North West Collective Learning Fund

NORTH WEST COLLECTIVE LEARNING FUNDS -

A CASE STUDY

Contents2 Contents

3 Introduction

4 Merseytravel

6 UsdawCheckoutLearning

8 UsdawAndArgosWidnes

10 PCsAndOfficeNationalstatistics

12 TgWUAndArgosHeywoodDistributionCentre

14 CWUandTheRoyalMail

16 AmicusandManchesterAirport

18 UsdawandUnichem

3

It is widely recognised that the future prosperity of

the United Kingdom within the global economy is

dependent on increasing the skills of the workforce.

In response to this the Labour government has

sought to promote and facilitate Lifelong Learning

since coming to power in 1997. significant progress

hasalreadybeenmade.Over1.7millionadultshave

gained literacyandnumeracyqualificationsthrough

theskillsforLifeprogrammeandmorethanamillion

adults have achieved the platform of employability

skillsthroughalevel2qualification.Yet,theambitious

targets outlined in the Leitch Report ‘Prosperity for

AllintheglobalEconomy:WorldClassskills’ indicate

thattheseachievementsneedtobeconsolidatedand

extendedfurtheriftheambitionofjoiningtheworlds

‘premierleague’forskillsistoberealised.

Onewaytodothisisthroughnegotiatedagreements

between trade unions and employers to set up

collective arrangements to pool resources and

increase value for money in support of learning in

theworkplace.Withthisinmind,theDepartmentfor

Innovationandskills(DIUs),theTradeUnionCongress

(TUC) and unionlearn are working together on the

North West Collective Learning Fund (CLF) Project

to identify, pilot and evaluate a number of different

approaches forpooling resources,bothcashand in-

kind,providedbythestate,individualemployeesand

employers.Thefindingswillbebroughttogetherina

reporttoproviderecommendationstoMinisters,that

setoutsomerealwaysofworking inpartnership to

support the development needs of both individuals

andbusiness.

I hope you find the case studies below useful in

providing an early outline of the partnerships, co-

investmentmethodsandactiontakenbytradeunion

colleagues, to test innovative ways of resourcing

effectivelearningpartnershipsintheworkplace.

FrankHegarty

ProjectCo-ordinator

Introduction and Background

NORTH WEST COLLECTIVE LEARNING FUNDS A CASE STUDY

4 5

co-investment action

The Partnership

The Union Learning Representative

ThekeyfunctionsundertakenbytheULRstoimplement

theCLFpilotaresetoutbelow:

worktowardsbuildinganeffectiveco-investment

approachacrossMerseytraveloperations

actasinitialpointofreferenceforallCLFenquiries

encouragethestaffwithintheMerseytravelto

investinworkforcedevelopment

provideaccesstopersonaldevelopment

opportunities

continuetodeveloplearningresourcescentre

withintheworkplace

assistinimplementingthegovernment’scurrent

learninginitiatives

workonpartnershipwithotherorganisationssuch

astheunionlearnandtheLearningskillsCouncil

toensurethepartnershipisasuccessandcanbe

sustained

Employer contributions - courses currently run

under the remit of personal development will be

identified for budgeting purposes

Trade union/individual contribution - how will

the trade unions at Merseytravel raise their

contribution towards the fund? Including, the

feasibility of non-members paying into the fund

A CLF Constitution - application/approval process,

i.e. what criteria will applications be considered

against - rules to be eligible to make an application

for support and programmes that can be funded.

Appeals process if application is refused.

Financial management of the fund - will

Merseytravel Accounts Department be able to

support?

Who will operate the fund on a day-to-day basis?

What responsibility will the ULRs have?

How will the CLF link into other training funding

initiatives, including the services provided

through the Government’s Train to Gain?

Merseytravel is an organisation that has developed a

partnershipapproachtolearninganddevelopment.It

haswellestablishedstructuresonthelearningagenda

throughbodiessuchasthejointlearningforumwhere

managementandtradeunionlearningrepresentatives

meetonaregularbasistotakeforwardlearningwithin

the organisation and oversee the operation of the

LearningCentres.

As an employer, Merseytravel has supported a wide

rangeofdevelopmentactivitiesoutsideofwhatwould

normally be provided through standard workforce

development.Theseinclude:

Well-publicised skills for life agenda with full time

given/timebackinlieuforallskillsforLifelearning

ICTforstaffinNonICTrolerangingfromswitch-On

toECDL

Language training with open college network

coursesrunningofaneveningandduringlunchtime

onMerseytravelpremises

Tastersessionsonalternativetherapies

Digitalphotography

Through a mixture of employer support and other

fundingsourcesithasbeenpossibletoprovidethese

programmesfreeofchargetoMerseytravelstaff.

Due to changing in funding regimes it is proving

increasinglydifficultforfundingtobeprovidedforstaff

toundertakesuchcourses(withtheexclusionofskills

forLife)freeofcharge.

In order to receive employer financial support it has

always been necessary to link the programmes to

specific business benefits, e.g. upskilling all staff in

ICT helps a smother implementation of IT in new

areas,provisionof languagetraininghelpstosupport

LiverpoolbeingEuropeanCapitalofCulture,provision

of aspiring supervisors programme assists with

successionplanningintheorganisation.Howeverthis

hasrestrictedtherangeofcoursesithasbeenpractical

tooffer

Due to the structures already in place within

Merseytravel it was felt that the creation of a

Collective Learning Fund (CLF) would be relatively

straightforward. A decision was taken to create

a sub group of the Joint Learning Forum (JLF),

comprising of both Managers and union learning

representatives to oversee the creation of a co-

investment pilot

6 7

co-investment actionThe Partnership

Usdaw Checkout Learning




active participation within a network of other

tradeunionULRsacrossLiverpoolCityCentreand

Knowsleytopromoteandsupport learningwithin

theirstore

pilot thenotionofa‘Mobile’ULR topromote,co-

ordinate and organise the learning activity and

supportanddevelopthein-store’ULRs’

engagingwithlocalemployerstoactivelysupport

thecheckoutlearningprojectCLFpilot

developing new and innovative ways of making

learning accessible and affordable for their staff,

includingTraintogain.

identifying learning or training needs at the CLF

steeringgroup

promoting the value of investing in learning and

encouragingindividualcontributions

negotiating with employers to introduce suitable

co-investmentapproacheswithintheworkplace

The overall aims of the Collective Learning Fund

Pilot will be to raise awareness amongst employers

and employees within the retail sector about the

importance of training, development and broader

learning and the impact it has on both business and

the individual.

Also, the pilot aims make a broad range of vocational

and personal learning available to those employees

in the sector to ensure they can meet the demands of

the sector and fulfil their own potential.

It will do this through:

Working with a network of providers in Merseyside

to make available a range of accessible and

affordable learning beneficial to the individual, the

sector and the local economy.

examining the possibilities of a retail learning

voucher, or Collective / Individual Learning Account

designed to make learning affordable for retail

employees and redeemable through the network of

providers

developing a network of Union Learning Reps

(ULRs) across the region to promote and support

learning within their store

identifying and pilot the notion of a ‘ Mobile’ ULR

to promote, co-ordinate and organise the learning

activity and support and develop the in-store’ ULRs’

engaging with local employers to actively support

the checkout learning project and contribute to

making learning accessible and affordable for their

staff, including Train to Gain.

linking with appropriate regional/ national bodies

including Skillsmart, LSC, RDA to identify ways of

funding development within retail

ensuring the promotion of the project is an integral

part of Full Time Officer’s work within the region.

developing a range of publicity and promotional

materials to support the pilot

The pilot will run for 12 months and will be managed by

Usdaw and Union via ‘Retail Collective Learning Fund Steering

Group. Membership of the group will comprise of:-

Usdaw Lifelong Learning Project Worker / co-

ordinator

Mobile Union Learning Representative/s

Union Learn Project Worker

Representatives from each of the partner providers

L.S.C

Skillsmart

Next Steps

Employer Representative – where possible

The group will meet on a quarterly basis and will be

responsible for advising and guiding the development

and delivery of the project.

Given the priority status of retail and the recognised

need to attract and upskill employees in the sector, it is

proposed that a portfolio of learning and development

is devised and made available to retail workers in the

region.

To access the portfolio a ‘Learning Voucher’ redeemable

at partner colleges in the area will be introduced.

Administration of the voucher will be via the Mobile

ULR or ‘in store’ ULR and the learning offer would cover

a range of subjects both vocational and personal which

includes:-

Skills for Life (delivered in a variety of contexts)

Introductory ICT

ECDL / CLAIT

Internet & e Mai

Introductory Language courses

British Sign Language

NVQ in customer care, food hygiene – or other

appropriate vocational qualifications.

Usdaw’s accredited ‘return to learn’ course

RetailhasbeenidentifiedasoneofMerseyside’spriority

sectors,both in termsof recruitingandup-skilling it’s

growingworkforce

Usdawistheprimaryretailingunionwithrecognition

agreementsinfourofthe‘bigfive’foodretailersinthe

sector,i.e.Tesco,sainsburys,Morrison’sandsomerfield,

aswellasnumberoflargenon-foodretailers.

The retail sector in general is relatively low paid and

low skilled and employees on the whole have few, if

any,qualifications.

Despite Usdaw’s success in developing learning

strategiesandrecognisedlearningagreementsoutside

ofretail,whichhaveencouragedover20,000members

backintolearning, ithasprovenextremelydifficultto

formallyengageretailemployersintheagenda,despite

theintroductionofstatutoryrightsforULRs.

Usdawbelievetheyhaveadutytoensuremembersin

theretailsectorhaveaccesstoaccessibleandaffordable

learningtogainandvalidatetheskillsthatwillsecure

theiremployability,aidtheirprogressionandimprove

theirqualityoflife.

Making learning accessible to the retail membership

isnowanUsdawpriorityanddevelopingsustainable

models for retail to enable access and encourage

individualandemployer‘buyin‘hasbeenattheheart

ofourstrategyindevisingthe‘RetailCollectiveLearning

FundPilot’.

8 9





engaging with on-site company managers to

actively support the implementation of the CLF

pilotattheWidnessite


learningaccessibleandaffordableforstaff,including

Train to gain and other government sponsored

initiatives

Identifyinglearningortrainingneedsandappropriate

fundingroutes


encouragingindividualcontributions

negotiatingwiththeemployertoestablishsuitable


Develop a collective model of good practice with

employer,unionandproviders todelivera rangeof

accessible and affordable learning which meets the

needsoftheindividualandtheorganisation

Identifygapsincurrentmodelincludingfunding

Establish a programme of personal and vocational

learningtobedeliveredthroughtheon-sitelearning

centreincludingIAg

Examine current and future funding model for

learningandidentifyhowitcanbeimproved

UpdateexistingLearningAgreement

Identify ways of utilising government initiatives to

enhancethelearningoffere.g.Traintogain

Establishcurrentlearningtrendsoflearningandways

ofattractingnew/progressionlearners.

Measureimpactoflearning–Individual&Employer

Internalpromotions

Absenteeism

staffretention

Qualificationsgained

The Partnership

Usdaw and Argos Widnes

‘Home Retail group’ is a call centre site, employingapprox 1200 people dealing with the full range ofArgosandHomebasecallsandadministration.Usdaw have approximately 90% membership on siteandthelearningcentre‘TheLearningCurve’,establishedapproximately5yearsagohashelpedinthis.The site has well established union and learninginfrastructure which provides support for the ‘TheLearning Curve’. The centre offers a range of coursessuch as Basic Maths, English, IT, Languages and NVQs/ Apprenticeship training. It also boasts a joint sitelevelLearningCommitteeanda recognisedLearningAgreement, 9 trained ULRs and 2 ULR Learning Co-ordinatorsarefundedbytheCompany.

The partnership approach to learning at the site issupported by a robust relationship with KnowsleyCommunity College, providing vital input to theLearningCommitteetohelpmakelearningaccessibleandaffordable.

The NW CLF Project presented the site with theopportunitytolookmorecloselyattheeffectivenessofthepartnershipandhowitworks,particularlyinrelationtotheprovisionofvocationalskillsandindividualsownlearninganddevelopmentopportunities.Itencouragedthe site to evaluate the contributions of each of thepartners including the Company, Union, College andtheindividualsandtore-examinethepotentialofstatefunded support such as Train to gain which wouldotherwiseremaininguntapped.

InsummarytheoverallaimoftheCLFinitiativeatArgosistomaximisetheusageofthecollectivecontributionsandresourcesavailablewithinthepartnershiptoensurethe skill and learningneedsof thecompanyand theindividual were being met in the most effective way.Andsubsequentlytoimprovethelearningagreement,infrastructure,resourcesandprovideamorecohesiveframeworkofopportunitiestomeetthoseneeds.

10 11


The Partnership




meeting with ULRs from other government

Departmentstoexplorejointcollectiveapproaches

withinthelocalarea

identifyinggaps incurrentapproach to resourcing

learning at the Birkdale site including funding

issues

establishing a programme of personal and

vocational learningtobedeliveredthroughanew

on-sitelearningcentre

implementing effective information and guidance

processes

examining present and future plans for funding

learning at Birkdale to consider how better

collaborationbetweenULRsandtheemployercan

supporton-sitelearninganddevelopment

drawingupabusinesscasetomanagementforthe

LearningCentre

encouragingandsupportingalearningculturethat

establishes individual and employer investment

withinONs.

analysinglearningortrainingneeds

providing information or advice about learning or

trainingmatters

arranginglearningortraining

promoting the value of learning or training and

encouragingindividualinvestment

consulting the employer about carrying out new

and innovative approaches to resourcing learning

througheffectivecollaboration

Through the CLF pilot work is in place to build on

and develop the early successes by exploring new

ways to:

set up joint ventures/on-site learning centre with

othergovernmentDepartmentsinsouthport

supportotherfundraisingeventsfor‘learningatwork’

day

explore feasibilityof‘videoconferencecourses’with

otherunionbranches/ONssites

exploresettingupvideoconferencelearningevents

withlocalFEcolleges

build concrete CLF arrangements into learning

agreementwithmanagement

developeffectiveevaluation/reviewmechanismsto

informnextsteps;and

set up a ‘learning account’ for use by all sites and

learningpartners

develop a collective model of good practice with

employer,unionandproviderstodeliverarangeof

accessibleandaffordable learningwhichmeetsthe

needsoftheindividualandtheorganisation

Over900peopleworkatONssouthport,mostofthem

inthegeneralRegisterOffice(gRO).gROadministers

the registration of births, deaths and marriages in

England & Wales and maintains the National Health

service Central Register (NHsCR), an administrative

serviceprovidedtotheDepartmentofHealthandthe

NationalHealthservice.TheDepartmentalsohasasmall

numberofpeopleworkinginInformationManagement

andHumanResourcefunctions,providingsupport to

gRO.

Although part of ONs, the work of gRO is distinctly

non-statistical in nature, with most jobs having an

administrative,customerservicesorlegalfeeltothem.

PCs has been working to establish effective learning

partnershipswithONsatthesitesinceJuly2005when

theRegionalLearningservicesOfficerfirstvisitedthe

sitetoaddresstheBranchExecutiveCommittee(BEC).

since then five Union Learning Reps (ULRs) have

undertaken training and have conducted a staff

Learningsurvey,coordinatedreadinggroups,organised

twoLearningatWorkdaysandarrangedon-siteclasses

inspanishandBritishsignLanguage.ADepartmental

LearningAgreementhasbeennegotiatedandworkis

underwayonlocallevelagreements.ULRssitontheBEC

andattendTrainingLiaisonOfficerNetworkmeetings

soarethoroughlyinvolvedinthebranch.InAprilthis

year the employer demonstrated its commitment to

learningintheworkplacebysigningthegovernment’s

skillsPledgetohelpalleligibleemployeesbenefitform

supportaimedataddressingskillsforLifeneedsanda

firstfullNVQLevel2.

PCS and Office National Statistics

12 13


The Partnership




representing the views of employees at the CLF

steeringgroup

promoting the value of learning including the

benefitsandencouragingindividualcontribution

supporting and encouraging employees to

undertakeLifelongLearning

keepingup-to-dateonLifelongLearning initiatives

toadvisemembers

assistingwithemployerrequesttopromoteagreed

skillsdevelopmentactivity

receiving and communicating information about

Lifelong Learning activity and initiatives to all

employeesonsiteonaregularbasis

actingasexpertpointofreferenceforallenquireson

theCLFpilotanditsconstitution

buildonanddevelopearliersuccesswithrecenton-

sitelearningactivity

reviewexistingfundingarrangementsprovidedbythe

companytosupportlifelonglearningcourses

exploreinnovativewaystoencouragewiderindividual

contributions

considerhowacollectivefundmightenhanceexisting

union/employersupportforULRdevelopment

highlighttheadvantagesinapproachusedthrough

nationallearningagreementbetweencompanyand

unionsandlocalcollaborationsatsitelevel

exploretheissuesraisingbarrierstoinvolvementin

thegovernment’sTraintogainprogramme

explorelinks/possiblesupportbythesectorlead

(skillsforLogistics)

ArgosdistributioninHeywoodiscommittedtoworking

alongsideTgWUtomakeaneffectivecommitmentto

Lifelong Learning for all employees at the Heywood

site and to the agreed policy set out in the National

Learning Agreement. This was highlighted when

the senior ULRs and management team gave their

full agreement and commitment for a CLF pilot to

take place. A sub group of the Learning steering

Committeewasformedtoagreeadevelopmentplan

and agreement was gained for the CLF account to

bemanagedbythecompany in linewith itsexisting

accounting standards. This allows the company to

collect individual contributions to learning through

thestaffpayrollsystemsandreimburselocalproviders

throughthesamesystems.Aspreadsheethasbeenset

uptomonitorcourseattendanceandtheinformation

is used to highlight learning trends for discussion at

CLFmeetings.Throughthepilotthepartnershipcarried

outareviewofexistingfundingarrangementsandhas

alreadycarriedoutsomechangesatthelocallevel.One

exampleofthisiswhereunderanexistingarrangement

theCompanyhadoriginallyagreedtopaycoursefees,

approved by the learning partnership, on successful

completion of the course i.e. certification awarded.

FollowingdiscussionattheCLFsubgroup‘success’has

nowbeenredefinedasnothavingtopassandreceive

acertificatebutinsteadasdemonstrating‘willingness

tolearn’whichcanbeevidencedasattendanceatthe

fullcourseandcommitmenttolearningwhilethere.

Both the T&g and the Company believe that

Personal and Career Development complement

Job-specific Training and Development. Through

better collaboration and collective working both are

committedtomakinglearningasaccessibleaspossible

forallemployeesregardlessoftheirage,sex,race,and

disability or employee status. The Heywood on-site

learning facility is one example of this.The CLF pilot

aimstoharnessandmaximiseopportunitiesavailable

throughexternallocalandnationalinitiatives,suchas

accreditedlearningandtradeunioneducationandthe

UniversityforIndustry,aswellasopportunitiesavailable

throughinternalCompanytrainingprogrammes.

TGWU and Argos Heywood Distribution Centre

14 15


The Partnership




analysingindividuallearningortrainingneeds

managingCLFfunds

providinginformationoradviceabouttheCLFpilot

constitution

encouraging innovative approaches to support

sustainabilityoflearning

arranginglearningortrainingandprovidingfollow-

upsupport

promoting the value of learning and encouraging

individualcontributions

consultingtheemployeraboutincreasedpartnership

workingandsharedplanningforlearningactivity

TheCreweCLFpilotaimstobuildontheinitialsuccess

ofthelearningcentrebydevelopingfurtherlearning

opportunitiesforthe500membersonsiteandaround

150membersinthesatelliteunitswithinthesurrounding

area.Theactionplanincludesexpandingtherangeof

learningopportunitiesavailabletostaffthroughplans

involvingtheuseoflaptopsfordistancelearning.

ApproacheshavebeenmadetoRoyalMailtoenterinto

discussionsaboutaformalLearningAgreementatthe

sitetounderpintheco-investmentpartnership.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has

7 learning centres and over 100 Union Learning

Representatives in the North West. The Crewe CLF

pilot is a partnership between the CWU, and Royal

MailandiscentredintheLearningCentreattheRoyal

MailAutomatedProcessingCentreinCreweandinthe

satelliteoffices in the surroundingarea.RayAtkinson,

Regional Learning Project Worker recognised that

althoughdevelopmentofthecentrewasstillatavery

early stage, improved partnership working through a

CLFpilotwouldadd realvalueandcouldexpandon

the range of opportunities available at the site and

surroundingarea.

The partnership has already had early some success

withlearningfocussedaroundEsOL,spanishandBasic

Computing. some of these courses have been run in

partnership with other trade unions includingTgWU

Unite and the Fire Brigades Union and others with

largelocalemployerslikeCrewe&NantwichBorough

Council.

CWU and The Royal Mail

16 17


The Partnership




engaging with MAA HR team to actively support

theimplementationoftheCLFpilotattheAirport


learningaccessibleandaffordableforstaff,including

Train to gain and other government sponsored

initiatives

identifyinglearningortrainingneedsandappropriate

fundingroutes


encouragingindividualcontributionsbypromoting

thebenefits

negotiatingwiththeemployertoestablishsuitable


increase the number of ULRs on site through

informeddialoguewithothertradeunions

FocusonManchesterAirportgroup(MAg)Personal

andself-developmentscheme(PAss)andinparticular

exploreissuesrelatingto:

individualcontributionsfrommembers

setupofCLFmanagementprocesses

improvedlinkswithotherunionsoperatingatthe

Airport

improvedlinkswithMAgmanagement

improvedsharingofresourcesatthesite

A Union Learning Fund Project has supported the

development of the learning agenda at Manchester

Airport for several years and through it a number of

ULRshavebeenrecruitedandtrained. Theemployer

operates a company Personal and self Development

scheme (PAss) designed to provide grants of £150

foranyemployeewishing toundertake learning that

can be linked to activity at the Airport. Importantly,

thelearningdoesnothavetobelinkeddirectlytothe

day-to-day job role of the applicant but instead the

application needs to demonstrate how the learning

mightbenefittheairportonawiderandmoregeneral

basis.However,theschemewasnotwidelypromoted

and historically uptake was extremely low. Through

the CLF pilot it was decided to address this issue by

promoting the existing scheme more widely with

union members and also develop a parallel union-

led PAss would focus it’s funding on non-vocational

learning and personal development activity that

might be ineligible through the company scheme,

but could be seen to meet the requests for learning

bymembers. ACLFsteeringgroupwas formedand

it was agreed at the first meeting to focus the initial

activity on the Airport’s Engineering Division, where

employees had traditionally had little opportunity

forpersonaldevelopmentactivityand, insomecases,

limitedscopeforjobrelatedtraining,Bydoingthisitis

intended to better utilize the employer contribution

and leveradditional funding fromother tradeunions

andindividualstowidenparticipationinlearningand

engagehardtoreachlearnersacrossthesite.

Amicus and Manchester Airport

18 19


The Partnership


Ayub says,” We have two ULRs at UniChem, Bharat

Vaja,who isadriverandme,AyubPatel, thePutaway

supervisor.OurULRroleissharedwithourdayjobs.We

were approached by our union shop steward, shaun

griffith.Heapproachedmanagementwiththeideato

openalearningcentreinourworkplacewiththehelp

ofthetradeunionwhichisUsDAW.

I wanted to be a ULR because I have knowledge of

manydifferentlanguages.Wehavealargepercentage

ofpeoplewithethnicbackgroundswhomaystruggle

withEnglish,sothismywayofhelpingthemandgetting

themintoeducationtoimprovetheirprospects.

AsULRsweweretoldbyshaunthatwewouldbegiven

fulltrainingtodoourduties,whichIamhappytosay

thatwehavebeengiven.Wewentona5daycourse

ontheroleofULRsattheUsDAWofficesinWarrington.

UniChemgaveustimeoffandsupporttodothisand

alsoanytimeweneedtodoourdutiesasrequired.

We have a steering group which we are part of and

wehaveregularmeetingstodiscussourplansforthe

LearningZone.

OurrolesasULRsistoprovideinformationandguidance

to our employees which is done by group briefing,

one to ones and displaying posters with the help of

unionprojectworkers,managementandourlearning

providers.Webelievethatworkinginpartnershipwith

UniChemhasbeenthekeytooursuccesssofar. We

nowwanttobuildonthisandthroughtheCLFpilotput

theskillswehaveacquiredtogooduse.Wewillhavea

leadingrole,workingalongsidethecompany’sHRstaff,

in looking at different ways to bring in the resources

neededtosupportthelearningcarriedattheLearning

Zone, including some new ideas on how we might

involveworkersatneighbouringcompanies.”

Pilotwill:

considerhowaCLFcancomplementtheexisting

plansfornewlyopenedsitelearningcentre

set-upspecificaccounttosupportthepilot

identifyjointfundingresourceacrossemployer,TU

membersandthestate

workwithproviderstoencourageon-sitelearning

delivery

explorecollectiveimplicationsforcompanynational

learningagreement/arrangements

establishlearningpartnershipswithother

businessesontheindustrialpark

UniChem Preston is a Regional Distribution Centre for

Pharmaceuticalproducts.ItdeliverstoChemists,Hospitals

andDispensingDoctorsonatwicedailybasis.Itcurrently

employs over 250 staff within a wide variety of roles

andshiftpatterns.Therolesincludedrivers,warehouse

operatives,administrationstaff, andmanagement. The

companyinrecentyearshasexpandedandadaptedto

thePharmaceuticalmarketandcontinuestobealeader

inthisfield.In2006thecompanymergedwithBootsthe

ChemisttobecomeAllianceBoots.

The company holds corporate IIP status and is

committed to thedevelopmentof itsemployees. As

partofthis,regularonetoonesarecarriedoutwithall

staff,internalpromotionisencouragedandsuccession

planning has been adopted in order to ensure that

ourpeoplehaveasmanyopportunitiestoprogressas

possible.

In 2007 UsDAW shop steward and UniChem driver,

shaungriffith,hadtheideaofopeningalearningcentre

whichwouldbea jointprojectbetweenUsDAWand

UniChemandwouldbeavailabletoallemployees.He

approached the general Manager, Alan Danson, with

theidea.Alanembracedtheconceptandtookittothe

Board.seeingthebenefitstoboththecompanyand

itsindividualstheBoardsignedoffthemoneyneeded

tosetupthestateoftheartlearningcentre.UsDAW

matchedthefunding.

UniChemLearningZoneisaperfectexampleofTrade

Unions and Employers working closely together to

achieveasharedgoal.sincethelaunchoftheLearning

Zone the support of other partners has also been

enlisted.LancashireCollegeandCarterandCarterare

now an integral part of the steering Committee and

theyperformthevital rolesof learningprovidersand

specialists in their own fields. All parties have learnt

fromeachotherandworktogetherharmoniously.

We are currently offering both vocational and non-

vocational courses as we believe that personal

development reaches further than just vocational

qualifications and we recognise the return on

investment from allowing employees to take up

courses that they will enjoy. Both the employer and

employees are contributing towards this learning as

we believe that more commitment from learners is

gainedthisway.

The NW CLF Project has provided the Unichem and

Usdawcollaborationwiththeopportunitytoexamine

how the balance of funding and other contributions

including a variety of in-kind contributions to the

LearningZonecanbebroughttogethertoensurebest

valueinmeetingtheneedsofbothindividualsandthe

company.Thepilotwillalsoexplorearrangementsfor

allowingwideraccess to theLearningZonebyother

companiesandtheirstaffrepresentedontheindustrial

park.

UNICHEM AND USDAW

Documents

North West Collective Learning Fund