University Centre Leeds’ pioneering work showcased in national campaign

Written by Jim Jack on September 10, 2024. Posted in News, Partnerships, Teaching and Learning

University Centre Leeds is being hailed as a model example of how education providers should be working with employers.

The University Centre works closely with a number of businesses and organisations (including the NHS) and, in recent years, has strengthened those ties by pioneering Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs).

Designed to follow on from T Levels and A Levels, HTQs are developed in consultation with employers to ensure they produce ‘industry-ready’ individuals equipped with the specific skills needed to start in quality, advanced level roles.

Impressed by the University Centre’s track record of collaborating with businesses like Leeds-based cybersecurity solutions firm BlackDice, the Department for Education (DfE) visited earlier this year to make a video showcasing its approach.

Building talent pipelines

The resulting two-minute film can now be seen on the National Careers Service’s YouTube channel, entitled ‘HTQs help businesses to build their talent pipeline’.

The Univeristy Centre’s Dean of Higher Education, Dr Sarah Marquez, said: “Our work with employers to ensure our HTQs deliver exactly what they, our region and its economy needs is something we are very proud of.

“We became the first education institution in Yorkshire to gain approval to use the new quality mark, initially for our Cyber Security, Software Development and Computer Science courses, which launched in 2022.

“Since then we have expanded our HTQ portfolio to now include twelve other subjects, including health play specialism, business enterprise and management, healthcare assistant practitioner, PE and sport coaching, engineering, childcare, biomedical sciences, film and screen media, and animation.

“It is a testament to the quality and breadth of our offering that the Department for Education chose to visit us and record interviews about our collaboration with thriving businesses like BlackDice. We look forward to seeing how the footage is used to support what is a really important push to get more people, and businesses, to make the most of their potential by developing their higher technical skills.”

An ‘attractive proposition’ for businesses

The University Centre has been working closely with BlackDice’s Chief Operating Officer, Sarah Hague – who was also interviewed for the videos – on aspects of its cyber security and computer science degrees.

During her interview, Sarah said: “Students leaving with an HTQ will be a really attractive proposition for employers.

“Through occupational standards they will have developed the skills and knowledge that employers have asked for.

“For BlackDice, HTQs mean that we’ll be able to tap into work-ready talent that we might not have had access to.”

The University Centre is currently working with 120 employers and using their feedback to develop its courses – while aiming to team up with a further 50 in the near future.

• Continue Reading

Funding to boost adult numeracy skills in West Yorkshire

Written by Jim Jack on May 15, 2023. Posted in News, Teaching and Learning

Two of our colleges have secured nearly £480,000 to boost adult numeracy skills in the region.

Leeds City College and Keighley College will receive just under £434,000 and £45,500 respectively via the Department for Education-led Multiply programme.

They will use the money to fund a multi-pronged push to raise standards among adults who don’t have a Level 2 qualification – roughly equivalent to a GCSE grade 4, or the old C grade – in maths.

The work will involve supporting learners through putting on new, flexible courses designed to fit around their lives, and training more staff to teach numeracy.

A practical focus

The focus will be on functional, rather than theoretical, maths to show how useful it can be in real-life situations ranging from budgeting for shopping to understanding borrowing, credit and interest.

Leeds City College’s Director of Adult Curriculum, Joanne Dye, said: “Everyone talks about how simple budgeting is, but many people find it hard even though it is an essential skill – and especially important now while we face a cost of living crisis.

“We are delighted to have secured funding to deliver this vital programme. We are committed to improving access to numeracy skills for adults in our region, and this programme is an important step in that direction.”

Addressing a costly skills gap

A 2022 report found that more than half – 52% – of adults in West Yorkshire were at ‘entry level and below’ in terms of numeracy. National Numeracy’s research, meanwhile, says low numeracy skills could be costing the UK up to £25 billion a year.

The Multiply programme – which is being funded over three years, with West Yorkshire Combined Authority distributing the finances – will seek to address the issue locally by reengaging adults with maths.

Leeds City College and Keighley College are already piloting a project that asks English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) students to take on tasks like banking or supermarket shopping.

The programme will also open up new work and educational possibilities for participants, and take them a step closer to being able to benefit from further support such as the Lifelong Loan Entitlement.

Making maths accessible to all

Luminate Education Group Vice Principal Ann Marie Spry, said: “We need to support those who still need to get Levels 1 and 2 in maths, and have a fear of the subject, to thrive in their personal and professional lives.

“Offering bespoke support, this programme will also help English for Speakers of Other Languages students who struggle with language barriers.

“We hope that through delivering the programme we can help adults in all walks of life develop improved financial skills; from planning their meals, or creating shopping lists and budgets, to understanding taxes and pensions.

“This will enable them to create a system to feel more financially secure, now and in the future.”

Multiply’s aims are part of a wider push by the government to improve and extend maths skills across the country, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recently announcing his ambition to get everyone studying maths until the age of 18.

• Continue Reading

Using the seven pillars of STEM to create tomorrow’s workforce

Written by Jim Jack on August 19, 2024. Posted in News, Teaching and Learning, Uncategorized

The Labour government has made economic growth its top priority, but to drive this it will need to address skills shortages in the STEM sector which are holding us back to the tune of £1.5bn per year, writes Ann Marie Spry, our Vice Principal of Adults.

Colleges and higher education institutions like ours clearly play a vital role in addressing this problem – but not only through teaching the technical skills our learners need to succeed.

After analysing employer reports about recruitment in STEM fields a few years ago, what came over loud and clear was that while many of the students had the knowledge needed for the job, they didn’t have the necessary – and equally vital – behaviours.

So looking through a number of documents that mapped out the key characteristics that STEM employers were looking for, we whittled them down to create what we have called STEM 7. These are the attitudes and behaviours that underpin not just the science and tech industries but all kinds of jobs, from pastry chefs to fashion designers.

A skillset that transcends boundaries

STEM 7 consists of: creative thinking, problem-solving, communication, collaborative working, intellectual curiosity, flexibility and data-driven decision making. Just about all of those concepts are actually relevant regardless of the subject. Everybody these days has to use digital technology and maths in one way or another, and if you think of the design approach and problem-solving inherent to engineering, most jobs require creativity too.

Our challenge, as educators, is to ensure our curriculum provides opportunities for students to step out of their comfort zones and take on tasks in some of those STEM 7 areas they may struggle with. Engineers, for example, are known for having many important qualities – including problem-solving and, through their design approach, creativity. But they are not traditionally renowned for their collaborative approach or communication skills, both of which are  invaluable in the workplace.

That’s something our approach can help students with before they join the world of work, by stretching and developing them to ensure they have some of those transferable skills that businesses of all types really value.

And we know it’s working. We included some of our partner employers, like tech consultancy BJSS, in the first discussions about our STEM 7 strategy to make sure they were on board, and they’ve been nothing but supportive.

Opening minds

Introducing this concept has meant challenging both ourselves and our students to broaden how we think about STEM. As someone with a science background I feel strongly that many people tend to have a fear of ‘science’ and the STEM subjects, but that’s something we can and will change because it’s all around us in everything we do daily. 

One key way of doing so is through revising how we teach and moving away from the thoroughly unhelpful old perspective that saw technical and artistic courses as being entirely separate. Thankfully, there is an increasing awareness that both disciplines depend on each other and share many underlying principles, not least when it comes to creativity and intellectual curiosity.

The shorthand for this new perspective is STEAM (essentially, STEM plus the Arts) and Computer Game Design and Development is a classic example of STEAM in action. We teach the subject at Leeds City College as part of our very broad offering from the School of Creative Arts, at Quarry Hill campus – and it is the epitome of a field where technical know-how and creativity are equally important.

An immersive approach

Combined with this more open-minded perspective on what actually constitutes a STEM topic is the need to exploit emerging immersive technologies like AI and VR.

Such tools can offer great benefits to our students and the industries they want to enter. If you are studying healthcare, for example, you really want to learn on a hospital ward and we can offer that; indeed it will be one of the many new facilities that Harrogate College will provide following its £22m rebuild.

What VR does though, is give you so many additional options – in this case it allows you to change ward layouts, for example, and patient scenarios so that students are exposed to a wider set of challenges and leave college with a deeper understanding of what their jobs will entail.

We are already successfully using VR in welding at Keighley College, while across our group emerging technologies are helping us enhance the teaching of everything from science to electric vehicle infrastructure.

By combining these high-tech teaching aids with a STEM 7 approach, which also delivers those in-demand ‘softer skills’, we will start to plug those STEM-shaped holes in  the country’s economy.

This thought leadership piece was recently published in FE Week.

• Continue Reading

Meet our new Vice Principal of Curriculum and Skills

Written by Jim Jack on August 12, 2024. Posted in News

Natalie Wilson has been appointed as our new Group Vice Principal of Curriculum and Skills.

Natalie is the newest member of the group’s Executive Leadership Team and will be responsible for enhancing and developing our external networks with local partners and employers. She will also play a key role in ensuring that Luminate Education Group leads the way in plugging skills gaps, in the region and beyond, while delivering the training our learners and apprentices need to thrive.

Natalie has a strong skills and education background, having worked in further education colleges, independent training providers, commercial training businesses, awarding organisations and in learning and development roles. A leadership and management specialist, she also has a keen interest in social value impact which she looks forward to maximising within the group. 

A great time to make a difference

She said: “I’m excited to be joining at a key time when the group is looking to further embrace its role as a key regional skills provider with the potential to boost the area’s economic growth, as well as transform lives. 

“The educational network offers a unique service to its local communities and places the needs of its learners at the heart of skills development; that excites me, as this is where I believe we have the most impact on the economy and the regions we serve.”

• Continue Reading