Lack Of Awareness About Delivering Effective Courses Say Training Providers

Research findings commissioned by the DFES into national skill gaps have infuriated training providers over the appalling lack of awareness about delivering effective courses.

The Institute for Employment Studies (IES), which conducted the research, has published a report called The Good Practice in Assess-Train-Assess Approaches to Workforce Development, in a bid to raise more awareness and improve such courses such as NVQs.

Lead author and senior research fellow Linda Miller said,

“I was appalled when I started the research. It’s staggering how little understanding there is out there at the most basic level of how NVQs should work, and it’s frightening how many training providers are not assessing needs on an individual basis.”

The research also involved carrying out detailed telephone interviews with 21 training providers in the further education and private sectors. The researchers discovered that much of the training provision was still premature. The IES research included a variety of solutions on the best ways to conduct an initial audit of employer skill needs. Providing helpful tips on identifying individual training needs and producing ideas to customise training so that it is cost-effective were some of the prime examples.

Tony Goddard, training manager at brake pads and lining manufacturer Federal Moguls, also added his criticism,

“Colleges and providers try to push courses that are funded. They know we”ll be interested because it’s free. But it’s not always what you want. We recently told a college what we wanted and it tried to coerce us down a different route.”

However, Martyn Sloman, CIPD adviser of learning, training and development has warned against the criticism, urging more support from employers by stating that it was the job of training managers to ensure they get good value for money.

Kavita Trivedi