Qualifications & Training We Provide

Qualifications and Training We Provide

GET READY FOR WORK

Forward Training Partnership's main focus is on the Get Ready for Work (GRfW) programme. A programme designed to help 16 - 18 year olds who are not currently in employment or mainstream education get back into the working world. Through the aid of our fully qualified staff and facilities a trainee will become fully briefed in the ins and outs of the working environment.

The GRfW programme has two main strands, Vocational and Lifeskills. Depending on your previous qualifications and achievements at school and/or your current living situation you will be recommended for one of the other strand by your Careers Adviser via your Initial Learning Plan (ILP). Be aware that at any time Lifeskills trainees can progress to Vocational and Vocational trainees can transfer down to Lifeskills if they are found to be unsuited to their current strand.

There are no limitations on Lifeskills trainees. Although they may not be as Vocationally qualified this does not always stop them from succeeded in a placement and it turning into full time employment as our outcome rate has shown.

In some case Lifeskills trainees can be referred onto the GRFW programme as Part Time rather than Full Time. This entails they will attend 3 days a week rather than 5 days a week like every other trainee. Due to this they will be entitled to a £40 a week training allowance plus any travel expenses they may have used travelling to the training centre and/or a placement that week. All other trainees will receive £55 dependent on their attendance for the week plus travelling expenses. Trainees who are unauthorised absence any day will lose £11 from their final weeks allowance unless they contact the training centre and/or their placement before 9.30am on mornings they are not well enough to attend.

Trainees will be entitled to holiday days during their time with Forward Training Partnership. For every month they attend they will accumulate 1.5 days holiday which can be taken at any time providing suitable notice is given to the training centre and/or placement.

The goal for any trainee entering into the GRfW programme is to attain full time employment come the end of their stay with Forward Training Partnership however a job is not the only path a trainee can go down. Trainee's can enter into full time education at college or they can do an NVQ (see Mainstream Skillseekers below) while in a job.

If you are between the age of 16 and 18 years old and currently unemployed or not at college then you can take part in the GRfW programme at Forward Training Partnership Ltd. We currently boast 9 training centres across the central belt of Scotland in Bishopbriggs, Clydebank, Lennoxtown, Cumbernauld, Hamilton, Shotts, Airdrie, Carluke and Livingston. Arrange a meeting with a Careers Adviser at your local Careers Scotland office and they will arrange for you to have an interview with a member of Forward Training Partnership staff with a view to you joining your local Training Centre.

MAINSTREAM SKILLSEEKERS &
MODERN APPRENTICESHIPS

Forward Training Partnership delivers NVQ's for Skillseekers and Modern Apprentices in the following areas:

Business & Administration: Level II / Level III *
Performing Manufacturing Operations: Level II

Modern Apprenticeships offer those aged over sixteen paid employment combined with the opportunity to train for jobs at craft, technician and management level. They are an exciting way of gaining skills and qualifications that will help to start a career without having to study full-time, and are available now across a wide range of industries.

All the Modern Apprenticeship frameworks are developed by the industry or sector in which they will be implemented and therefore encompass all the skills you require to become a craftsman, technician or manager in that area. Modern Apprenticeship frameworks can also be used as the basis for training of more mature employees.

NEW DEAL

Forward Training Partnership Ltd successfully started delivery of New Deal in the Lanarkshire area on 6 April 2009.

Basic Employability Training 25+ (BET)
Intensive Activity Period 25+ (IAP)
Full time Educational Training 18-24 Year old (FTET)

All clients come to us as they are finding it difficult to obtain full time employment. With our high standard of Marketing team, Training centre staff, and wide variations of work placements, within one week of joining Forward Training Partnership Ltd, New Deal clients undertake work placements suited to their individual needs, and will gain valuable experience and skills to enhance their employability chances. Come 20 April 2009, one of the clients from our Airdrie Branch will successfully enter full time employment, this being within two weeks of joining the programme.

MICROSOFT I.T. ACADEMY

http://www.microsoft.com/education/MSITAcademy/about.mspx

In August 2009, Forward Training Partnership secured a license to become a Microsoft I.T. Academy and deliver the MCAS (Microsoft Certfified Application Specialist) qualifiction. We currently deliver this qualification out of our Lennoxtown office.

"The Microsoft IT Academy Program is designed for accredited academic institutions worldwide.

The program provides educators with the tools they need to effectively train students on Microsoft technologies, prepare students for the global economy, and create a skilled community. This subscription-based membership program offers curricula, courseware, and online learning for students focused on a profitable career path, life-long learning, and Microsoft certification.

Highlights of the program include:

Access to a wide variety of Microsoft curricula and certifications
Extensive teaching resources
Microsft E-Learning courses for educators and students
Software licenses for lab and classroom use
A wide range of instruction, from computer basics to high-level programming and architecture
Use of the Microsoft IT Academy logo and other marketing resources"

For more information on MCAS please contact Philip McGinlay on philip.mcginlay@forwardtraining.co.uk .

TRAINING FOR WORK

Forward Training Partnership currently delivers Training for Work out of it's Livingston branch.

Training for Work provides training support for people who are unemployed and actively looking for work. The programme - run by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) - allows people to undertake vocational training linked to local labour market opportunities, enabling individuals to secure and sustain employment.

Training for Work is open to adults who are 18 and over, who have been unemployed for at least 13 weeks. However, there are exceptions to this. Ask your local Jobcentre for details. Any company can take part.

Trainees receive help from a network of training providers. A wide variety of skills and occupations is supported.

Participants will be paid a “training allowance” – this is equivalent to their benefits plus £10 a week.

The programme helps people find and get jobs and even start up their own businesses - with a range of support on offer.

WORK FOCUSED TRAINING

Work Focused training is one Strand of the Young person’s Guarantee aimed at 18 to 24 year olds coming to the Six month stage of their JSA claim in South of Scotland areas only

Job Centre Plus will be responsible for checking eligibility and referring suitable trainees to the identified Training Provider in each area. This includes completion of person specification form.

Training offered will reflect current local labour market opportunities.

The Training will be tailored to the needs of the individual in terms of vocational skills needs but should also take account of their employability related skills needs to make them more marketable to employers.

WFT providers to provide Job Centre Plus with feedback on successful and unsuccessful referrals

SDS will issue a “Letter of Intent” to Training Providers in February; this will allow providers to set up and get recruitment process underway.

Starts will be recruited during the period February through to the end of June.

The length of training will be between 3 and 6 months. Trainees will attend a minimum of 16hrs per week.

TARGETED PATHWAYS TO APPRENTICESHIPS

This pilot is part of ScotAction – the Scottish Government’s skills support package to help the economy out of recession and back to economic growth by equipping individuals with the skills required to gain and progress in employment. The pilot offers a response to local needs and fits with partnership activity.

The pilot aims to respond to the number of young unemployed people who are currently on the Skills Development Scotland (SDS) Insight Register, making the transition from school but who are unable to access either:

Employment - due to the economy
Apprenticeships - due to lack of availability of provision due to the economic downturn
Get Ready for Work – due to them not meeting eligibility criteria
Further and Higher Education – insufficient places available due to the economy

Forward Training Partnership shall deliver the short vocational programme (for a duration of up to 16 weeks, excluding the Engineering sector: up to 26 weeks duration) by providing every eligible young person with an individual programme of guidance and support that will enable and encourage progression to sustained employment, education or further training. Sector specific short programmes will aim to provide young people with the transferable skills and confidence needed to gain positive and sustained engagement, including continued learning, in the labour market. Career Planning/Employability support will derive from SDS Careers Essential input where staff capacity allows.