This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Keeping older workers at the top of their game
07/08/2006
An initiative that aims to bring older workers back into learning will continue to benefit from Executive funding until 2008.
The Experience Counts initiative provides tailored learning programmes for over 50s to raise confidence and allow learners to acquire new skills. Through the programme, Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) collaborate with employers and learning institutions to provide 'bite size' or taster courses dependent on employer and worker needs.
The programme is running in three phases - today's announcement represents the second phase and sees four SSCs which operate across Scotland receive £224,000 to deliver a range of activities from enhancing the continuous professional development of staff in Scottish Colleges to the development of an older colleague mentoring programme in the transport sector.
In addition, a further £56,000 is being made available for further projects in the third phase of the programme with the application process for funding to start soon.
Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Allan Wilson said:
"We are living longer, we are working longer and the world is moving fast. So it's vital that learning opportunities are available to meet those changing needs.
"Learning shouldn't end when we close the school or college door - it should be a genuinely lifelong experience. That is why I am delighted to announce this funding which will continue to benefit workers over the age of 50 as well as the organisations they work for and the Scottish labour market as a whole.
"Experience Counts ensures that older workers can be competitive in the modern workplace. By combining older workers' wealth of professional experience with new knowledge and skills development we can further Scotland's commitment to a world-class professional environment."
A total of £500,000 was made available for the Older Learners Programme over the three financial years 2005/06, 2006/07 and 2007/08. Around half of this was already allocated to three SSCs in January this year as part of the first stage of the programme. The remainder of the funding will be made available for the four SSCs taking part in the second phase as well as Stage 3. A further £56,000 will also be available for the third stage.
Training courses will be provided by employer-led Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) in collaboration with further education colleges. The Skills for Business Network in Scotland is a network of SSCs which are employer-led organisations set up to identify and tackle industry skills needs.
Three SSCs have taken part in the first phase of the programme: Lantra, which represents land-based industries; Skillsmart, which covers the retail sector and Skills for Logistics, which covers the freight logistic industries. A further four SSCs (GoSkills; People 1st; SEMTA and Lifelong Learning UK) have successfully secured funding from Stage 2 of the Programme: Go Skills which covers businesses working in the UK transport passenger sector; SEMTA which covers science, engineering and manufacturing technologies; Lifelong Learning UK which covers Further Education, Higher Education, Libraries and Archives and Information services; and People 1st the SSC for the hospitality, leisure, travel and tourism industries. Of the £500,000 there remains £34,000 still to be allocated.
An additional £56,000 is now being made available for cross-sector proposals giving a total of £90,000 to be allocated. The Executive is currently consulting with the SSCs to establish whether there is an appetite for smaller projects or one large project to be developed. Further information about the application process for these funds will be available soon. Skills Councils interested in applying for funding through a collaborative bid will be invited to submit applications for this funding soon.