of some new members. The CLF has helped ULRs focus on how and what to fund, and on how to use a small fee to secure members’ commitment to completing a course they have started – but small enough for it not to be a barrier to participation in learning.

However a problem for the project has been the difficult employment relationship involving redundancies, changes to pensions and other terms and conditions of employment. This was damaging to morale but has also had a direct effect on the project through the withdrawal of paid time off for Skills for Life. These difficulties have been compounded by the changes to the funding of adult learning making it less affordable for those outside Train to Gain funded learning.

East Midlands Trains (Derby) Chris Nutty ASLEF cnutty@hotmail.co.uk CLF Regional Project Manager Mary Alys malys@tuc.org.uk March 2010 www.unionlearn.org.uk

Co-investing in Learning

unionlearn Congress House London WC1B 3LS Tel 020 7079 6920 Fax 020 7079 6921 www.unionlearn.org.uk March 2010

Photography ÂŠ Roy Peters Design www.wave.coop Print Newnorth

Co-investing in Learning Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands

Co-investing in Learning Collective Learning Fund Pilots in the East Midlands Case Studies