Skills initiative

RSA South West bid to raise youth skills levels
 
In November, RSA South West launched an important new initiative in conjunction with Connexions Cornwall and Devon Ltd, an organisation that provides independent information, advice and guidance for young people aged 13 to 19. The scheme – known as the Skills Challenge – is designed to help young people understand how skills are learnt, gain self-confidence in learning a skill for themselves, recognise the importance of those skills in the workplace and be motivated to go on to further learning as a result of their experience.
 
Beyond the personal benefits to the individuals involved, Ian Hosker, Chair of the RSA South West region, is keen to emphasise the wider economic benefit and the opportunity to build social capital that the initiative will bring. "The Skills Challenge will create an opportunity to publicise the importance of skills in the global economy within which our young people will work. [It] will send positive messages about young people into the public arena to combat negative press and motivate other young people to learn".
 
The RSA's Opening Minds competences will underpin the new Skills Challenge initiative. It will test the idea that these competences can be delivered through community based independent learning as well as through a schools-based curriculum. Ian Hosker: "We believe the RSA's Opening Minds competences have a much wider application than the school curriculum. Our long term objective is to demonstrate that [they] are applicable to a broad range of personal development learning opportunities in the community".
 
The RSA South West Region is now seeking to raise contributions from Fellows towards a bursary fund. They want to raise the sum of over £5,000 from individual and corporate sponsorship to fund a minimum of 10 Skills Challenge bursaries, with Connexions Cornwall and Devon Ltd providing match funding to manage and administer the scheme.
 
Learn more about the Skills Challenge.