Making Learning Work

In 2002 the National Campaign for Learning received funding through the European Social Fund’s (ESF) Equal stream to co-ordinate a three-year, £2.6M Action Research project. The 'Making Learning Work' project examined how best to promote and provide workplace learning, particularly for people with Skills for Life needs, working with eight large employers in the North West and Yorkshire and Humber regions.  The Campaign for Learning worked in partnership with a number of strategic agencies to steer the project, and the main objective of the project was to evaluate 'what works' in raising the demand for learning in organisations and the difference that this makes.  All eight action research organisations agreed to try out different approaches to employee development, assess the impact of these through confidential interviews with employees who benefited: and make changes based on the feedback they received.  Each organisation seconded a member of staff to be their action researcher, so that employees would feel more comfortable being open and honest about how they felt – particularly important given that many people had not been involved in learning since school and some had had poor experiences of formal education.

Examples of initiatives that organisations committed to included:

• Using ‘learning champions’ such as Union Learning Representatives to promote learning opportunities and engage ‘hard to reach’ learners
• Participation in National Learning at Work Day and other promotional campaigns
• ‘Incentivising’ learning, for example through providing paid learning hours or recognition schemes such as certification ceremonies
• Changing organisational policy and strategy to the benefit if everyone e.g. pursuing Investors in People or other standards