Recent Assignments

Our recent assignments have included;

• Undertook regular quality monitoring visits to an East London based training provider to review their progress against a quality framework. Provision of support the provider, develop a Self Assessment report against the requirements of the Ofsted Common Inspection Framework.

• Evaluated and reported of the findings from an ESF Enterprise Motivator Project delivered in South West London, including contractual requirements (performance and achievement of results), a review and interpretation of resulting programme data graphically, analysis of the participant database, telephone interviews with a 15% representative sample of learners and key staff, identification of lessons learnt, drawing conclusions and providing recommendations.

• Day to day management of a project designed to source work experience opportunities for young people undertaking Programme Led Apprenticeships and Apprentices at risk of redundancy., sourcing and completing employer checks, partnership working with training providers to source young people requiring work experience, completion of eligibility checks and training plans with young people, and progress and financial reporting on the project.

• Completed an evaluation of the DWP draft Merlin Standard, designing suitable questions based on documentary evidence, interviewing a sample of Advisory and Project Group members, reporting on the findings and providing conclusions and recommendations.

• Worked with and supporting a Charity towards their achievement of the Practical Quality Assurance System for Small Organisations (PQASSO) Quality Mark.

• Interviewed all Heads of School's within an FE College to enable the completion of a scoping exercise against Part 1 of the Training Quality Standard and the subsequent reporting of the findings for an FE College in South West London.

• Employer Engagement - interviewing traders to identify businesses training needs and the subsequent reporting of the findings in a large food and floral market in south London.

• Skills for Jobs Offenders in the Community – Successfully wrote and submitted the bid for an FE College in South West London jointly with a charity working with offenders in the community, resulting in the award of the contract for delivery across thirteen London boroughs, the due contract management and subsequent extension of the programme.

• The interim management of a Local Employment Partnership contract in Wandsworth.

• As a member of a partnership group, the development, preparation and writing of a bid for a London council's tender to help young disaffected young people find and sustain employment.

• Evaluation of a charities Workstep provision for disabled people wanting to return to employment with long term support against the Common Inspection Framework in Essex, Kent, Surrey, Sussex, Sunderland and Tyneside. Developed, prepared and wrote the organisations Self Assessment Report including interviewing staff, stakeholders and learners. Analysis of the organisation's MI data to demonstrate and confirm continuing performance improvements over a three year period, for start's, jobs and sustained jobs against a range of criteria. Action planning the organisations strengths and weaknesses from their first Adult Learning Inspectorate inspection report.

• Development and design of processes for a Skills Division within a Skills and Welfare to Work training provider in London and across south England, which enabled them to operate in a consistent manner across there different locations.

• Production of an expression of interest/tender for a partnership between an FE college, specialised training provider and Crown Weston Associates to provide provision to disaffected and disengaged BME males into education, training and sustainable employment in Wandsworth.

• Conducted interviews with stakeholders of a managing agent across Sussex that worked to help and support people who have had mental health issues and are now recovered and are ready and wanting to return to employment.

• Evaluation of an LSC ESF Co-financed project aimed at providing comprehensive e-Business health checks for SME's and ICT qualifications equivalent to NVQ levels 3 and 4. Beneficiaries included those from ethnic minority groups, women, and excluded employees and employers with low Information Technology Communication skills and qualifications working in SMEs. The health check was aimed at identifying those areas where businesses required assistance in developing the use of ICT and wireless security. The ICT qualifications enabled staff to gain the necessary skills to provide ICT and wireless security first line support and interventions for SMEs. The project was targeted at businesses in the London Central Learning and Skills Council area covering the boroughs of Southwark, Lambeth, Wandsworth, Kensington & Chelsea, Westminster, Camden and Islington.

• Review of a Welfare to Work providers Self Assessment Report, checking actions from their previous Adult Learning Inspectorate Inspection and conducting interviews with staff to confirm employee's adherence to processes and systems when working with clients seeking to re-engage into the labour market. This work identified the organisation's strengths and weaknesses and provided recommendations on how the strengths could be further developed and areas for improvement addressed. A draft Self Assessment Report for the organisation was provided to record this work.

• Close partnership working with a Charity was undertaken to develop and assist in the preparation of the organisations Self Assessment Report, including strengths and areas for improvement. This work was undertaken through interviewing a range of staff at different levels within the organisation, stakeholders and clients across the UK. The work incorporated an assessment of the organisation's readiness against the Workwise standard.

• Worked in partnership and supported a local authority in Kent to develop and implement business continuity plans through undertaking business impact analysis, the development of service area and corporate business continuity plans, delivery of training across a range of locations for the authority and using scenarios to assist in raising awareness. We have also actively promoted business continuity to both businesses and voluntary sector organisations through a range of media and events.

• Project managed the re-establishment of a Public Service Sector Partnership network in the East Midlands including the Emergency Services, NHS, Police, Prison Service, Universities and City and County Councils.

• Facilitated, led and supported a Private Sector Led New Deal provider in the development of Self Assessment reports and Quality Improvement Plans against the Common Inspection Framework for Adult Learning Inspectorate (ALI) inspections.

• Updated, revised, reviewed and maintained core business processes for a Quality Management System based on the ISO 9001:2000 Quality Standard, resulting in the customer maintaining and being successfully ISO 9001:2000 re-accredited for a further three years.

• Revised, updated and re-launched a national customer feedback, suggestions and complaints process, resulting in 95% levels of customer satisfaction. The development of intranet page's to support and publicise these processes and associated literature.

• Interim project and supply chain management of a European Social Fund co - financed partnership programme to assist people from deprived communities improve their language skills to gain Entry Level qualifications and employment.