The learning rep - Winter 2012

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learningrep » Winter 2012

Janette Dunbar is ULR of the year >> Diageo staff couldn’t have moved on without her

www.unionlearn.org.uk

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» Comment

Teaching the value of skills Skills has become a hot topic of discussion again since the recent BIS select committee report on apprentices highlighted many concerns that unionlearn has been raising about the need to ensure we maintain quality as we increase the quantity.

We were very pleased that the committee supported our call to strengthen quality, which means proper training, career progression, a job at the end of the apprenticeship and decent pay: we must end the scandal of one in five apprentices not even getting the minimum pay rates that they are legally entitled to.

Over the next few months, as we lead up to National Apprenticeships Week in March, we will be promoting our new campaign ‘I’m An Apprentice – Value Me!’, which we launched at the UK Skills Exhibition in Birmingham in early November to much interest and a strong response from both apprentices and employers looking to take on apprentices. To find out more, check the unionlearn website www.unionlearn.org.uk/apprentices We highlighted the importance of the skills debate during the party conference season by taking our message to the main political parties, as you can see in this edition. The conference season also brought a good chance to welcome the new skills minister Matthew Hancock MP to his job and to take the message of the importance of workplace learning to him as he looks at the challenges of his new role.

There’s proof of the successes of union-led learning in our interview in this edition with the new ULR of the year, Janette Dunbar. Again, we have a great example of the work that ULRs do – in Janette’s case, in the face of redundancy and an uncertain future for the workforce.

Janette shows the importance of the work that learning reps do up and down the country and the vital contribution that unions can and do make.

Over the coming year, ULRs will continue to demonstrate the importance of their work.

Tom Wilson Director, unionlearn The Learning Rep Winter 2012 Editor: James Asser jasser@tuc.org.uk Writers: Astrid Stubbs, Martin Moriarty Cover: ULR of the year Janette Dunbar by Jess Hurd/reportdigital.co.uk Design: wave.coop Print: Ancient House Printing Group Distribution: Cavalier mailing

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News ULR of the year Family Learning Festival TUC Congress unionlearn at the party conferences Quick Reads 2013 Simon Kernick London 2012 learning legacy Royal Mail learning centre Aiming higher TUC Education Contacts Calendar Resources

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News «

Andy says Bravo to Merseylearners

Photo: Andrew Davidson/Geoff Robertson Photography

Congratulations (from left): Merseytravel Six Book Challenge completers Carol McCain, Fran Ball and Dave Garvey join Andy McNab to celebrate the successful reading scheme

Best-selling author Andy NcNab visited Merseytravel headquarters in November, after the Liverpool-based transport operation won the UK prize draw for workplaces that took part in the Six Book Challenge this year.

The former SAS soldier, whose face is never photographed, answered questions from readers who participated in the scheme and signed copies of his latest book, Red Notice.

“Reading and literacy changed my life, which is why I’m supporting the Six Book Challenge. It's great to see the scheme working so well at Merseytravel – long may it continue,” Andy said afterwards.

The Reading Agency initiative has grown every year since Merseylearn, the learning and skills arm of the transport operation, first ran the scheme in 2008.

More than 90 people took part this year, more than one in five of the workforce.

Merseytravel Director of Corporate Development Liz Chandler paid tribute to the ULRs for their hard work and dedication in promoting the scheme among staff at the transport executive, Mersey Tunnels, Mersey Ferries and Merseyrail.

“Our union learning reps have done a brilliant job of getting so many people involved in a fantastic initiative that really inspires people to pick up a good book and rediscover the joys of reading,” she said.

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Order your materials for the 2013 Six Book Challenge from www.readingagency.org.uk/shop

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» News

Unite re-opens Southampton council centre Unite has relaunched its union learning centre at Southampton City Council with the help of local MPs John Denham and Alan Whitehead, council leaders and learners past and present.

Funded by the authority as part of its learning agreement with the union, the brand new training facility is helping staff improve their literacy, numeracy and IT skills through national qualifications. It aims to offer vocational courses in everything from plumbing to digital photography.

“The re-launch of this state-of-theart facility marks the beginning of a new era in employee relations at Southampton city council,” commented Unite branch secretary Mark Wood.

“We are extremely proud of the achievements of our union learning reps, who have worked tirelessly over the years to aid the development of skills for workers from every background, and we are very hopeful to expand on these achievements.”

Through its partnership with Southampton City College, the centre is also opening its doors to members of the local community, offering them the chance to improve their essential skills as well.

In addition, for the past four years, the centre has run an annual charity event to raise money for a different local good cause every year.

This year, the centre organised a quiz night and raffle in a local pub, which raised more than £1,200 for the local hospital.

In more good news for the Southampton centre, Unite member Simon Cotton was named regional learner of the year at the unionlearn SERTUC annual conference in November.

Local MP John Denham (second right) opens Unite’s relaunched learning centre in Southampton

Next stop… Europe!

Unionlearn has secured a major grant from the European Union to fund an investigation into union-led learning across the EU that could eventually lead to the development of a European organisation on the unionlearn model.

East Coast staff celebrate success Twenty East Coast Trains staff who had completed literacy, numeracy and ICT qualifications collected their certificates at a special event in Newcastle Central Station in September.

East Coast Trains Managing Director Karen Boswell presented the certificates, and drivers’ union ASLEF General Secretary Mick Whelan joined unionlearn, RMT officers, local managers and staff from Sunderland College, who deliver the courses, to mark the occasion.

In October, the project ran another workplace learning event at which staff took the chance to learn some First Aid, including how to use the station defibrillator; have a go on the train driver simulator; take a French language taster; and even mix a fruit

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drink using power from a fixed bike.

Earlier this year, the learning project produced a 2013 calendar using photographs taken by Newcastle railworkers and chosen during a photography competition during Adult Learners’ Week in May. All of the 500 copies that were printed have been sold, with all the proceeds going to the Railway Children’s Charity, and plans are already afoot to produce another next year, possibly involving other depots along the East Coast route.

The 12-month project has created a steering group that will organise a major conference in Congress House in the spring and produce a detailed report in English and eight other languages.

Unionlearn is leading the project, with the help of the education departments or teaching unions of six major national union confederations: ❚ the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria, KNSB ❚ the training arm of the German Trade Union Federation, DGB Bildungswerk ❚ the training consultancy linked to the largest Dutch union federation, FNV ❚ the Swedish Trade Union Confederation LO ❚ the Italian confederation UIL ❚ the Polish Teachers’ Union ZNP. The steering group has already held the first of its three scheduled meetings, in London in September.

A second meeting is scheduled for February (in Rome) and the final meeting in May (back in London) ahead of the conference, scheduled for Thursday 16 May 2013.

“There is much that European unions can learn from each other about learning,” says unionlearn Director Tom Wilson. “This may even lead in time to a European version of unionlearn, overseen by the ETUC.”

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News « Prospect Vice-President Denise McGuire (second right) presents the British Library branch with its ULR award to (from left) branch rep David Jacobs, ULRs Iwona Jurkiewicz, Marjorie Newson and Andy Robinson and the union’s ULF project worker Kate Antoniou

Library branch wins learning award The Prospect branch at the British Library has won the union’s award for outstanding contribution to workplace learning in recognition of its excellent record on digital inclusion in the workplace.

The union’s vice-president Denise McGuire presented the award to the learning rep team during its Learning At Work Day (LAWD) event at the library’s St Pancras site in London earlier this year.

“We gratefully accepted the award for all the hard work we put into events and initiatives across our organisation, but are forever mindful of the immense support we received from the Prospect learning team,” says Prospect ULR Andy Robinson.

“The digital projects championed by reps, such as the learning at work days, ULR blog, bite-sized talks and involvement in progressing a digital skills strategy, have made it possible for staff to access new

information, skills and technology. We have (we hope) made the inaccessible, accessible – and learned a lot along the way ourselves.”

Appropriately enough, the LAWD events organised by Prospect and PCS ULRs in partnership with the Organisation Development (HR) team at the library’s sites in London and Boston Spa, Yorkshire, were on the theme of learning through the use of technology and digital information.

Encouraged by the ULRs, the entirety of the library’s training and development team ran digital sessions, hands-on activities and market stands to further encourage workplace learning.

More than 250 staff took part in the sessions across the two sites, representing about 16 per cent of the total workforce.

Some of the ULRs modelled customdesigned t-shirts with QR codes that offered a scannable link to the library’s learning rep blog, http://ulrs-at-bl.blogspot.co.uk.

Matthew Hancock joins BIS team West Suffolk MP Matthew Hancock replaced John Hayes as Minister for Skills in the first major reshuffle since the government took office two years ago.

Mr Hancock was appointed as joint Parliamentary Under Secretary for both the Department for Education (DfE) and the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) when his predecessor moved to the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC).

The reshuffle also brought Scottish Lib-Dem MP Jo Swinson to BIS, as Parliamentary Under Secretary for Employment Relations and Consumer Affairs.

Loans for part-time learners For the very first time, part-time adult learners in England can apply for government loans to cover the cost of their higher education (HE) tuition fees, so long as they meet certain eligibility criteria.

As a union learning rep, you can spread the message in your workplace by disseminating accurate and up-to-date information on financial support, which can make all the difference when prospective learners weigh up their HE options.

These are the key messages you can use when talking to learners who are interested in the possibility of part-time HE courses: ❚ Studying part-time for a higher education qualification could boost your career prospects and allow you to earn while you learn. ❚ If you are eligible for a Tuition Fee Loan you do not need the money in the bank to be able to study, and you will not have to repay until you are earning over £21,000. ❚ If you are eligible, you can borrow up to £6,750 per year to cover your tuition fees. ❚ Your monthly repayment will be based on how much you earn, not how much you borrowed. ❚ You must study a minimum of 25 per cent of the full-time equivalent course load each year for the duration of your course and you cannot normally hold a qualification at the same or higher level than the one for which you intend to study to be eligible for funding. ❚ If your household income is no more than £25,000 a year you may get help through the National Scholarship Programme.

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For a comprehensive list of key messages and facts, visit: www.practitioners.slc.co.uk/ resources.aspx

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For one useful place to direct prospective students, visit: www.gov.uk/studentfinance/overview

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» News

Learning together at the Co-op Photo: Sarah Turton

Union members at Co-operative Food’s new distribution centre in Andover, Hampshire, are all set to improve their literacy, numeracy and IT skills thanks to two learning agreements signed this summer.

Co-op Distribution Learning and Development Officer Sally Skora opens the new learning centre, flanked by Usdaw ULR Jimmy Meads (left) and Unite counterpart James Malone

Usdaw signed its agreement with the Co-op (covering the warehouse staff) on the same day Unite struck a similar deal with logistics company Norbert Dentressangle (NDL), which employs the drivers at the centre.

The joint ceremony coincided with the formal opening of a brand new learning centre on the site, where local providers Basingstoke College of Technology and Aldershot College will deliver the courses, while an NVQ programme will be run by M2 Training.

“The day to celebrate the opening and also the signing of the agreement was a huge success and the centre has already had more than 100 workers from a variety of departments interested in signing up for courses both in the centre and

online,” says Peter Chalklin, Usdaw’s learning project worker for the Southern division.

Unite is keen to ensure that the drivers at the distribution centre can access the new learning opportunities, despite the difficulties of accommodating their complex shift patterns.

“It’s difficult organising courses for drivers given their shift patterns, so this is a work in progress, but we will be working with the company to find a solution that is beneficial to all,” explains Unite regional learning organiser John Barr.

Talks about workplace learning in Andover began last year when the Co-op announced it would be transferring its supply chain logistics operation from Fareham.

Unionlearn and the unions set up a steering group with the company to develop a workplace learning agenda for the new facility, and offered staff taking redundancy the chance to improve their skills and employability.

East Anglian councils sign apprenticeship deal UNISON Eastern Region’s apprenticeships campaign has notched up another success by encouraging two councils in East Anglia to sign a joint apprenticeship agreement with the union.

Conservative-run Suffolk Coastal and Waveney district councils signed the breakthrough agreement in September, at a special event in Lowestoft Town Hall attended by council members and officers, UNISON members and some of the apprentices themselves.

“I was very proud to attend the signing of the apprenticeship agreement and very pleased the event was well supported by both officers and members of both councils,” said Cllr Frank Mortimer, the Waveney Cabinet Member for Customers and Communities.

He also paid tribute to WDC

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UNISON Branch Secretary Jo Collerton for “ensuring the event ran like clockwork”.

WDC Leader Cllr Colin Law said that since the authority had launched its apprenticeship programme a year ago, it had been rewarded by the quality of the young people who had filled the places available.

“They prove time and again, you can present them with real challenges but they rise to the occasion. I am always impressed at the level of ability shown. We have a duty to ensure we provide the opportunities for them to flourish."

Stephen Baker, the joint chief executive of both councils, explained via Twitter on the day that the authorities had signed the agreement “because it makes sense and helps young people”.

He has also foregone the bonus he is entitled to this year and made the

money available for further promotion of apprenticeships in the area, according to UNISON Eastern Region Project Worker Craig Young.

The apprenticeship programme has proved a huge success since it was launched a year ago.

Earlier this year, eight of the apprentices at Suffolk Coastal demonstrated their presentation skills, at a special event at the authority that went down well with members and officers alike.

Apprentices (back row, from left) Stephen Marja, George Bolan, Matthew Bellward and Louis Ayres with UNISON Project Worker Craig Young watch UNISON’s Jo Collerton (front row, centre) sign the agreement, flanked by council leaders Colin Law (Waveney) and Ray Herring (Suffolk Coastal) with Waveney Cabinet member Frank Mortimer (far left)

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News « Helping young people into the arts Photo: Philip Wolmuth/ reportdigital.co.uk

Photo: Martin Jenkinson

Martin Jenkinson Sheffield-based photographer Martin Jenkinson, whose work has illustrated many news and feature articles in The Learning Rep and a wide range of unionlearn and TUC publications, died of cancer this summer, aged 64.

Born in west London, Martin moved to Cheltenham at the age of 19, where he first developed his interest in photography as a hobby while working in a series of different jobs, including mechanic and lorry driver.

After moving to Sheffield in the 1970s with his wife Edwina and daughter Justine, he worked in the steel industry for three years before being made redundant.

The employment setback ended up being the making of him. He found a year-long placement as a photographer on a local newspaper and, when that came to an end, he began what was to become his distinguished freelance career.

As well as taking some of the most iconic photographs of the past 30 years of industrial and community struggles (including a moustachioed miner in a toy police helmet

‘inspecting’ a police line at Orgreave in 1984), Martin was an active member of the National Union of Journalists and served for many years on its National Executive Committee.

Martin’s pictures of learners at construction company Wilmot Dixon in Scarborough for the Summer 2011 edition of The Learning Rep were the last pictures he took for the magazine.

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You can see some of Martin’s work at http://martinjenkinson. photoshelter.com

Martin Jenkinson’s iconic photograph from the miners’ strike (top) and his most recent work for The Learning Rep last summer

The Arts Council has launched a creative employment programme to help young unemployed people find paid entry-level work in the arts and cultural sector.

The programme is designed to support up to 6,500 new apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeships and paid internships across the arts and cultural sector, in addition to the 1,800 apprenticeships created over the past four years.

It aims to provide unemployed people aged 16–24 (both graduate and non-graduate) with paid opportunities to gain access to onthe-job training, skills and experience.

“The creative employment programme is a fantastic and vital development for young people interested in working in arts and culture,” says Arts Council England Executive Director Andrea Stark.

“If young people cannot gain entry into the sector workforce, we risk losing a generation of talent, which would potentially have an adverse impact on the art that is produced, distributed and attended by the wider population.”

The programme will give young people the opportunity to gain skills and experience that potential employers will value; remove the barrier of lack of paid work experience; and help boost the start of their career in the sector.

By working with employers, local authorities, Local Enterprise Partnerships, further and higher education institutions, youth services and the welfare-to-work infrastructure, the programme is designed to be responsive to the local community and economy.

Arts Council England is currently looking for a national provider to deliver the programme, and aims to have it up and running early in the new year.

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» Feature » ULR of the year

Raising a glass More than 150 workers boosted their skills in the run-up to the closure of the Johnnie Walker plant in Kilmarnock earlier this year, thanks to the hard work of ULR of the Year Janette Dunbar. By Martin Moriarty Janette Dunbar became the first person to win both the TUC and the Scottish TUC ULR of the Year awards when she collected her TUC accolade from shadow Chancellor Ed Balls at this year’s Congress.

Janette Dunbar collects her ULR of the Year award from shadow Chancellor Ed Balls (right) and outgoing TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber

The double recognition was down to the Unite activist’s dedication to helping her Johnnie Walker coworkers improve their chances of finding new jobs after parent company Diageo announced in 2009 that it was closing its Kilmarnock bottling plant.

By putting together a ULR team that was able to organise a wide range of workplace courses, Janette was able to help 160 staff boost their skills so they could transfer elsewhere within the company or return to the jobs market with hugely improved chances of finding work.

Unite member Myra Scoular says that it was daunting to face redundancy after working at Johnnie Walker for decades. “I would not have had the confidence to try courses if it was not for Janette organising and bringing the courses into the workplace,” she says.

Christine Duffy, another Unite member who brushed up her knowledge of computing and pensions through the programme, pays similar tribute to Janette and her team. “I wouldn’t have undertaken this journey if it was not for Janette and the other ULRs,” she says.

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In all the years between starting work at the plant aged 15 and finding out it was to close more than 35 years later, Janette had never been a union activist.

Back on her first day in 1972, the factory was still part of the Scottish-based Distillers Company (15 years later, courtesy of some famously fraudulent share-trading, it was to be taken over by Guinness, before Guinness in turn became part of Diageo).

“I thought, ‘I’ll just do this for a couple of years and then I’ll move on’ but, like with many of the people I worked with, that never happened,” she laughs.

Part of the reason Janette and her colleagues stayed on was that this was the era of the so-called ‘job for life.’

And part of the reason was all the history behind the factory: since the original John Walker had begun distilling in Kilmarnock in 1820, it seemed unimaginable that the company would ever shut up shop.

Unimaginable in the town, perhaps, but not in the Diageo boardroom.

The shock announcement that the bottling plant was to close caught pretty much the whole of the Ayrshire town on the hop.

“I was shocked, bewildered, amazed: it was really hard to take in that it was going to happen,” Janette recalls.

But she was determined to do her damnedest to stop it. Elected site convenor in 2010, Janette became the figurehead of the local campaign to try to persuade Diageo to change its corporate mind and preserve the hundreds of jobs at the plant.

But when the company faced down the grassroots protests, it became clear that the vast majority of the workforce would need help to move on, since they had always believed having a so-called ‘job for life’ meant they would never have to retrain or upskill.

After putting together a small team of Unite members who trained to become union learning reps, Janette and her ULRs ran a learning needs survey, analysing the 700-plus responses to design a preclosure workplace learning programme that would help workers face the future with greater confidence and more employable skills.

“Altogether, we set up 22 different courses in the space of nine months, with 159 people completing courses in that time,” Janette explains.

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ULR of the year « Feature «

to Janette

All of this was done in the workers’ own time, since the company did not exactly cover itself in glory when it came to the union’s requests to offer time off to train. It seemed to think it had done its bit by opening up the training suite and the meeting room for union-organised learning and providing computers and stationery.

Whether they were improving their computer skills, picking up holiday Spanish or getting to grips with budgeting or bookkeeping, many learners had to overcome some initial jitters when they started, Janette recalls.

“In the first few sessions, people were saying, ‘I’m not sure I like this’, but then they would come back the next week: it was a social environment, it was fun, it was enjoyable – and the more people went, the more courses they wanted to do,” she says.

All photos: Jess Hurd/reportdigital.co.uk

“The work should be ongoing to help people retain and improve their skills and learn new skills so they can remain at the top of their game.”

By the time the last bottle of Johnnie Walker Red Label rolled off the production line in March this year, more than 200 workers had transferred to new jobs within Diageo (many of them with the help of the skills they acquired through Janette’s programme), while 400-plus had taken redundancy.

Since leaving her former workplace, Janette has taken two Spanish language courses, planned a round-theworld trip (which starts in December) and begun working part-time (one day a week) as a learning organiser for Unite in Dumfries, helping union members introduce learning in various different workplaces.

“It’s good to talk to people about what happened at Diageo and show them how they shouldn’t wait until things get to that position,” she says.

“The work should be ongoing to help people retain and improve their skills and even learn new skills so they can remain employable and stay at the top of their game.”

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» Round-up » Community learning

Hats off for family fun Merseytravel helped spread the lifelong learning message in the local community with successful events during this year’s Family Learning Festival.

More than 250 people from The Wirral’s Chinese, Asian and African-Caribbean communities took part in a family fun day at the Wirral Multicultural Centre in Birkenhead, as part of Merseytravel’s contribution to this year’s Family Learning Festival.

They enjoyed a wide range of activities, including art, model-making, music, messy play dough and traditional costumes.

And they picked up information and advice from Wirral Met College, Wirral Lifelong Learning and the local library service, as well as the council’s children and young people’s department and minority ethnic achievement team.

In addition, unionlearn North-West Union Development Co-ordinator Tony Saunders and Merseylearn’s ICT tutor Norman Hunter signed up 31 new Digital Champions on the day, including Wirral Mayor, Cllr Gerry Ellis, as well as the leader and deputy leader of the council.

Inspired by local author Daisy Dawes’s story of a man with a passion for hats, children made their own headgear at the Merseylearn craft workshop

Tony Saunders from unionlearn signs up the Mayor of Wirral, Cllr Gerry Ellis, as a Digital Champion at the family fun day

“We are working hard to engage the estimated 44,000 residents across The Wirral who have never used the internet,” explained Merseylearn Project Worker (and Wirral councillor) Tony Norbury, who was the main coordinator of the event.

“Go ON Wirral is working with the council, employers, unions, community and voluntary groups and, of course, residents to push forward and bridge the digital divide: Digital Champions are some of our greatest resources, and some of our greatest bridge-builders.”

To help more people attend the event, Merseylearn laid on a coach that not only drove participants to and from the multicultural centre but also conducted a very popular guided tour around the area, which was run by Wirral Heritage Volunteers.

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“We identified early on that getting people to the location was a key element for the success of the day, and the flexibility to use UK Online funding enabled us to find a practical solution,” explained Merseylearn Manager Andy Thornton.

Union learning reps from Merseytravel helped ensure the day ran smoothly. ULR Lynn Hughes, who welcomed everyone as they arrived, was impressed by the age range and ethnic mix of people taking part.

“What a fantastic event: the festival was definitely full of every age group from babies to possibly octogenarians,” she said.

A fortnight later, union learning reps at Merseytravel helped plan and organise a craft workshop with local model-maker and author Daisy Dawes as another contribution to the Family Learning Festival.

Daisy, who lives in New Brighton on The Wirral, ran the workshop for local families, sharing the modelmaking and craft skills she has used on Harry Potter films and TV programmes Pingu and Rex The Runt (Aardman Animations).

As well as helping organise the event in partnership with Waterstone’s bookshop, Merseytravel’s UNISON branch contributed to the cost of books for the event.

“Our ULRs through Merseylearn have supported the Family Learning Festival for a number of years: it is always pleasing to see families learning together and of course enjoying a fun day,” commented branch secretary and lead ULR Roger Irvine.

Every family left with a copy of Daisy’s first book, Get Ahead Fred, which tells the story of a man about town whose passion for hats lands him in hot water when the Queen comes to visit.

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TUC Congress « Round-up « Creating high-quality apprenticeships can be done only when unions, employers and government work in partnership, TUC delegates heard at this year’s Congress fringe meeting organised by unionlearn.

Quality training is the key Unions, business and government must work together to ensure that good-quality apprenticeships are widely available, since they are essential to helping young people develop a career, not just a job.

That was the message panellists and audience alike agreed on at the unionlearn fringe meeting during this year’s TUC Congress in Brighton.

And as if to underline the point, the star of the session turned out to be 22-year-old Unite member Sally Rose, who recently completed an engineering apprenticeship at airports operator BAA. “What attracted me to doing the apprenticeship was that I could get paid to learn – and learn every day in the first year!” Sally explained.

“I was much more likely to get a job at the end of this apprenticeship than if I’d gone straight to university and I wouldn’t be in debt.”

With the support of her employers, Sally has now started a Foundation degree in building services.

“There are directors who are former apprentices here, which is really inspiring, and you can also take further education on and on and on: I feel like there’s nothing I can’t do,” she said.

All photos: Jess Hurd/reportdigital.co.uk

BAA Director of Policy and Political Relations Nigel Milton said that the apprenticeship scheme at Heathrow had been so successful that 70 per cent of all trainees who had gone through the scheme since 1977 were still employed at the airport.

“There is a strong business case for us to invest in apprenticeships in this way. It is essential to customer experience that all employees at Heathrow are skilled in customer service: the better experience the customer has, the more likely they are to return to Heathrow,” he said.

Unite Assistant General Secretary Gail Cartmail argued that government, employers and unions should use their procurement policies to promote high-quality apprenticeships.

She also voiced the concern – which was shared by the other panellists – that political pressure to achieve targets threatened to dilute the apprenticeships brand.

Bishop Auckland MP Helen Goodman argued that good-quality apprenticeships were vital to economic recovery.

“It is essential that we build goodquality jobs, with good wages, which are good for the economy,” she said.

And if government allowed employers more input into the content of apprenticeships to ensure they were relevant, that would help plug the gap in mid-level skills she had witnessed in her constituency in the north-east, she said.

Former BAA apprentice Sally Rose feels she could now do anything at the company

Meeting apprenticeship targets should not be at the expense of quality training, argued Unite’s Gail Cartmail (right, with MP Helen Goodman)

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» Round-up » Party conference season

Photo: John Sturrock/reportdigital.co.uk

Planning for a brighter

With the summer over and the politicians back from their holidays, unionlearn went out on the road to discuss learning and skills policies at the three main party political conferences. By James Asser Working with our partners at City & Guilds and the think tank Demos for the third year in a row, unionlearn attracted an array of highprofile speakers to address the question ‘Are we prepared for tomorrow’s workplace?’ at this year’s party conferences.

As well as the politicians, we invited representatives from businesses where the events took place.

Airports operator BAA joined us in Brighton for the Lib-Dems; United Biscuits, which owns McVities and makes Jaffa Cakes, teamed up with us in Manchester for the Labour conference; and John Smedley, the East Midlands-based family-owned clothing firm, offered its perspectives at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham.

All the politicians used their time to explore some common themes, even if they believed different approaches were needed to achieve them.

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And if the MPs clearly felt skills were vital to the economy and to business, the packed rooms at all the meetings demonstrated that their belief was shared by delegates too. Expansion of apprenticeships was widely supported, as was the need to link education to business in a more structured and coherent way.

Former Skills Minister John Hayes paid a return visit to the learning arena from his new job in the Department of Energy to talk to delegates at the Conservative Party conference.

He argued that, since we didn’t have the skills for tomorrow’s workforce (partly because of emphasising types of learning not driven by economic need or user choice in the past), we must move to a more demandled system.

The government had given the practical application of that and we had to make the argument for practical skills ambitiously, not apologetically, if we were to achieve the skills levels we needed, he argued.

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Party conference season « Round-up «

skills future Politicians of all stripes joined the unionlearn debate at the party conferences, including (from left) John Hayes, Lord Adonis, John Healey and Mike Crockart

At the Labour Party conference, we had a heavyweight line-up of former Cabinet minister Lord Adonis, who is currently campaigning on the need for more apprenticeships in Whitehall, and John Healey MP. John talked about the scale and pace of change in the skills needed in the workplace, highlighting that if the last wave of globalisation hit skilled labourers, the next wave would threaten services and tech workers.

Studies showed that there would be a skills shortage of around 40 million skilled workers by 2020, he pointed out, emphasising the international challenge by telling the meeting that India and China would soon produce more graduates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects than Europe and the US combined.

He called for a new type of individual learning account alongside a new skills investment bank as part of an active skills policy, arguing that the UK couldn’t afford to leave such a vital issue to the market.

Lord Adonis told the meeting that skill levels were currently too low to meet the competitive challenges the UK faced and urged the state, business and voluntary sector to work in partnership to deal with the issue.

He also complained that far too many schools had no provision beyond 16 and argued that schools needed to link more into post-16 education and to connect with businesses to help address the skills gap.

On his campaign for more apprentices, he said that only one in three major UK companies took on apprentices. He suggested a good way of tackling this would be to ensure government did its bit by employing apprentices both centrally and at local government level.

At a crowded meeting at the Liberal Democrat conference, we were joined by Edinburgh MP Mike Crockart, who represents the Lib-Dems on the Business, Innovation and Skills select committee.

Examining how the recession had accelerated structural change, Mike said that the last 10 years had seen real growth in high-tech and knowledge industries that required new skills – the oil and gas industry would need 120,000 new skilled jobs to be filled in the next decade.

He also pointed out that the skills gaps were often in soft skills, not hard skills. We needed industry to become much more involved in education: placements between higher education institutions and workplaces could start to address those gaps while we built a system that could more easily accommodate industry’s needs.

As well as the common politicians’ theme of the need to address skills shortages, our employers also shared several similar concerns: the need for more skills; for more interaction between education and business; and for the further growth and expansion of apprenticeships.

Ian McLean from John Smedley showed how skilled workers were the backbone of the company for the traditional clothing manufacturer.

United Biscuits explained that it had increased its training budget by 10 per cent in the last year – despite the recession – since the economic success of the business was linked to the skills of the workforce.

The more the company invested in the workforce, the higher were the levels of staff motivation and lower the rate of staff turnover.

Clare Harboard from BAA explained that apprentices were vital to the airport operator, pointing out that the company made sure everyone at Heathrow was trained in a range of skills.

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» Feature » Quick Reads 2013

The books that have helped millions of adults discover the joys of reading are back, with half a dozen new titles by best-selling writers and celebrities available in February.

Start a new chapter For the eighth year in a row, Quick Reads is launching a new range of titles on 14 February to help encourage even more adults to find out what reading can do for them when they ‘start a new chapter’.

And to help union learning reps and everyone else promoting the scheme, the cover price of the new books has been halved, making them an even more irresistible proposition.

The move has been applauded throughout the learning world. Sue Southwood, who leads on Quick Reads for the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE), is delighted with the price drop.

“NIACE welcomes the news of a lower price of £1 a book for 2013, which will make a real difference for adult and community learning practitioners, many of whom continue to work within very tight budgets,” she says.

Since the original launch in 2006, Quick Reads has distributed more than 4 million books through workplaces, prisons, supermarkets and bookshops.

The bite-sized books with fast-paced storylines and easy-to-read language have proved a huge hit with adult learners.

The publishing initiative has the support of confectionary giant Galaxy for the third year in a row.

“We hope that through our continued partnership and investment, Quick Reads can further build on its past successes and realise its ambitions to reach even more people who can benefit from the incredible work they do,” says UK General Manager Stuart Woollford.

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Wrong Time, Wrong Place

by Simon Kernick (Arrow) You are hiking in the Scottish highlands with three friends when you come across a teenager. Halfnaked and badly beaten, she can’t speak English. But what is obvious is that she is running away from someone. Do you stop to help her, even though that means putting the lives of yourself and your friends in terrible danger?

• Interview: pages 16–17

Love is Blind

by Kathy Lette (Black Swan) Jane has always felt like the ugly duckling compared to her sister Anthea, who seems to have the perfect figure, the perfect fiancé and, in fact, the perfect life. They have never seen eye to eye, so when Jane comes up with the plan of moving to the Australian outback to find a husband, it’s no surprise that Anthea thinks she’s mad. But when she tries to save her sister from this latest crazy plan, she ends up taking a walk on the wild side herself…

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Quick Reads 2013 « Feature « Today Everything Changes

by Andy McNab (Corgi) Abandoned as a baby and adopted by a South London family, Andy McNab grew up in Peckham, where he attended seven different schools in as many years. Drifting from the disillusionment of remedial classes into a life of petty crime, he landed up in juvenile detention by the age of 16. It was only when he joined the army shortly afterwards that he was able to catch up on the learning he had missed. In fact, the first six months in the forces education system were to change his life forever.

This is an inspiring account of a crucial turning point in the life of an educational under-achiever who went on to become the Army’s most highly decorated serving soldier.

A Dreadful Murder

by Minette Walters (Pan)

A Sea Change

by Veronica Henry (Orion)

In the early years of the 20th century, Caroline Luard is shot dead in broad daylight in the grounds of a large country estate. With few clues available, her husband soon becomes the suspect… but is he really guilty? Working on the true story of the ‘Seal Chart Murder’, bestselling author Minette Walters brings back to life all the people involved in this terrible crime and uses her modern detective skills to try to solve a 100-year-old mystery.

Jenna doesn’t mind everyone calling her The Ice Cream Girl. After all, there are far worse jobs than selling ice creams by the sea. Then one hot summer day, she catches the eye of Craig, who rents a beach hut in Everdene with some of his mates so he can go surfing to escape the stresses of his job. But he notices her for all the wrong reasons. For Jenna and Craig, it’s a chance meeting that could change their lives forever…

Doctor Who: The Silurian Gift

by Mike Tucker (BBC Books) The world is on the brink of crisis, and society is beginning to break down as fuel runs short. One man seems to have the answer, even if it sounds too good to be true. Concerned by claims about a new form of energy, the Doctor travels to the South Pole and soon discovers something huge and terrifying is stalking the old oil refinery, something that brings death and destruction in its wake. The battle has begun for planet Earth. A thrilling, all-new adventure, featuring the Doctor as played by Matt Smith in the spectacular hit series from BBC Television.

Find out more >> Reading Groups Toolkit:

www.quickreads.org.uk/assets/ downloads/docs/QR-ReadingGroups-Toolkit.pdf

>> Website:

www.quickreads.org.uk

>> Twitter: @Quick_Reads >> Facebook:

www.facebook.com/pages/ Quick-Reads/524641507562076

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» Interview » Quick Reads Simon Kernick’s acclaimed thrillers hit top speed on page one and screech along as fast as a getaway car.

Fasten your seatbelt: his new Quick Read is going to be a bumpy ride. By Astrid Stubbs “People have said many things about my books – good, bad and indifferent – but no-one has ever said they were boring,” quips Simon Kernick, whose Quick Read, Wrong Time, Wrong Place, joins the new suite of titles out in February.

When he was asked to take on the challenge of a Quick Read, Simon says he saw it as a catalyst to write a hard-hitting thriller in his traditional style but with everything slotted into the shorter format.

“It was nice to write something shorter – a single fast-paced scene with a twist at the end. I do write in that pacey style normally, which was a great advantage: I didn’t have to change the way I wrote. I really enjoyed writing it,” he says.

Simon wrote the book at a breakneck speed too – completing it in two weeks. And anyone who picks it up will find themselves hooked from the off by its dark and uncompromising tale of a trafficked young woman.

Simon says it’s important that thrillers raise issues about crime in society, whether it’s people trafficking, terrorism, murder or organised crime. “But it’s very important not to preach at people,” he says.

He uses contacts he has built up with the police counter-terrorism and serious and organised crime squads to research his novels and asks them to read parts of what he has done for authenticity.

They will no doubt relish his 12th novel, Ultimatum, due out in January, a tale of bomb threats and terrorism in London, all centred around a single day.

It took years of dedication on Simon’s part to become the internationally recognised writer he is today, and he held down a number of jobs before his work was finally accepted – his favourite being a Christmas tree uprooter.

“I had two books which were both rejected in the UK before I finally wrote a book that was accepted when I was 35,” he says.

Simon is still not sure why he didn’t give up. “You do have to be pretty determined but ever since I was a tiny kid I wanted to be a writer,” he recalls.

“Reading is hugely important. If you can read, you can learn so much about the world, about different perspectives; it gives you time alone and thinking time.”

“It’s pretty depressing in terms of being rejected but I always thought it was what I really wanted to do. I had no other ideas if I didn’t have that dream and I didn’t have anything to replace it – giving up on it would have meant giving up on everything.”

Now that he has established himself, he loves the writing life.

“Writing is fantastic and gives me a great deal of freedom. It takes a long time to establish yourself and the first years were nerve-wracking and very hard but I love it,” he says.

He now hopes his Quick Read will help new readers and those who have lost the habit to pick up books again.

“Reading is hugely important. If you can read, you can learn so much about the world, about different perspectives; it gives you time alone and thinking time,” he points out.

“It doesn’t have to be really difficult and I hope the Quick Reads are introductions to good stories told in a straightforward way that shouldn’t really scare anyone and will hopefully encourage them to want to read more.

“It’s never too late to get involved in courses, never too late to be a reader and never too late to do well,” he adds.

“As long as there are resources and you want to do it, you can do anything.”

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Quick Reads « Interview «

Simon is reading ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚

Lots of thrillers Harlan Coben Lee Childs Peter James Agatha Christie “…still hard to beat for a good story – her books are quick reads!”

Simon has written ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚

The Business Of Dying The Murder Exchange The Crime Trade A Good Day To Die Relentless Severed Deadline Target The Last 10 Seconds The Payback Siege

Photo: Jess Hurd/reportdigital.co.uk

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» Feature » London 2012 legacy There must be a learning legacy for disabled people that builds on the success of the Paralympic Games, argues Tara Flood, the former gold medal-winning Paralympian who now runs the Alliance For Inclusive Education (ALLFIE). By Martin Moriarty

When disability campaigner Tara Flood speaks about the legacy of London 2012, it’s with the authority of a former Paralympian competitor who won gold, silver and two bronze medals in her final outing in Barcelona 20 years ago.

So how does she feel about the Paralympics, the event that really did come home this summer (the very first international competition for disabled people was held in Stoke Mandeville in 1948)?

“The profile of the Paralympics has increased on a massive level, as demonstrated by the new interest from corporate sponsors,” she says.

However, the choice of sponsors did not win universal welcome among the disability community.

“I do have real concerns about how sponsors are chosen: for example, I was very concerned that ATOS was the main sponsor for the London games.”

She also has similarly mixed feelings about the television coverage by host broadcaster Channel 4. “Don’t get me wrong: it was great to see disabled presenters,” she says.

“But I talked to many people who loved every minute of the Paralympic Games and there was absolute consensus that what people want is an understanding of the classification system; what they don’t need is a medical description of individual athletes.”

She is also convinced that it’s time to retire cliched ‘triumph over tragedy’ stories when it comes to coverage of disabled athletes. “For me, it was never about somehow wanting to overcome my impairment, it was about celebrating it,” she says.

When it comes to thinking about the legacy, Tara returns to her own experience as competitor to help formulate her answer.

While the 1984 International Games for the Disabled (the predecessor to the Paralympics) gave Tara her first taste of international competition, it’s not wreathed in entirely happy memories since the organisers of the Los Angeles Olympics refused to host the event.

That decision means she is not impressed with the way some commentators have tried to make Los Angeles synonymous with successful legacy.

“What has really annoyed me in all the conversations about legacy is that some people have held up the LA 84 Foundation as the kind of thing we should all aspire to but I would fundamentally disagree because the 1984 games were based on blatant discrimination and disablism,” she argues.

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London 2012 legacy « Feature « Unionlearn SERTUC Manager Barry Francis (centre) opens up the debate, flanked by Director Tom Wilson and disability campaigner Tara Flood Photos: Jess Hurd/reportdigital.co.uk

“Legacy must be about genuine social change. Don’t make it about disabled people as a problem – if you want to know how to support disabled people into work, it’s about talking to disabled people about how that needs to happen.”

That is why Tara is keen to build better connections between ALLFIE, the inclusive education organisation she is director of, and unionlearn and the unions.

“We need to find a better way of working with unions from an education perspective and find allies to support our call for an inclusive education system.”

“I think we need to find a better way of working with unions, specifically from an education perspective, and find allies within the union movement to support our call for an inclusive education system,” she says.

Although the evidence shows that disabled people who experience segregated education are less likely to be in further or higher education, or employment and training, the current system of support services fails to make the links between access to education and employment, she argues.

“That tells me there is much more work that needs to be done to build the capacity of mainstream schools, colleges and universities so that they can welcome disabled learners.

We need to keep reminding the government that it is committed to this aim as a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.”

Delivering for disability Everyone has a vital part to play in delivering a jobs, skills and apprenticeships legacy for disabled people from London 2012.

That was the message participants took home from a successful unionlearn SERTUC event during the Paralympic Games this summer.

Unionlearn Director Tom Wilson quoted from Peter Little’s recent research into apprenticeships and disability, which revealed that the number of apprentices with disabilities had risen but the proportion had fallen overall from 11 per cent in 2005 to 8 per cent today.

He said there were two key lessons to be learnt from the success of London 2012 that should be applied to discussion about the learning legacy: funding and organisation.

“Funding is absolutely crucial: none of the great medal successes that Team GB achieved would have been remotely possible without all the funding that has gone in over the years,” he argued.

Stewart Lucas, chief executive of Interactive, which promotes disability equality in sport, argued that there was no distinct jobs, skills and apprenticeships legacy from the Paralympics alone.

“The Paralympics is a sporting event – it’s like asking if there’s a distinct legacy from the FA Cup,” he argued. “However, if you ask if there is a legacy from the whole of London 2012, the answer is Yes.” Paolo Nistri, from the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), the landowner and owner of the permanent venues on the Olympic Park, said that LLDC was determined to work with its contractors to deliver jobs, skills and apprenticeships.

“Effectively, if you want to come and do business with us on the park, that’s great, but in return we are going to look to those companies to deliver on the jobs, the skills, the apprenticeships, through our procurement processes,” he explained.

“We evaluate bids, we use dialogue processes to help shape bidders’ proposals and make it very clear what we want from them, and we look to embed those requirements contractually – to make sure companies put in place action plans and really follow through with the contractually embedded commitments.”

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» Feature » London 2012 legacy

Striving for the legacy gold

The Community and Trade Union Learning Centre (CTU), which was originally sited close to the Olympic Park, is all set to move to a new home in south-east London.

The new setting means it is able to continue its work of creating a long-lasting legacy of learning for Londoners in the host boroughs.

The CTU was originally set up by unionlearn in partnership with the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) to provide learning opportunities for workers both on the Games site and at other local employers and for members of the local community.

The then Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell formally opened the centre in 2010.

Since then, the CTU has helped hundreds of learners improve their English and maths skills, master basic IT, take advice on their job applications, use the meeting rooms or surf the web at the internet café.

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It has also hosted a number of events. For example, during 2011 Adult Learners’ Week, it ran Spanish and French taster courses as part of a language café, which led to two-hour courses running twice a week. Visitors also signed up to the ‘myguide’ computer courses and there were tours of the Games site.

Author Lola Jaye became a special friend of the CTU, promoting Quick Reads titles on her frequent visits to the original centre’s home.

The CTU may be moving, but now its work continues through its outreach programme.

For instance, staff from the centre support learners at the Maryland Sure Start Centre in Stratford, running a weekly book club for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) readers from 16 different countries who speak 14 different languages.

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London 2012 legacy « Feature «

The Olympics and Paralympics are over, the medals have been packed away and athletes are already in training for Rio. Now the learning centre on the 2012 site is set to continue its work in a new home.

Stratford parents and youngsters enjoy a Learning At Work Day reading event run by the Community and Trade Union Learning Centre

At the moment the CTU’s Learner Support Officer Jane Warwick is helping the readers with the Terry Jones Quick Read, Trouble On The Heath.

Jane identifies words and phrases to initiate discussion and prepares a question sheet that requires learners to answer specific questions about chapters.

Learners then read a chapter and underline words or phrases they don’t recognise, don’t know how to pronounce or don’t understand, so they can use them as the basis for discussion and improving functional skills, such as linking reading and listening, reading and understanding.

CTU Manager Phil Spry says that the centre is also working with the GMB to offer employability skills, help with CVs and a job club for ex-security staff from the Olympic Park.

In addition, it is running employment skills and IT sessions at the Morningside Sure Start Centre in Hackney, one of the host boroughs for London 2012.

“We have delivered basic IT using the Go ON online courses, provided a Job Club and offered employability skills,” says Phil.

The centre also offers IT skills training to parents and other members of the community at Rokeby School in Newham following involvement from the NUT. “The school is keen to support parents so they can join in with things that the school is running – the parents are then able to use the internet and use email,” says Phil.

“Post-Olympics, the aim of the CTU is to leave a lasting legacy of a learning centre and the continued expansion of its outreach work by making use of facilities within the local community,” he adds.

“Even though the centre is moving, the work carries on – it is very much business as usual.”

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» Feature » Learning centre

CWU learning rep Parminder Kaur is helping staff, including hundreds of black and minority ethnic workers, access learning opportunities at Royal Mail’s international distribution centre near Slough. By Astrid Stubbs

Union learning at HWDC is organised to fit in with shift patterns at the office near Slough

CWU learning rep Parminder Kaur realised that if she wanted to kick-start learning where she worked at Heathrow World Distribution Centre (HWDC), she would have to do it herself.

Situated near Slough, HWDC is the hub of the Royal Mail group’s Foreign Mails Section.

A large portion of mail entering and leaving the United Kingdom passes through this massive international sorting office under tight aviation security standards.

After winning agreement to set up the learning centre, Parminder faced the task of redecorating and kitting out the old canteen shop she had been given.

She gave up her own time to paint the space on Sundays when she was off work, persuaded management to supply the tables, chairs and broadband, and bought 15 new laptops with the help of money from the Union Learning Fund (ULF).

The centre opened to a fanfare of praise five years ago and in 2010 CWU General Secretary Billy Hayes was among the guests who visited the redecorated training room.

Parminder says that it is a huge challenge to provide literacy, numeracy and IT training for the 1,600 staff, since the majority are women from black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds who speak 65 different languages.

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But when her co-workers initially proved reluctant to take up the first literacy and numeracy courses, Parminder encouraged them to take the plunge by offering digital photography with embedded literacy and numeracy elements.

She also led the way by taking all the courses on offer herself, including ECDL Levels 1, 2 and 3, in order to motivate colleagues as well as improve her own capabilities.

Now she organises classes around HWDC’s various shift patterns, opening from 10am to 10pm one day a week and from 1pm to 5pm on a second day.

Surekha Sharma, who works in amalgamation, has been a convert to learning with the support of Parminder.

“Everything is computerised these days and I wanted to use email and go online to check bills and other things,” she recalls.

Surekha has now completed ECDL Levels 1 and 2 and can use email and word processing software as well as connect with her relatives in Canada and India on Facebook.

“We don’t have to pay for courses. We give up some of our own time, but we are learning something different and we can do it at work so we don’t have to go to a separate place – and that’s good for people working shifts and people who are picking up their kids,” she adds.

Charn Pharani, who has worked for Royal Mail for nine years, says she grew up with the message from her dad that Asian girls didn’t need to learn as they would be confined to the kitchen once they were married.

But just when she had allowed herself to think about learning and start an ECDL course, her husband died, and she was too heartbroken to carry on at first.

Now one of her children has persuaded her to return to the course, and she wants to move on to Level 2 when she finishes early in the new year. She is also taking a company-organised drawing class.

“I want to develop myself further: every job involves computer work and I can also now keep up with the children and family on Facebook as well as the IT used at work,” Charn says.

Parminder herself hopes to be able to start offering language courses at the centre, and would love to recruit more ULRs to keep spreading the learning message as she is the only learning rep on site.

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Learning centre « Feature «

All photos: Jess Hurd/reportdigital.co.uk

CWU learning rep Parminder Kaur has led by example by taking all the courses on offer at HWDC

“Parminder deserves a huge round of applause for all her hard work.”

Some learners at HWDC arrive two hours before their shifts start so they can improve their skills in the learning centre

“It’s a really good feeling when I see someone come to me who didn’t know how to do something and now they can: I feel happy,” she explains.

With Parminder’s enthusiasm to encourage them, staff like Surehka and Charn are very keen to take advantage of the opportunities on offer: in fact, some learners are so keen that they practise in the learning centre for up to two hours before their shifts start or stay for a couple of hours once they have finished.

The centre also makes sure it marks its learners’ achievements: learners, branch members, West Thames College and Royal Mail management got together to celebrate learning at the company when staff passed their ECDL Level 1 course.

Terry Jackson, of CWU South East No 5 Branch, and Dave Cunnington, International Operations Director for Royal Mail, presented the successful learners with certificates as well as a ‘goody bag’ that included £20 in vouchers (£10 each from the CWU and Royal Mail) and a memory stick from West Thames College.

“This is a tremendous success story and Parminder deserves a huge round of applause for all her hard work,” Terry says.

“This is one of the few examples of the union and the employer working together and – surprise, surprise – it’s a success.”

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» Briefing » Higher level learning

Aiming

higher “I arranged for Katrina Coleman from The Open University (OU) to visit our site at HMRC Benton Park View so that members could find out more and take the opportunity to possibly study for free, or at least at the old fees.

I originally arranged the meeting for 15 to 20 people but that number quickly rose to 60 after fellow ULR Tina Hedley and I contacted members in the Evening Work Centre (EWC).

We split the meeting into two sessions, which had to be re-arranged for the canteen to accommodate the numbers. The meetings were a great success and led to much interest.

Due to problems with communication many members in the EWC did not receive the email until after the meetings were held, so I visited every floor on the site which accommodates EWC staff, outside of my normal hours.

The interest in the courses was phenomenal, but as the access to the funding depended heavily on individual circumstances, it was very time-consuming to assess if the members would be able to apply for funding and at what level this funding was likely to be.

Next came the fun part of ensuring that everyone who wanted to apply had the application form, and that they submitted them to me on time.

This took a lot of time as linking to the degree (to ensure the funding for five years) proved difficult to understand for many, and I had to help each person complete the form.

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Illustration: HelgaLin

When Newcastle PCS learning rep Ian Yeats began encouraging HMRC staff to study with The Open University, he wasn’t prepared for their overwhelmingly enthusiastic response.

The last night was particularly manic as nearly everyone had left the application to the last day to submit – something I have been guilty of in the past, but will avoid in future after seeing the stress it causes!

All in all, I managed to speak directly to more than 100 people and to sign up 55 of them (and there were others who were also interested in applying).

Katrina at the OU was very excited with the result, which she thinks is a new record among the workplaces she has visited. Had I had more time, I think we could have done even better!

I have found it extremely rewarding personally, as there are many people who would have missed out studying and might never have applied due to the rising costs associated with the new system.

Among the areas where people have enrolled there is a real buzz and people seem very excited to be starting courses that they feel will be of real benefit to them.

I also signed up seven new members of PCS and even managed to recruit a new ULR, Sarah Cree, who has since embarked on her ULR training.

Throughout the process Katrina has been a great help.

We will now be looking to arrange study skills sessions on site, to help those who are new to this level of study.

Overall, this has been a great success for union learning at Benton Park View, and, I feel, for the union in general.

We have reached out to an area which is often neglected and under-represented. It has been a great way to reach out to people and is a great advertisement for PCS in general.”

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TUC Education with unionlearn « Roundup «

Talented domestic workers celebrate in style Members of the Justice 4 Domestic Workers (J4DW) campaign and Unite celebrated completing their union reps course with poetry, music, dance, art and food at an event in London.

The only organisation run by and for migrant domestic workers in the UK, J4DW promotes learning among its members as well as campaigning for employment rights.

The TUC Introductory Union Reps course, adapted by the Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) in partnership with J4DW and Unite to ensure it met the needs of

domestic workers, proved popular with all 18 learners.

“Providing migrant domestic workers with the education we need enables us to develop knowledge and skills and feel more confident in defending our rights both as individuals and as a union,” said J4DW Chair Marissa Begonia, who presented the certificates alongside WEA tutor Jake Lagnado.

“We thank Unite, WEA and TUC for bringing this course to us – we can’t wait for the next one!”

The celebration included Noani Mukromin reading a moving poem she had written about what it was

like to be a domestic worker in the UK. There was also a performance of a song written by Realizza Ottara, while Khadija (from Morocco), Noani (Indonesia) and Foulera (Nigeria) performed international dances that they had put together.

The walls were covered in art produced by the domestic workers, much of it for use in their campaigning with slogans such as ‘no worker is illegal’ and ‘domestic work is work – not slavery.’

The J4DW ‘Masterchefs’ supplied delicious food for the celebration.

Justice 4 Domestic Workers/Unite members proudly display their certificates for completing the TUC Introductory Union Reps course

Trade unionists in London packed out a free showing of The Navigators, a film written by the late railworker and RMT member Rob Dawber and directed by Ken Loach.

The Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) London’s TU Studies team organised the screening in partnership with the RMT. RMT General Secretary Bob Crow, who is also a former WEA learner, introduced the film by remembering Rob Dawber and explaining how he had died after being exposed to asbestos while working on the railways.

WEA TU Studies Organiser Monica Gort highlighted the importance of trade union education, explaining that more than 400 union reps had been trained at WEA London over the last year.

The event included lots of information about union and other WEA courses running in 2012–2013.

WEA student Dave Putson, who is chair of the PCS London Courts branch with lead responsibility for health and safety, said the film was both superb and poignant.

“WEA must do more of these events: this evening, and last year’s film showing of Made In Dagenham, have both been excellent,” he said.

Illustration: primovich/www.shutterstock.com

All aboard for rail film screening

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» Feature » Mary Macarthur Holiday Trust

You can help hardpressed women take a holiday thanks to a unique organisation

Sally works part-time to single-handedly raise her three children, after enduring an abusive and controlling relationship for 24 years.

Brought up in foster care as a child, Sally was 13 years old when she traced her birth mother but hadn’t seen her for the past seven years since she moved to Spain.

She desperately wanted to visit her mother alone – which is where the Mary Macarthur Holiday Trust came in.

The Trust was created in 1922 to offer a period of rest or holiday to women in desperate need.

Whether that need stems from age, poverty, infirmity, disablement or social circumstances, the Trust aims to offer a much-needed respite from the traumas of life.

It is named after Mary Macarthur, the pioneering trade unionist and women’s rights campaigner whose aim “to fight, to struggle, to right the wrong” so that those in need might hope for better things is continued today in the fulfillment of her dream to provide the respite needed by women.

“With women shouldering family responsibilities at both ends of the spectrum and bearing the brunt of the austerity measures, the work of this Trust starts to feel more relevant than ever,” says TUC National Education Manager Liz Rees.

“A holiday won’t solve all the problems but it can help to make them more manageable, and the Trust is keen to help women who are struggling.”

Every case is different. Siobhan, for instance, who has learning disabilities and autism, became stressed and withdrawn after her father’s illness prevented him from visiting her.

As Siobhan found it difficult to be around a lot of people, her carers wanted to take her somewhere quiet with a familiar support worker, which they hoped would help her by offering some smaller-scale socialisation.

Vanita faced different issues. A single parent with learning and mobility problems, Vanita was being treated for stress/anxiety/depression after an abusive relationship and an ongoing battle with her former partner over custody of their daughter.

Then, last year, most of the family’s belongings were either burnt or smoke-damaged in a house fire and before they could return home the hallway and kitchen were flooded due to a damaged boiler pipe.

Vanita had continued to struggle since finally moving back in with the bare minimum of belongings before the Trust was able to step in.

The Trust helps dozens of women every year who desperately need a break that could make a massive difference to their lives.

Union reps can nominate women they think deserve a holiday and help them apply for a bursary from the Trust.

If you want to nominate someone, please contact Cheryl Andrews for help and advice (details opposite).

Names have been changed to preserve confidentiality

26 » winter 2012

Mary Macarthur Holiday Trust « Feature «

“With women shouldering family responsibilities at both ends of the spectrum and bearing the brunt of the austerity measures, the work of this Trust starts to feel more relevant than ever.”

you If you feel you or another woman know would benefit from a Mary : Macarthur Holiday, please contact Cheryl Andrews Mary Macarthur Holiday Trust 1 Cathedral Road Cardiff CF11 9SD Tel 02920 359091 k Email cheryl.andrews@mmht.org.u www.mmht.org.uk

I am writi ng to than k you for the ho liday gran t. We went on ho liday to a caravan si te. This i s the first holi day my chi ldren have had a nd my firs t holiday fo r more yea rs than I can remember.

We all had a fantastic time.

My childre n have not stopped ta lking abou t the holida y since th ey have retur ned.

It was a b reak from stressful routines a nd challenges which domi nate life at pr esent. Whe n returned I I felt much more able to fa ce the challenges again.

winter 2012 «

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» Roundup » TUC Education with unionlearn

All together now…

Former UNISON officer Rosie MacGregor leads community singing during the Celebration of Learning in Dorchester

Community singing has proved a big hit in the south-west this year.

Former UNISON officer Rose MacGregor led a series of community singing workshops at a daylong public event in the Corn Exchange in Dorchester during the Celebration of Learning.

And a taster session funded by unionlearn South West has helped midwives in Poole start a regular weekly get-together for budding singers across Poole and Bournemouth.

The driving force behind the new community choir is Royal College of Midwives ULR Jillian Ireland, who works at Poole Maternity Hospital.

“I was involved in an RCM choir in Glasgow, so when I moved down to the south-west I was interested in starting something like this,” she says.

With a small grant from unionlearn, Jillian was able to book a tutor and set up a taster session, and was amazed by the response.

“We had 13 people for the taster, with many more expressing an interest, but unable to attend on the day,” she says.

“We have now started a regular Wednesday night choir practice in a nearby hall in and have a lot of interest from other members of the local community.”

Jillian has even managed to secure extra funding to support the choir now that it is up and running.

“Because we are open to the community, the local children’s centre manager, Karen Loftus, was able to secure £300 for the choir!” she says.

Unionlearn South West Union Support Officer Keith Hatch says the choir’s success shows how much can be done “with a little funding and a lot of imagination and drive from ULRs”.

28 » winter autumn2012 2012

R2L course reunites old friends Ade Adegoke and Raphael Ogun were friends at school in Nigeria but hadn’t see each other for nearly 40 years – until they both happened to enrol on the same UNISON learning course.

The men, who both work in the care sector, signed up for Return 2 Learn courses in Bedford and Luton only to recognise each other across a seminar room during a residential weekend.

Ade and Raphael first met when they were both at Batonu Baptist Grammar School in Nigeria. After being reunited, they found out they had been living just 30 miles apart since moving to the UK. Ade, a clinical support worker for the NHS in Bedford, says Raphael made the connection first and asked him what school he had attended.

“Then he shouted ‘Yes’,” he says.

“It was an amazing and unique experience for both of us," he adds.

“Neither of us ever thought we would come across one another.”

Old friends Ade (left) and Raphael celebrate meeting again after nearly 40 years

Raphael is grateful to UNISON Learning for bringing the two of them back together. “I had a wonderful time learning new skills on the Return 2 Learn course – and finding my wonderful friend made it a very special experience!” he says.

Ade and Raphael have now rediscovered their friendship, much to the delight of family and friends, and have been in regular contact since the residential event.

The united nations of learning TUC Education has been working with the staff unions of the United Nations for several years and provided training to union reps from a number of United Nations organisations in Washington DC during the summer.

Delegates from Brazil, El Salvador, USA, Tunisia, Peru, Paraguay, Jamaica and Nicaragua took part in two courses tutored by South West Regional Education Officer Marie Hughes.

Reps from organisations that included the African Development Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Pan-American Health Organisation (part of the World Health Organisation) came together for four days to learn some of the key skills needed to represent their members.

“Being able to share best practice with reps from across the world is really important and it was such a pleasure to hear the experiences of union reps in other countries,” commented Marie.

The two courses included interviewing skills, developing a workplace profile and getting members involved, as well as taking up problems and negotiating with the employer.

“It was a pleasure to know there are other reps working seriously every day to forward and improve the well-being of their members,” commented one rep.

Further training courses will take place in Geneva and the UK this year.

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TUC Education with unionlearn « Roundup «

Ian Northam

Retired Unite members in Nuneaton are getting to grips with computing through their union

Ian Northam, one of the GMB Southern Region’s ULF project team, died in September four years after he was diagnosed with cancer. He was 60 years old.

Retired Unite members prove you’re never too old to learn Retired members of Unite in Nuneaton have been popping into their local social club to get to grips with computers.

And the courses have proved such a success they have been extended to allow members to customise their own greeting cards and email them for Christmas.

The union was swift to organise an IT course through informal adult community learning after the retired members contacted their local branch.

Steven Peacock, retired members’ officer for Unite in the West Midlands, contacted Midlands Union Learning Organiser Donna Till to invite her to make a presentation at the retired members’ committee meeting.

Donna then approached unionlearn to ask if it could support and deliver the course with help from South Birmingham College. Both agreed and the college supplied 10 laptops and portable wi-fi.

The group, whose ages range from 67 to 84, meets every Monday for two hours at the Bentley Road Sports and Social Club.

Ron Marston, 84, who originally contacted the union, said that he wanted no more than to learn how to switch a computer on and off during his first session.

In fact on the day he was able to type an introduction about himself and what he would like to learn, then name and save it.

Alan Cook of unionlearn delivers the learning on an informal basis and says he finds out what members want and then addresses these needs week by week, starting with the basics and word processing, before moving on to using the internet and email.

“I have adapted the course to the needs and skills of the group and it is not a race as we recap and can go back over things,” he says.

Alan says that, while the majority of union learning work to date has been through ULRs and members in workplaces, direct intervention is now taking learning out into the community at places and times that the learners feel safe and can easily access.

“This course and more to follow show that a union is for life, you’re never too old to learn and that the trade union movement learning agenda is at the heart of the community as well as in the workplace,” says Alan.

Based on the success of the Nuneaton course, the union has extended the learning offer.

Alan is now running two sessions on Thursdays for retired members at Broad Street, where learners are enjoying designing their own customised greeting’s cards in time to email for Christmas.

Most of Ian’s working life was spent in sales and marketing, where his drive and doggedness were central to achieving professional success.

Many of the attributes needed in sales proved useful as he made the transition into working for the GMB’s Lifelong Learning Department.

That same determination and commitment stood Ian in good stead during the five years that he worked on the project.

His unstinting conscientiousness won him an MBE for services to lifelong learning in November 2011.

In his spare time, Ian enjoyed watching football and was involved with organising and managing youth and, eventually, adult teams in the Plymouth area for more than 30 years.

After his much-loved family, his biggest love was perhaps music. He was reputed to have one of the best voices in the south-west and spent many years fronting an array of local bands, entertaining audiences throughout the region.

It was only when his illness started to affect his voice two years ago that, somewhat reluctantly, Ian was forced to hang up his guitar for good.

A lifelong socialist, Ian was a long-standing member of the Labour Party.

Ian leaves behind three sons, Matt, Jimmy and Jack, his mother Jean and her partner Brian, a younger sister, Sue, as well as a huge and wonderfully close family. Ian warmed, heartened and inspired everyone he met and will never be forgotten.

Ian Northam 13 November 1951 – 4 September 2012.

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» Contacts

unionlearn contacts All TUC email addresses are first initial followed by surname@tuc.org.uk

» Unionlearn

» U-Net centres

» North West

» Union contacts

Tel: 020 7079 6920 Fax: 020 7079 6921 unionlearn@tuc.org.uk www.unionlearn.org.uk Director Tom Wilson Tel: 020 7079 6922 twilson@tuc.org.uk

Helen Gagliasso Tel: 0191 227 5567 hgagliasso@tuc.org.uk

Regional Manager Dave Eva Tel: 0151 236 2321 Union Development Coordinator Tony Saunders Liverpool office Tel: 0151 236 2321 Manchester office Tel: 0161 872 2688 Regional Education Officer Peter Holland Tel: 0151 243 2564

Aslef Shirley Handsley Tel: 07739 473 174 shirley.handsley@aslef.org.uk Aspect Nelly Tackla-Wright Tel: 01226 383 428 nelly@aspect.org.uk ATL Kate Quigley Tel: 020 7782 1558 kquigley@atl.org.uk BECTU Brian Kelly Tel: 020 7346 0900 bkelly@bectu.org.uk BFAWU John Vickers Tel: 01132 565 925 john.vickers@bfawu.org BSU Vikki Botham Tel: 07717 805 521 vikki.powell@britannia.co.uk Community Tom Davis Tel: 01562 749 170 tom.davis@communitas.org.uk CSP Penny Bromley Tel: 020 7306 6666 pbromley@csp.org.uk CWU Trish Lavelle Tel: 020 8971 7340 tlavelle@cwu.org Equity Louise Grainger Tel: 020 7670 0214 lgrainger@equity.org.uk FBU Trevor Shanahan Tel: 07917 759 473 trevor.shanahan@fbu.org.uk FDA Neil Rider Tel: 020 7401 5575 neil@fda.org.uk NAPO Jonathan Ledger Tel: 020 7223 4887 jledger@napo.org.uk NASUWT Stephen Smith Tel: 0121 453 6150 lifelong.learning@mail.nasuwt.org.uk NUJ Linda King Tel: 020 7843 3717 lindak@nuj.org.uk NUM Chris Skidmore Tel: 01226 215 555 rossomain@fsmail.net NUT Andrew Parry Williams Tel: 020 7380 4800/4780 learning.reps@nut.org.uk PCS David McEvoy Tel: 020 7801 2727 ext 2360 david.mcevoy@pcs.org.uk

» National unionlearn managers Standards and Quality Ian Borkett Tel: 020 7079 6940 iborkett@tuc.org.uk Communications James Asser Tel: 020 7079 6942 jasser@tuc.org.uk Trade Union Education Liz Rees Tel: 020 7079 6923 lrees@tuc.org.uk Union Development Judith Swift Tel: 0151 243 2568 jswift@tuc.org.uk Business and Finance Catherine McClennan Tel: 07795 606 982 cmcclennan@tuc.org.uk Informal Adult Learning Joe Fearnehough Tel: 0151 236 7678 jfearnehough@tuc.org.uk Policy Iain Murray Tel: 020 7467 1264 imurray@tuc.org.uk Apprenticeships Fred Grindrod Tel: 020 7079 1367 fgrindrod@tuc.org.uk

30 » winter 2012

» Website Ben Furber Tel: 020 7079 6943 bfurber@tuc.org.uk

» Southern and Eastern Tel: 020 7467 1251 Regional Manager Barry Francis Union Development Coordinator Jon Tennison Regional Education Officers Rob Hancock Theresa Daly

» Midlands Tel: 0121 236 4454 Regional Manager Mary Alys Union Development Coordinator Gary O’Donnell Regional Education Officer Pete Try

» Northern Regional Manager Kevin Rowan Tel: 0191 227 5565 Union Development Coordinator Beth Farhat Tel: 0191 227 5576 Regional Education Officer Ian West Tel: 0191 227 5572

» South West Regional Manager Helen Cole Tel: 0117 947 0521 Union Development Coordinator Ros Etheridge Regional Education Officer Marie Hughes Tel: 0117 933 4443

» Yorkshire and the Humber Tel: 0113 242 9296 Regional Manager Alan Roe Union Development Coordinator Sharon Burke Regional Education Officer Trevor Sargison Tel: 0113 200 1071

30-31_ART_Layout 1 20/11/2012 11:43 Page 2

Calendar «

PFA Alan Irwin Tel: 07717 467 718 ieteuk@yahoo.co.uk POA Phil Kelly Tel: 020 8803 1761 pkellypoa@yahoo.co.uk Prospect Rachel Bennett Tel: 020 7902 6687 rachel.bennett@prospect.org.uk RCM Denise Linay Tel: 020 7312 3422 denise.linay@rcm.org.uk RCN Linda McBride Tel: 020 7647 3855 linda.mcbride@rcn.org.uk RMT Teresa Williams Tel: 07881 812 244 t.williams@rmt.org.uk SCP Liz Salem Tel: 01625 829 396 liz@scpod.org TSSA Sal Morawetz Tel: 020 7529 8049 morawetzs@tssa.org.uk UCATT Jeff Hopewell Tel: 01302 360 725 jhopewell@ucatt.org.uk UFS Patricia Mayo Tel: 01242 253 259 patricia.mayo@ufsdirect.org UNISON Joanna Cain Tel: 020 7551 1700 j.cain@unison.co.uk Unite Jim Mowatt Tel: 020 7611 2780 jim.mowatt@unitetheunion.org.uk Unite Jim Telford Tel: 07980 874 662 jim.telford@unitetheunion.org Unity Gerald Crookes Tel: 01782 280 588 geraldcrookes@unitytheunion.org.uk URTU Graham Cooper Tel: 07795 562 874 grahamcurtu@yahoo.co.uk USDAW Ann Murphy Tel: 0161 224 2804 ann.murphy@usdaw.org.uk

Forthcoming events For full details of the events and details of events arranged after we went to press, go to the unionlearn website www.unionlearn.org.uk/events

December 4 5 7 13

North West Regional Conference ULF quarterly project managers meeting Get Online workshop (Midlands) Close of nominations for Niace Adult Learners’ Week Awards

January 11 15 16

Get Online workshop (Midlands) Equality Forum (North West) ULF health sector union

February 1–28 14

LGBT History Month Launch of Quick Reads 2013

March 7 11 11–15 27

World Book Day Apprenticeships conference (tbc) National Apprenticeships Week Tackling Youth Unemployment

April 16 17 23

Equality Forum (North West) ULF health sector union World Book Night

May 18–24 23

Adult Learners’ Week Learning At Work Day

winter 2012 «

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Resources « Roundup «

Fmrateerieals

Order now from www.unionlearn.org.uk/freebooks And postage and packing is also free new

Delivering better learning agreements When negotiating channels are established with the employer it is time to discuss making a learning agreement. This practical guide for trade union reps and officers discusses what learning agreements are, what they should cover and provides a template for a framework agreement.

new Breaking through the Barriers – Equal Access to Learning for All All too often the lion’s share of development opportunities have gone to the high-flyers, the people already blessed with good skills and qualifications.

Reaching communities – the community learning toolkit This toolkit has been specifically developed for union learning representatives (ULRs), community learning champions (CLCs) and other learning advocates but can be used by any trade union and community representatives working to promote and support learning.

Negotiators’ guide for Bargaining for Skills A guide for union negotiators on engaging employers in bargaining for skills that sets the scene for putting learning and skills on the bargaining table. The guide is aimed at union reps and officers who are in negotiating positions, but helps everyone representing union members in the workplace.

Research Paper 17 – Making Skills Work This report is structured around three case studies highlighting best practice in how unions can negotiate with employers in a way that optimises the use of existing and newly acquired skills as well as maintaining their role in supporting the workforce to acquire and update skills.

Making the most of skills – a guide for reps There is a consensus that supporting workers to improve their skills is essential in the pursuit of the twin aims of improving the nation’s economic competitiveness and achieving greater social justice.

However, in recent years the evidence has been growing that enabling individual employees to acquire new skills is only one part of the equation.

Stewarding the Green Skills Agenda This report describes how trade unions are successfully leading or ‘stewarding’ the transition to a green economy through frank exchanges with government on how to make industrial change just and inclusive and supporting access to training and ‘green jobs’ through advocacy and practical demonstration. The report contains a number of case studies.

new

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