Skills for Life: Salford College Perspective
Salford College recognises that in an era of global competition it is essential to
up-skill the nation’s workforce.
Lord Leitch in his Interim Report: Skills in the UK: The Long Term Challenge
(Dec 2005) highlights that the UK has a comparatively poor skills profile in
relation to key comparator nations:
“the proportion of adults in the UK without a basic school leaving qualification
is double that of Canada and Germany”
“over 5 million people of working age in the UK have no qualification at all”
“one in six adults have the Literacy skills expected of an eleven year old.
Almost half do not have these levels of functional Numeracy; only half of all
adults who lack functional skills are in work”
Salford College recognises that, in addition to gaining vocational
qualifications, the core skills of Literacy and Numeracy are crucial to those
entering the employment sector, skills which are recognised as being
paramount by both Government and employers alike.
To address this skills shortage all learners entering the College undergo an
Initial Assessment. The aim of the Initial Assessment is to determine
functional levels of Literacy and/or Numeracy, which are essential for the
learner to successfully complete their chosen vocational pathway, and to put
into place Additional Learning Support mechanisms. In addition to this initial
screening, all learners with a GCSE grade D or below attend, as part of the
course offer, a Basic Skills’ Literacy and or Numeracy workshop. Here
learners are given the opportunity to gain the underpinning skills necessary to
achieve an adult Literacy and/or Numeracy qualification. All vocational
courses have Basic Skills embedded into the curriculum, enhancing workshop
provision.
Bill Rammell, Minister of State for Higher Education and Lifelong Learning,
Department for Education and Skills, in his foreword to the ”Learning and
Skills - the Agenda for Change” Prospectus states:
“Further Education is the engine room for skills and social justice in this
country. It equips businesses with the skills they need to compete and opens
up opportunities for people of all ages and from all groups in the community to
build the platform of skills and qualifications to get and keep jobs, to develop
in their jobs to skilled, well-paid employment and to progress to higher
education. Thus far an unsung hero, FE is well placed to keep Britain
working.”
We strive as a College to echo these sentiments and our aim is to help
individuals improve on their Basic Skills in conjunction with their vocational
skills with an aim to enhance the employability of the individual and to
enhance the skills of the workforce and encourage economic growth.
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