Tuesday 29 July 2008

Train to Gain a Government Initiative

The Government is earmarking £200 million for training in key sectors of the economy, such as construction and IT. At the moment the bulk of government funding is aimed at improving the literacy and numeracy of lower-skilled employees through their flagship training initiative, Train to Gain. Employees with low levels of basic skills or who do not have a level 2 qualification can benefit from the independent Train to Gain scheme. Specific funding initiatives are also in place for achievement of management and leadership qualifications and some level 3 qualifications.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) says that if the government is to realise its ambition of raising the nations productivity levels it needs to expand its support to other areas in which recruitment is difficult due to genuine skill shortages. The most effective method would be to provide additional training to internal staff to fill the posts rather than recruit people who do not have the necessary skills.

Employers should be playing their part too. By investing in training they can add to the supply of skilled labour and help combat recruitment difficulties. Employees are more likely to able to progress further in the company with internal training and the amount of employees that would stay with a company would increase.

Another recommendation from the government is that every school leaver should have the right to an apprenticeship by 2013. At present only 6% of employers offer them. John Denham the skills secretary from the Learning and Skills Council said

"An apprenticeship will become a typical choice for young people and adults- at the same time ensuring that businesses get the vital skills that they need. Apprenticeships are at the heart of the country’s economy. They unlock talent and are the key to our future prosperity".

Even with the offer of an apprenticeship scheme the first port of call would still be through LSC'S Train to Gain service.

Author:
Chris Crawford is the MD of BD Recruitment, a specialist recruiter for web designer jobs, account manager jobs and asp .net developer jobs, based in Manchester, UK.

4 comments:

  1. Train to Gain is an excellent government programme, however they did not take into consideration the paper pitfall, however there is unique software that can overcome this problem.


    Train to Gain made easy software is what the government should have introduced. They ought to have contemplated the insight of inconvenience and endless paperwork surrounding the information required, says award winning entrepreneur Fiona Hudson-Kelly.

    With no less than fifty different types of information from ethnicity to national insurance numbers required for each person, many employers have given up on the Governments flag ship training scheme.

    It’s just as bureaucratic for the training providers delivering Train to Gain programmes. Each trainer is required to conform to the endless paper chase, with the fear that if the data is not evidenced and countersigned in triplicate their funding will be vigorously retracted even if the candidate is eligible and has successfully completed their qualification!

    Nobody denies that we need to raise the basic skill level of the UK’s workforce. Employers need people who can read, write and do basic arithmetic – the 3 R’s.
    Train to Gain is a great way for employers to enhance their workforce, with training for their least qualified employees generally fully funded. The problem is the endless collection of data and paperwork which outweighs the benefit of the funding both for the employer and the training provider.
    Dynamic business partners Fiona Hudson-Kelly and Steve Green fell into the Train to Gain paper pitfall and scoured the market for an online solution to take the ‘pain’ out of their Train to Gain contract delivery.
    After several weeks trawling the market unsuccessfully for a solution, the dynamic duo decided to spin off a separate company of their own and develop an online Train to Gain tracking solution which enabled their previous employers to become the single most successful new provider of 2007.

    The solution is called Train to Gain – Made Easy, the software that take the pain out of train to gain.

    This new software is available from the Training Pod.com from 21st September at www.traintogainmadeeasy.co.uk

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