The National Training Awards are universally recognised as being the number one in their field. Winners demonstrate achievements across a vast spectrum of activity, whether that activity is based in the workplace or in the community.

The quality common to all winners of a National Training Award is that they demonstrate significant benefits from exceptionally effective learning and skills development. Winners show, not only good people development, but also the outstanding results gained by putting what has been learned into practice.

Two innovative learning programmes, developed to assist employees prepare for a new career in a redundancy situation and raise awareness of Essential Skills in the workplace, received National Training Awards on Tuesday 18th October 2005 at a gala ceremony in Belfast City Hall.

EGSA was delighted to receive recognition for its approach in meeting the needs of two very different employers.

An innovative partnership between EGSA and the Ministry of Defence (MoD), aimed at connecting adults with learning and work led to development of an Essential Skills programme for civilian employees at the MoD after research found that 16% of local MoD civil servants needed support with literacy and 44% with numeracy.  To help tackle the effect this was having on the organisation and the career prospects of staff, the MoD worked with EGSA to encourage more staff to undertake Essential Skills courses.

Through a programme of awareness raising designed by EGSA, managers were made more aware of Essential Skills needs within their workforce and encouraged to discuss training needs with their staff.  By targeting managers in key positions, the MoD was able to raise the profile of Essential Skills and remove some of the stigma which had been attached to the courses.

In the second of its groundbreaking projects, EGSA provided guidance, mentoring and coaching to 52 employees who were facing new career options as a result of the phased closure of a Northern Ireland power station.
 
The assistance included workshops which focussed on such topics as Thinking about Self-Employment, Computer Skills, Jobsearch Skills and Working with Others in Different Environments.  EGSA brought together a range of organisations to deliver these, including the Department of Employment and Learning’s Careers Service.

EGSA’s coaching and mentoring model helped to break down the barriers to learning, to challenge preconceptions which many of the employees had about their ability to engage in learning again and to inspire them to seek new career directions. Of a mainly middle-aged male workforce, 18 are now involved in learning, five have found new career opportunities and one new business has been created.  Another man is planning freelance work as part of an active retirement.

Visit the National Training Awards website for further information.