Routes into Training and Employment

Routes into Training and Employment

Introduction • Promoting the employability of parents is one of the four core Sure Start service targets for the period 2003-04 to 2005-06 • It represents the contribution of Sure Start Local Programmes to the general strengthening of communities

Research Questions • Which courses did parents attend? • Why did parents attend courses? • What difference did attending a Sure Start course make to parents? • Which factors promoted access to courses?

Evidence Base • Data from 3 programmes • Survey • 96 questionnaires returned • Interviews with parents • 25 • Interviews with service providers • Job Centre Plus • College of Further Education • Local employer

Survey: Pattern of Response Gender Age % %

Mapping Courses to Sure Start Targets • 49 courses across 3 programmes • Improving social and emotional development • Parents Matter • Personal Development • Indian Head Massage • Time Out • Committee Skills • Young Parenting

Improving Health • Chill out and Change • Healthy Eating • Food Hygiene • Baby and Child Lifesaver • Drugs Awareness • Outdoor Health and Safety • Community Health • St. John’s Ambulance First Aid: Early Years • Anatomy and Physiology Level 3

Improving Ability to Learn • Christmas Crafts • Top Tots • Story Sacs • Jollyphonics workshop • Introduction to Childcare (Fathers/male carers) • National Tests: Maths and English • NVQ 3 Childcare and Early Education

Strengthening Families and Communities • Digital Photography • Plumbing • Counselling • OCN Family History • Aromatherapy: levels 1 and 3 • Computer course: level 1 • Childcare: level 1 • NVQ 3 Childcare and Early Years Education

Reasons for Course Attendance I thought going on the first aid course would help me as a parent, you know if anything happened to my child, an accident %

I am a lot more confident around people and my child is a lot more happy meeting other people Perceived Benefits %

Hopes and Benefits • Most parents attended courses to gain a qualification and benefit themselves as parents • Only 25% of parents took up courses with the stated aim of helping them into employment – (consistent with NESS findings) • However, on completing the course most valued gaining confidence and learning new skills more highly than gaining a qualification

Promoting Access to Courses: What Works • Localised • Staged • Responsive • Flexible

Promoting Access to Courses: What Works • Course development: user led • Information sharing: diverse local strategy • Progression routes • Taster: Glass Painting; Computing; Reflexology • Leisure: Salsa; Christmas Craft • Semi-formal: Jolly Phonics; Committee Skills; Personal Development; Healthy Eating • Formal – Food Hygiene; Child Care, NVQ Levels 1, 2 and 3, Aromatherapy, levels 1, 2 and 3; Computer (CLAIT level 1)

Promoting Access:What Works • Provision of free child care • 54% of all respondents had used child care facilities • Sure Start offer crèche facilities – it’s a big incentive • The child care is wonderful - if there was no child care , I wouldn’t be able to do a course

Promoting Access:What Works • Course timing • Male carers: evening and weekend • Female carers: school hours • Transport • In-course support • Learning Mentors

Volunteering Helping out with Sure Start has given me confidence, I've gone on to do interviews and given speeches, I'd never have done that before • Volunteering was seen as an opportunity to build confidence and gain work experience across programmes • Parent representatives and mentors (supported by training): 70 parents across 6 programmes • Peer support: breast feeding • Planning and delivering activities

Value of Volunteering A strong culture of volunteering brings with it confident individuals, empowered communities which are safe and friendly places to live, better services, local and national government which is more responsive and a more vibrant economy David Blunkett, 2001

I'll attend courses like childcare, just to meet the parents in the coffee break. I can chat to them over coffee, so it's informal. Job Centre Plus Partnership Working • Job Centre Plus • Local delivery (attend Young Parents group, CAB Drop in sessions) • Sign posting parents on to Sure Start courses • Action Teams for Jobs • Local colleges of Further Education

Local Employer Perspectives • A large local employer identified a clear link between using Sure Start and/or attending its courses and employability

Local Employer Perspective If a parent has used Sure Start and their activities or courses or has become a parent volunteer, this tells me, the employer, that this person has shown initiative. They have made a decision to go through the door. If they are doing courses, it doesn’t really matter which ones, they have the basic skills we require. These are all skills we would look for to deliver effective customer service, so we would be very interested in that person.

Key Findings • Relatively high numbers of parents engaged in training courses, compared to programmes studied by NESS (2004) • High level of father involvement in one programme and young parents in another • Only 25% of parents took up courses with the stated aim of helping them into employment – (consistent with NESS findings) • Growth in confidence was the greatest perceived benefit from course attendance

Recommendations • Develop informal monitoring systems which track parent progress and outcomes • Ensure clear progression routes from taster/introductory courses to advanced level 3 NVQ courses • Explore the introduction of Individual learning plans to assist parents in planning their own learning goals and possible learning routes

Routes into Training and Employment