Making Scotland smarter

Public Sector Employment in Scotland

Scots are being encouraged to shake off the January blues by resolving to make 2008 their year of learning on the job.

The New Year’s resolution is being made possible by a £1.4 million package to fund union learning in Scotland, making a total of £4.23 million over the next three years.

The Scottish Government is urging workers to take advantage of the funds to widen their skills and contribute towards making Scotland smarter.

Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, said:

"Signing up to learning something new is the perfect way to start 2008.

"This is the largest single investment in union learning under any Scottish government and demonstrates how much it is valued by us.

"Learning makes a significant impact on people’s lives and unions have a key role in supporting learning in the workplace and therefore in achieving our vision of a smarter Scotland with a worldclass skills base."

In December 2007, the First Minister announced a new partnership between the Scottish Government and the STUC, setting out shared economic priorities and how the two bodies can work together to achieve these.
The Scottish Union Learning Fund was established in 2000 and has supported unions to run projects that have coordinated their work on lifelong learning.

The Fund has so far supported 69 projects from 25 different unions and committed approximately £4.9 million to these projects. Examples of projects include: Bridging the Skills Gap in Scotland (Communications Workers Union) and Establishing a Life Long Learning Culture in the Travel & Tourism Sectors in Scotland (ASLEF).

Previously, the Fund only occasionally paid directly for training. Much of the training conducted under the Fund has come from other government sources such as ILA Scotland, from employers or unions, or has been provided free of charge through schemes such as Adult Literacy and Numeracy.

The £1.4 million is split into £800,000 for SULF and around £600,000 for the STUC Skills and Lifelong Learning Team. The breakdown of the £4.243 million over the next three years is: 20082009 £1.407 million; 20092010£1.414 million; and 20102011 £1.422 million.