Centre for Research in Education Inclusion and Diversity (CREID)

Skills for Scotland: Learning in and for businesses

Enhancing Scotland’s economic growth and social well-being has been a key aim of successive Scottish governments, and the recent economic strategy states a commitment to making Scotland a smarter, wealthier and fairer country. The Government’s Skills Strategy identifies further education colleges and universities as essential in the development of a highly qualified workforce, but surveys carried out by Futureskills Scotland have shown that employers are less inclined to use formal education provision, preferring to purchase bespoke training from private training providers.

The aim of this project is to examine the measures taken by colleges and trade unions to address the need to provide more flexible courses to encourage greater uptake of learning in the workplace.

Learning in and for businesses aims to:

  • examine the impact of learning tailored to the needs of the workplace on employees and businesses
  • investigate the process of developing courses specifically aimed at those in the workplace
  • examine the role of union learning representatives in supporting workplace learning
  • explore the value of using accredited units of learning that can provide stepping stones to further qualifications

Project outputs

Funder

European Union

Project team

Start date 1st June 2008
End date 31st May 2011