A
nationwide programme to improve knowledge and skills in the work place by
attracting 50,000 adults into further education is being introduced by the new
Learning and Skills Council.
The
LSC, which was launched today by Education and Employment Secretary David
Blunkett, is to introduce bite-size courses aimed at attracting more than 1,000
new adult learners in each of its 47 local offices throughout England.
Courses
are funded by the LSC’s £5.5 billion budget and will range from using a
computer and surfing the Internet to basic numeracy, literacy and
communication.
The
courses will be held both in colleges and in employers’ premises, department
stores, keep fit centres and pubs and will be between one and two hours in
length so people can attend during a lunch hour or after work.
Bryan
Sanderson, chairman of the LSC, commented, “The challenge is enormous. Nearly six
million adults have no qualifications of any kind and nearly one third of
British workers have no formal training opportunities offered to them by their
current employer.
John
Harwood, chief executive of the LSC, thinks the new organisation will make a
major contribution to the UK’s economy.
He
added, “The success of the Learning and Skills Council will affect the success of
the entire country. If a single course can improve the potential of one person,
then thousands can improve the potential of the country.
“We
will improve the links between education and business to raise overall economic
performance.”
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