Organisation

A metropolitan borough

Timescales

2001-2

Configuration

Very large numbers of full time and part time employees

Distributed services across a major UK town

Funding from a number of public and private sources, including SRB, LSC and individual businesses

Culture

Very diverse communities involving large numbers of redundant workers from a former major industry; substantial minority groups, some in closed communities

Brief

To introduce ‘access points to learning’ and deliver an e-learning solution to allow anybody in the town to access training and learning within their community.

Approach

Worked with senior managers in the metropolitan borough and with leaders within the community to identify learning and training needs.

Used existing advice and support workers wherever possible to gain access to communities and gain their trust, especially where the community was a closed one.

Delivery

A small project team was established to oversee the management of the project with a steering group including community representatives

Identified and worked with 97 individual communities to wire them up with broadband and PCs so that they could access e-learning

Identified and developed content and sources of support and guidance that would support their learning needs

Review of approach and delivery

Soon recognised that putting in a PC and expecting people to use it would not work, so after consultation amended approach

New approach included face to face training, training the trainers, and finding simple ways of ensuring that even the least confident could access learning (e.g. via videos, community talks)

Methodology

Through community champions, asked communities what they wanted to learn and needed to enhance their prospects

Identified and purchased on behalf of the MBC e-learning content to support learner needs

After review of approach, developed a simple handbook for the community centres who had been wired up

Emphasised training the trainers (some of whom were also the community champions) at an early stage and kept them involved in development phase

Developed and delivered a simple video (translated into a number of languages) to enable those who had never used a computer before to feel confident.

Offered ongoing support and tutoring face to face as well as on-line

All participants could, if they wish, get national accreditation for a number of different short programmes, including building their CV

Outcome

All 97 centres up and running and offering a range of ‘blended’ learning opportunities, including e-learning, video and multi-media materials, face to face training

Problems and concerns

Scepticism among some communities about the benefits at an early stage

How this scheme would operate alongside existing educational schemes in the locality, including Learn Direct.  This was addressed as the content and learning had different objectives and was made to be relevant to very particular needs

Additional benefits

More people seeking work in the newer industries in the MBC

Too early to see all outcomes at this stage