18 January 2021

Skills Training UK Remote Education Statement (January 18th 2021)

Skills Training UK Remote Education Offer

Skills Training UK are fully committed to online learning and have invested significant time, energy and resources to ensure learners are able to access teaching and support during the periods they are unable to participate in face-to-face delivery. Our staff have been trained to deliver remote education as ‘face-to-face’ taught sessions via virtual classrooms/platforms allowing learners to access their usual learning as well as to maintain participation in their classes/groups with their peers.

Remote education is available to all learners across all our programmes. We currently operate two distinct approaches depending on the programme being taken as listed below; however, we are also able to tailor programme delivery to different cohorts, and for employer-led programmes.

16-19, Traineeship and Adult Learner Provision: Remote timetables reflect the delivery schedule learners would follow if attending the centre for face-to-face sessions. Classes are delivered live via Microsoft Teams by their Tutors and in their usual teaching groups. Following a live delivery session, learners will be set work to complete and submit before being invited back into the virtual classroom to review. During completion of the independent work Tutors will provide support to individual learners and check on their progress. Should the usual tutor not be available to deliver a scheduled session, we may take the step of merging online classes to provide cover and continuity for all learners.  All learners on these programmes are also able to access 1-2-1 support and workshops from our Centre Mentors with a focus on health, wellbeing and engagement. Our usual expectations and standards of behaviour and participation apply to all our remote delivery sessions.

Apprentices: Our Trainer Assessors, Employers and Apprentices have access to a wide range of online learning platforms and tools which can be selected to best suit the Apprentices and employer. All our Apprentices can access their usual level of support remotely in place of the workplace visits they would usually expect. They participate in live training webinars in small sector groups in which Apprentices can have the opportunity to ask questions and interact with the Trainer Assessor and their peers. Alongside these small group sessions Apprentices will have 1-2-1 remote ‘visits’ via the most appropriate platform. Functional Skills is delivered via these 1-2-1 remote sessions and supported by access to our online BKSB learning resources. Our VLE for Apprentices, Onefile, is available to all with 24-hour access as are our bite-sized training videos which are available for all programmes. These resources allow Apprentices to learn remotely and to test their progress and knowledge.    

All work produced online is assessed and retained to be used to support continued learning level and contribute towards Centre Assessed Grading where required. Mock assessments are also undertaken to monitor learner progress and identify areas for development and additional support. We maintain regular communication with our examining bodies with regards to planned formal assessment and how this will be implemented. Further updates will be given to learners and updated on our website as we gain confirmation.

All learners are expected to attend their remote sessions as scheduled. Learners can gain support from their Centre/Trainer-Assessor to access their sessions on Teams. If learners are unable to attend a scheduled session due to illness or other reason, we expect them to communicate this to their Tutor/Trainer-Assessor in a timely manner. We expect Learners to remain on their live sessions for the duration and to complete and submit all set work. Our usual expectations and standards of behaviour and participation apply to all our remote delivery sessions. Any Learners who have safeguarding concerns are able to raise these via our dedicated safeguarding email address: safeguarding@skillstraininguk.com.

Where specialist equipment is required within a course or programme, remote delivery is concentrated on the theoretical elements of the curriculum with the expectation that the practical elements will resume as soon as we are able to via face to face.

For our Learners who do not have their own access to remote delivery, either due to a lack of device, lack of internet, or in some cases, both, we are committed to helping to ensure they do not miss out on their learning. Learners will be provided with a suitable device to carry out learning where they are unable to access learning via home learning devices. Laptops/tablets are leased for the duration of the programme with the expectation they are returned promptly at the end of the course. Where textbooks are available for courses, these are being posted out to Learners along with physical learning packs which can be completed and collected back for marking and assessment.

Our SEND Learners continue to be supported remotely by their Tutors, Trainer Assessors, Mentors and other Centre Staff as appropriate. During independent learning tasks, SEND Learners are prioritised for 1-2-1 support and monitoring by their Tutors, Trainer Assessors and Mentors. Assessment of SEND and support needs is carried out through diagnostic software including MyMynd (16-19, Traineeships, AEB) and Cognassist (Apprenticeships) with an agreed action plan put in place to support continued skills development alongside additional learning requirements.

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