Cornwall and Isles of Scilly small businesses urged to take advantage of £4.6m free training pot to develop employees’ skills

Small and medium sized enterprises across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly are being urged to take advantage of £4.6m of free skills training for their workforce before the deadline to make use of the funds expires in July 2018.
The free training is available as part of a new programme named Skills Support for the Workforce (SSW), which Serco’s Employment, Skills & Enterprise business has been selected to manage across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly by the Skills Funding Agency.

The programme, which is co-funded by the European Social Fund and the Skills Funding Agency, involves Serco working in partnership with the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership to support growth across all sectors of the economy. Serco has partnered with expert training providers to offer local businesses a range of fully-funded accredited qualifications and bespoke training courses aimed at enhancing employees’ skills and increasing the competitiveness of local businesses.

The training takes place at employees’ workplaces and businesses can select full qualifications or mix and match individual units that are directly relevant to their work. Previous programme participants have benefited from increased employee confidence, motivation and productivity and improved employee loyalty and retention.

Free training available as part of the programme includes:  Basic skills training in literacy and numeracy, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), and general employment skills such as communication and team working
 Intermediate and Higher level skills training in a range of subjects such as IT, Leadership and Management
 Vocation specific qualifications at Basic, Intermediate and Higher Levels in sectors such as Marine, Tourism, Digital

In addition to businesses, individuals can also benefit from the programme directly if they are self-employed or unemployed due to redundancy and requiring higher level skills. Gareth Moss, Serco’s Director for Employment, Skills and Enterprise, said: “Developing employees’ skills is a vital part of building a successful business. We’d urge local employers to take advantage of this brilliant opportunity to strengthen the skills of their workforce through training which is not only fully-funded, but also designed to meet their specific needs.”

Mark Duddridge, Chair of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership said: “To ensure the prosperity of business and the well-being of people in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, it is essential we equip them with the necessary skills to be successful and enjoy progressive careers.”

Businesses can contact Serco on skillssupport@serco.com for more details and to find out if they are eligible for
funded training through Skills Support for the Workforce.
Ends
For further information, please contact:
Marianna Barillec, Marketing Manager, Employment Skills and Enterprise
Tel: 0121 683 4108 or Email: marianna.barillec@serco.com
Adam Williams, Head of Media Relations
Tel: 07718 025 085 or Email: adam.williams2@serco.com

Notes to editors:
About Serco
Serco is a leading provider of public services. Our customers are governments or others operating in the public sector. We gain scale, expertise and diversification by operating internationally across five sectors and four geographies: Defence, Justice & Immigration, Transport, Health and Citizen Services, delivered in UK & Europe, North America, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. More information can be found at www.serco.com
European Social Fund
The project value is up to £4.6m. It is co-financed by the Skills Funding Agency (SFA) and the European Social Fund (ESF) as part of the 2014-2020 European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme in England. The Department for Work and Pensions is the Managing Authority for the England ESF programme. Established by the European Union ESF funds help local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support innovation, businesses, skills development, job creation, social inclusion and local community regenerations. For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/european-growth-funding