Apprenticeship Staff Support Programme Dissemination Conference

	Paul Warner, Conference Chair Director of Employment and Skills Association of Employment and Learning Providers Having been a specialist recruitment consultant to the defence industry for six years, Paul started in the post-16 sector in 1993 working on Training for Work contracts for TBG Learning. He subsequently took on a variety of related operational and senior management roles, culminating in a successful tenure as Director of Business Development. On leaving TBG he worked as a consultant for a time, including a spell managing WBL delivery at Barking College in East London, before joining AELP in September 2003 where he now oversees all aspects of operational and policy delivery, particularly concentrating on the alignment of the skills and employability agendas. Paul holds a First Class Honours degree in International Relations from the University of Keele, and an MA in Post-Compulsory Education and Training from the University of Sheffield. He is a Director of the Institute of Employability Professionals and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Married with one daughter, hailing from the New Forest but living in Essex, he lists his hobbies as rock music, amateur dramatics and karate.
	Jenny Williams Director of Vocational Education and Training The Education & Training Foundation Jenny has over 20 years’ experience of developing policy and practice in further and adult education and training locally, regionally and nationally. Prior to transferring to the Education & Training Foundation in 2013, she led the work of the Commission on Adult Vocational Teaching and Learning and was the author of the Commission’s report It’s about work… Excellent adult vocational teaching and learning. Before joining LSIS in 2010, Jenny managed the NIACE Inquiry into the Future for Lifelong Learning and co-authored two of the Inquiry’s supplementary research papers; on public and private investment in adult learning, and work and learning. At local level, Jenny started her career at Dorset Training and Enterprise Council, before moving to Southampton to run the City’s adult learning service and develop its Learning City strategy. After a secondment as policy adviser to the executive director and chair of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight LSC, she spent 4 years as NIACE’s regional development officer for the South East, promoting and developing adult learning linked to regional economic and social policy, and led a £1.8 million ESF co-financed project to develop a network of learning communities with public, private and third sector partners.
	Shirley Woodcock Business Development Manager Capital Training Group Shirley has a successful background in Education and Training for over 20 years and has held a variety of Senior Roles within FE Colleges, Tribal, Work Based Learning and Welfare to Work. Shirley joined Capital Training Group in September 2011 as Senior Business Development & Growth Manager, it was within the first two weeks of joining Capital that they underwent a disastrous Ofsted inspection and were graded ‘Inadequate’. With a background in quality improvement, Shirley took on the responsibility of managing the SFA provision for Apprenticeships and Adult Skills and was responsible for implementing transformational change to improve all aspects quality for Teaching, Learning and Assessment, Performance Management including Sub-Contractor Management. English & maths including Functional Skills was a priority area for improvement particularly in the Construction, Shirley and the team worked closely with an LSIS support advisor and developed strategies to significantly improve this area of learning. In the period September 2011 to May 2014 Capital Training Group underwent, an Ofsted monitoring visit in May 2012 and were categorised as making ‘Reasonable Progress’ , a further re-inspection in December 2012 graded the organisation as ‘Requires Improvement’ and in the Ofsted inspection in May 2014 were able to celebrate by improving their grade to ‘Good’. In September 2014 Shirley re-located to her ‘home’ County of Durham and is now working as an independent consultant supporting Capital Training Group and other organisations through transformational change and quality improvement.
	Mary Palmer Work Based Learning Manager Bedford College Mary started in sales and later moved to business development. Mary worked in varying types and sizes of companies across all sectors gathering experience and insight into business practice and excellence. She spent five wonderful years with Business in the Community as Project Manager for a Neighbourhood Renewal regeneration programme and on leaving became Head of Business Development for Barnfield College. Mary moved to Bedford College as Apprenticeship Manager in 2010. She has a genuine interest in business success and is passionate about education and training and supporting development and progression for young people.
	Steven Haynes Senior Training Adviser, Financial Services Babington Group Having originally trained as a teacher and working in post-16 education for 9 years, Steve joined the Financial Services industry, working as an adviser, manager and training professional for 20 years. His experience was gained across the breadth of the industry with Sun Alliance, AVIVA, Teachers Assurance and Nationwide Building Society. He joined Babington in early 2011 and has delivered both group and individual development within the General Insurance, Financial Services and Mortgage apprenticeship frameworks. He is currently involved in developing apprenticeship frameworks for ‘Trailblazer Apprenticeship’ initiatives in Paraplanner, Financial Administrator and Insurance Practitioner qualifications.
	Jo North Executive Director In Touch Care Jo was a Director of NTF and AELP for 18 years. Jo has chaired the AELP Health, Social Care and Childcare meetings for 18 years and she has a high profile in the Sector. As well as having a tremendous passion for her own Sector she prides herself in her total commitment for Education and Training and she strives to make a difference using her 54 years of experience at all times to benefit the clients being cared for by supporting employers, all of her Colleagues and all learners be they within her own Company or externally. Peer review activity is a keen focus of many activities undertaken by Jo to share best practice in a whole range of situations. Jo launched In Touch Care in Sheffield in 1994. She and her husband David own the Company, with the prime focus being to deliver high quality programmes in Health, Social Care and Childcare. Jo obtained her BEd Honours whilst furthering her own studies in Nursing/Nurse Education and she has maintained her commitment to making changes through Education and Training by leading Teacher Training on a national basis for many years.
	Tammy Clarke Lead IQA for Childcare and Early Years In Touch Care After completing an apprenticeship to obtain her level 3 childcare qualification within a nursery, Tamara has been working at In Touch Care since 2007. She has since developed her skills as an assessor, IQA and teacher completing a variety of qualifications. This has allowed her to support a variety of learners in the Further Education sector in apprenticeships, traineeships and the delivery of a Btec qualification to pre 16 students. Tamara has been heavily involved in both the projects through The Education and Training Foundation, TSSP and ASSP and is keen to put them to use in the sector.
	Theresa Beattie Technology Consultant In Touch Care From 2003 to 2014 I was an eLearning Advisor with the Jisc Regional Support Centre, supporting the Adult & Community Learning sector and Work Based Learning providers with the development and implementation of eLearning strategies. I also designed and delivered training on a wide variety of tools and technologies. First Office International was launched in January 2015 and specialises in working with a team of multilingual administrators/PAs/Event Organisers, trainers, graphic designers, project managers, writers, experts on business and learning technologies and eMarketing professionals. Our work includes the design and writing of online learning courses and eBooks, creation of bespoke digital marketing/eLearning strategies and the management of marketing campaigns.
	Fallon Southwell Quality Development Manager Lifetime Training Group Fallon started out in the post 16 education sector by gaining an advanced apprenticeship in Operational Development after leaving college. On completing the advanced apprenticeship she trained to become an assessor and qualified in 2002, working with apprenticeships in the workplace for a private training company. This then progressed to IQA and teaching gaining a Certificate in Education in 2012. After taking a year out in 2007 to travel she then started working in colleges assessing and teaching on the apprenticeship programmes. Having now worked for Lifetime Training for over four years and progressing into a Teaching and Training Manager role she is responsible for developing the quality of teaching and learning for all apprenticeship staff in excess of 350 people through delivering teaching qualifications and CPD workshops in this area.
	Alison Sumpter MCIPD Director SETA Alison has 23 years experience in learning and development. She is a corporate member of the Institute for Personnel and Development. Alison started her working life as a Human Resource professional in the retail sector both with Tesco’s and Boots the Chemist. Following this Alison moved to the public sector and worked with a Training and Enterprise Council (latterly the Skills Funding Agency) in a Business Development role. Alison set up her own Company in 1996 which built on the skills developed and enabled Alison to work with a diverse range of organisations in both the public and private sector. Alison runs the Association of Learning Providers for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and in this role supports all members with business development projects. She has implemented numerous projects requiring strong project management, strategic development, creativity, team building, motivation, leadership, individual and team training and development. Alison has worked with SETA and the ALPHI network to design, develop and implement this project which has generated resources and support for the sector covering: Consultative Sales using Insights Discovery. An apprentice mentoring handbook An electronic guide to Apprenticeships for employers Piloting a new Award for Observation of Teaching and Learning.
	Sean Errington Director of People Projects SETA Sean has worked with a wide range of organisations: designing and delivering manager, senior manager and practitioner CPD workshops designing and helping to implement improvements in teaching and learning, and quality system processes. He specialises in management, staff and organisational development in some of the more strategic and technical areas of the Common Inspection Framework such as Teaching Learning and Assessment, Management & Leadership. Sean has over 20 years teaching and management experience in, Further Education and Higher Education, commercial training, schools, and 3 years as a Technical Advisor with QCA (formerly NCVQ). In 1998 he established People Projects a Training, Development and Research Consultancy, which has since become People Projects UK Ltd. Key areas of work include: design and delivery of staff development and process improvement training, delivered face to face, on-line / webinar learning, through e-learning products or blended solutions – specific areas of expertise being: observation of teaching and learning creative and innovative teaching quality systems including subcontractor management design and development of training evaluation and quality assurance systems training quality inspections and audits. Sean also works as an Additional Inspector and has been involved in inspection since 1998. This has helped him to develop extensive experience in training quality evaluation and development. A pragmatic highly motivated problem solver, he works in both the public and private sectors, and clients have included large national training organisations, some of the largest FE Colleges in the country, a range of local councils, private companies including Hanson Aggregates Plc and the English Football Association, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, several Sector Skills Councils, some of the largest Adult and Community Learning organisations in England, and a very significant number of national, medium and small work-based learning training providers. Several of his clients have achieved grade 1s at inspection. Sean’s work enables him to maintain a sound understanding both of the strategic aspects of education and training policy development, the practical effects such policies have and how they affect training providers and employers. He is a trained “Investors in People” Advisor; EFQM Excellence Model Assessor; an ISO 9000 Internal Auditor; a Fellow of the Institute for Learning, a lapsed DJ; and a tonally challenged guitar player who enjoys riding large motor bikes.