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30-11-2011: Qualification Opportunities!
Calling all ‘Wannabee’ qualified people!
We are planning our next training programmes for people who want to become City&Guilds qualified in the following:
- Hospitality and Catering
- Business and Administration
- Management (ILM )
- Customer Service
- Learning and Development
- Retail
- Hairdressing
- Childcare
- Supporting Teaching and Learning in Schools
- Health and Social Care
- Sales
What could they lead to? These qualifications can help you to progress in your job role. Achievement of a qualification enhances your CV and puts you ahead of colleagues when competing for either promotion or recognition in the workplace.
We are unique because we visit you at work to carry out an assessment of your current skills and knowledge. If there are gaps between where you are now and where you want to be we create a learning plan that will lead to successful completion of your chosen qualification. This may be ‘bite sized chunks of learning’ or more structured longer programme.
Who are we? Kats are a leading independent training provider based in Havant working locally, nationally and internationally. We have recently qualified over 150 assessors overseas and have learners across the nation following an Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) programme.
How much? We review every application individually to make sure you are choosing the best qualification to suit your needs. We also carry out an eligibility check as it is quite likely that your route to achieving your chosen qualification can be funded.
What next? Make contact with us or take a look at other pages on this website for more information.
22-11-2011:Work Opportunities!
Calling all ‘Wannabee’ tutors, trainers, assessors !
We are planning our next training programmes for people who want to become City&Guilds qualified in the Learning and Development sector.
Which qualifications are on offer? The qualifications include Introduction to Trainer Skills, Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector (PTLLS) and the Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement (Assessor CAVA)
What could they lead to? These qualifications can help you to progress in a wide range of learning and development roles e.g. trainer, tutor, assessor, internal quality assurer ,learning and development manager, learning and development consultant.
We are looking to recruit more qualified people to work in the above roles
Who are we? Kats are a leading independent training provider based in Havant working locally, nationally and internationally. We have recently qualified over 150 assessors overseas and have 40 learners across the nation following an Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) programme
How much? We review every application individually to make sure you are choosing the best qualification to suit your needs. We also carry out an eligibility check as it is quite likely that your route to achieving your chosen qualification can be funded.
What next? Make contact with us by using any of the details below and/ or take a look at our website for more information.
03-03-2011 Wolf Recommends QTLS should be recognised in schools teaching
The Institute for Learning (IfL)'s work has contributed to the Wolf Report recommending that FE teachers with QTLS should be recognised to teach in schools.
We are delighted to be able to share with you that the Wolf Report, published today, shows that IfL has made progress for the further education teaching profession. IfL's persistent work to influence policy at the highest levels has resulted in a robust recommendation by Professor Alison Wolf that QTLS status must be recognised for teaching in schools as well as in further education. This development will benefit young people wherever they learn.
IfL is meeting with schools and further education ministers about QTLS and QTS next week, and will urge schools policymakers to accept this recommendation in the Wolf Review, and without extra restrictions and caveats. The views from 5,000 teachers and trainers who contributed to IfL's evidence to the Wolf Review have made a difference to policy. IfL as your professional body is making progress for you to support career flexibilities and to get increased recognition of your professional status.
IfL has worked with a range of others to create a movement to change an out-of-date and narrow policy that prevented expert teachers in further education with QTLS from teaching in schools. Special thanks to the senior parliamentarians who have worked with IfL and championed QTLS being recognised properly for teaching in schools, in particular Baroness Margaret Sharp; Barry Sheerman MP, former chair of the education select committees; Graham Stuart MP, his successor; and Lord Tim Boswell.
Now to read the rest of the Wolf Report, and it certainly brings more of a mixed bag. Certain kinds of vocational education are being slated, and more funds are to go to employers if they train with breadth, which means, we think, they will need to have more expert teachers and trainers in the workplace. The devil and maybe more opportunities will be in the detail. In the meantime, read IfL's press release for more comments.
BREAKING NEWS!!
Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State, Department for Education has issued a press release to say that government have accepted the recommendation with immediate effect! As follows:
'To allow qualified further education lecturers to teach in school classrooms on the same basis as qualified school teachers'
07-02-2011 You're Hired: Govt Boost For Apprenticeships
Seen on Sky News earlier today:
Students angry about rising university tuition fees could be forgiven for looking to an apprenticeship as a potentially debt-free alternative to securing a job.
11-10-2010
100 Apprentices in 100 days! Launch Thursday 30th September Marriott Hotel Portsmouth
The challenge has been laid down to businesses in the local area to generate 100 Apprenticeship places in 100 days. Supported by Portsmouth's "The News" and local councils, the campaign promises to cause a positive stir in the local business community.
The business case for employing apprentices is a strong one:
A skilled workforce is needed now more than ever as the country's economy starts to recover:
- Investing in training is investing in your future
- Apprentices bring increased productivity
- Apprentices help tackle the issues of an ageing workforce
The local community benefits from:
- Supporting local young people
- Giving school leavers their first step on to the jobs ladder
- Training managers for the future
We were pleased to attend the event as invited guests by the Federation of Small Businesses. We are seeking to take on our own Apprentice as well as operating as an Independent Training Provider.
03-10-2010 New Construction Apprenticeships on the Way!
We are getting ready to deliver Construction Apprenticeships in the following locations.
- 10 Cartersfield Road Waltham Abbey Essex EN9 1JD
- 1 Brockley Road Chelmsford CM2 6HQ
- Paradise Industrial Estate Hemel Hempstead HP2 4TF
We anticipate to be ready to start our first cohort by the end of November. Watch this space!
26-07-2010 Catapult to Success!
What is Catapult?
Catapult is our innovative programme which enables 16-18 year olds to gain customer service and people-facing experience. It is a 6 month initiative which provides Apprentices with a training salary, real work and qualifications which will improve their customer service skills and lead to improved career prospects.
Catapult for Learners
It helps learners to prepare for being in the workplace and to get real work experience, in a relevant environment, whilst being paid and gaining a qualification.
Catapult for Employers
Catapult helps businesses too, by training these young people to develop the key soft skills that help drive business success. Employers do not expect everyone who comes into the labour market to be the finished article. There are key 'soft skills' such as the ability to communicate effectively and work in a team which gives individuals a strong chance of succeeding. Employers greatly value a positive 'can-do' attitude and it sounds very simple, but being polite, getting on well with colleagues and showing a determination to help, really make a difference. These ‘soft skills’ are the focus of our Customer Service Apprenticeship Training.
How does it work?
We recruit young people mainly from Connexions and match them to employers. We work with the employer and the learner to agree a 6 month Individual Learning Plan .We help employers access the £1500 grant which can be used to pay the Apprenticeship £95 weekly training allowance.
More information:
Customer Service certificate flyer
08-07-2010 EBP Skills Fair Hailed a Great Success
With over 50 businesses, 20 Further and Higher Education providers and 850 Year 9, 10 and 11 students from secondary schools across Portsmouth, it was agreed by everyone present that the annual Skills Fair organised and hosted by the Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Education Business Partnership was a resounding success.
From Musicians to Marine Biologists, Hotel Managers to Hairdressers, representatives from a host of industry sectors, including Public Services, Construction, Engineering, Healthcare, Hospitality and Catering and Commercial Business, all came together at Fratton Park for the annual EBP Skills Fair to show students the careers available to them after they finish their education.
‘The atmosphere has been buzzing more this year than any other,’ said Jacqui Millar, Coordinator of the event. ‘There has been so much interaction and loads of activities for the pupils to get involved in and think about what they want to do in the future.’
‘This event is really does symbolize everything the Education Business Partnership stands for in raising the aspirations of young people and their awareness of the world of work,’ explained Cath Longhurst, Chief Executive of the EBP. ‘People have been so generous with their time and support and I hope they always know how grateful we, the schools and the students themselves are.’
05-04-2010: KATS Plans VQ Day Celebration
KATS is joining the third annual VQ Day celebrations by:
- urging learners in PO9 and surrounding regions to sign up to the vocational qualifications roll call at www.vqday.org
- holding a sharing success day including the serving of canapés and champagne
VQ Day 2010 will take place on 23rd June and aims to raise the stature and demonstrate the benefits of practical and vocational qualifications to future learners, employers, opinion formers and the wider public.
Kats Ltd will be taking part in VQ Day. We are inviting our local learners and employers to join us in our celebrations. Chef Sam@33, a great case study for success having followed a vocational route himself, will provide canapés and champagne during the event. There will be opportunity to talk to some of our learners and network with local colleagues and also to find out more about Apprenticeships and the benefits to both individuals and employers.
More information and Press Release
24-03-2010: Transforming the Skills System
The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) has been instrumental in delivering improvements in education and training for young people and adults and has made excellent progress in driving up participation and achievement amongst all age groups. However, there is still much further to go if we are to ensure that every 16 and 17 year old has the opportunity to participate in education or training (as set out in the Education and Skills Act 2008, which raises the Participation Age) and if we are to ensure that we have the highly skilled workforce that we need for 2020 (as highlighted in the Leitch Review). The current economic climate means that it is more important than ever that the skills system is able to respond quickly and effectively to the needs of employers and individuals.
Transition to new agencies
The LSC is to be abolished on March 31st 2010 and replaced by two new agencies: the Skills Funding Agency (SFA), which will deliver learning and skills provision for adults; and the Young Peoples Learning Agency (YPLA), which will focus on provision for 16-19-year-olds. Commissioning and funding for 16-19 education will in future be carried out by sub-regional groups of local authorities, using a commissioning framework agreed by the YPLA. read more »
27-02-2010: CIEH Food Safety Awards for KATS
Our Directors have recently attended a day course from the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Level 2 Award in Food Safety and passed! The trainer was not only extremely knowledgeable she made the day very enjoyable. As result we have set up partnership arrangements with Madge who will be working as one of our associates to deliver this course at Denvilles House in response to demand.
Take a look at the flyer CIEH Level 2 Award in Food Safety for more information.
09-02-2010: Restaurant Launch at Denvilles House
All visitors to our learning and assessment centre can now enjoy a menu of fine dining in the recently launched restaurant ‘Chef Sam @ 33'. Sam has also increased the choice, variety and quality of the Bar Snacks. This is being heralded as ‘Havant’s Best Kept Secret! Take a look at the restaurant flyer for more information!
11-12-2009: Andover Insurer Bucks Trend by Continuing to Grow
Andover insurance company, Be Wiser Insurance, is continuing to go from strength-to-strength by offering new jobs to
local people and investing in staff training.
The Bridge Street-based company, which was formed in June 2007 has recently opened a new division called Insure Wiser, based in the town centre, which is offering 90 new positions to local people.
With so much growth, the business is also committed to developing staff training by giving employees time-out during work hours to complete nationally recognised courses. Most recently the firm’s customer services team successfully completed the National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) level two in Customer Service - an on-the-job training scheme to help staff improve the way in which they deal with customer enquiries.
And, with the new qualification under the team’s belt, Training Manager Kelly Scanlan, who recently qualified as an NVQ assessor herself, will be putting staff through their paces on even more work-based courses.
"We’re thrilled we’ve had another successful year at Be Wiser," said Kelly. "In spite of the economic downturn we have fortunately continued to grow our business and look forward to continued success in 2010."
She added: "With our newly formed division now operational we are even more committed to providing an exceptional customer experience and understand that providing quality training for staff and enabling them to gain recognised qualifications that will help them do well at work is key to our development."
Be Wiser was supported by KATS Learning Centre in Havant throughout the NVQ training. NVQs are qualifications that demonstrate employees’ abilities to do their job well. The NVQ level two in Customer Service covers everything from creating the right first impression to using 'active listening' techniques to help work out what your customers really want, from keeping accurate, up-to-date customer service records to dealing with difficult or dissatisfied customers.
23-11-2009: It's Official!
Our recent Ofsted Inspection in August 2009 confirmed that ‘KATS provides good provision for Train to Gain learners. Vocational training is good, as are achievement and standards, and the quality of provision.'
Ofsted is the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills. It regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages.
Ofsted wants to raise aspirations and contribute to the long term achievement of ambitious standards and better life chances for service users. Their educational, economic and social well-being will in turn promote England's national success.
To achieve this they report fairly and truthfully; listen to service users and providers; and communicate findings with all who share their vision, from service providers to policy-makers. They report directly to Parliament, (and to the Lord Chancellor about children and family courts administration). This independence means you can rely on them for impartial information.
To find out more about what they do and how their work is helping to improve outcomes for children and learners, please see the Ofsted leaflets: Who we are and what we do and 'Raising standards, improving lives'.
The OFSTED Inspection Report on KATS Learning can be viewed here: OFSTED Report August 2009
01-05-2009: Andover firm leads on work-based learning
Adult Learners’ Week: 9-15 May 2009
An Andover company will be the first in Hampshire to receive free Learning at Work customer service training on 14 May, which is National Learning at Work Day. The training is publicly funded through the Train to Gain scheme accessed though Business Link. It will be delivered at the Money Transfer International (UK) Ltd's Andover offices at the Walworth Enterprise Centre by KATS Learning Ltd and will be accredited by City and Guilds.
MTI established its Head Office in Andover in 2007. Starting with two founding Directors, MTI now employs eight people full-time at the Andover office and a further 11 across the UK, the Republic of Ireland and the Czech Republic. Training is important because this is a demanding and fast changing area of work where customer expectations are high and regulations are constantly changing.
Test Valley Borough Council’s Economic Portfolio holder, Councillor Peter Giddings, says: "Money Transfer International is setting a great example during these difficult times. It is one of the Council’s priorities to support local business and I am especially delighted that we were able to help the business start up with the help of a Business Incentive Grant and with their accommodation at the Walworth Enterprise Centre."
MTI is a specialist provider of money services in International Money Transfer and foreign exchange and relies heavily on the skills and dedication of its team. The Directors of the company are wholly committed to investing in quality training.
Stuart Lennon, Managing Director says: "Investments in our people are one way bets - they generate interest, they motivate, they enhance skills and repay the company many times.
"For any growing business, freeing up time for training is a challenge - Learning at Work allows training to be delivered in shorter bursts at times convenient to the business. This allows the company the opportunity to focus on key skills for key people without taking them out of the business."
20-04-2009: Adult Learners’ Week: 9-15 May 2009
Adult Learners’ Week is the UK’s largest and longest running festival of learning. It aims to encourage more and different adults to take part in learning activities and events across England as well as celebrating the outstanding achievements of inspirational learners through the Adult Learners’ Week Awards.
Adult Learners' Week is a wonderful celebration of the energy and inspiration that adults bring to their learning, and aims to encourage more and different adults to take up learning, individually, in groups or as a family. Various events and taster sessions are held during Adult Learners’ Week across the country which inspire thousands of people to take up learning each year, whether it is learning a new skill, learning for fun, or catching up on learning missed at school.
Katslearning will be involved through a company in Andover and will also be active in Learning at Work Day on the Campaign for Learning website.
10-12-2008: Date announced for VQ Day 2009: 24th June
The date for VQ Day 2009 has just been announced. Following the success of VQ Day
2008, Edge has announced that VQ Day 2009 will take place on Wednesday 24 June.
VQ Day celebrates the millions of people who study for a vocational qualification
every year and those who help them achieve this success. VQ Day is a celebration of
vocational excellence with learning providers, colleges and employers across the country being encouraged to get involved.
Plans for VQ Day 2009 will be officially launched at an event at the House of Commons on 4 March 2009.
Guest speakers are still to be confirmed. Full details here:
VQ Day launch
21-11-2008: An invitation!
For those of you working in both the Hospitality and Health and Social Care sectors you may be interested to know that we have a visit planned on December 8th with Lloyd Best, the National Relationship Manager from City & Guilds. The purpose is to demonstrate a new fully integrated learning package called ‘Pro-Active’, designed to enable learners to develop their practical skills and theory in a fun and motivating way through brand new full colour text books, video presentations and e-tutorials.
At KATs we recognise that both of these sectors can face several challenges either in terms of staff retention, the attendance of any formal training sessions due to shift patterns and sometimes general lack of motivation. We have made a business decision to purchase these packages to increase retention and achievement of our learners. For more information follow the links below:
http://www.cityandguilds.com/cps/rde/xchg/SID-7E3A5C5E-23ACA0D6/cgonline/hs.xsl/20202.html for Health and Social Care
http://www.cityandguilds.com/cps/rde/xchg/SID-7E3A5C5E-23ACA0D6/cgonline/hs.xsl/16527.html for Hospitality and Catering
You are very welcome to join us at the presentation; the invitation is also extended to interested parties from other sectors. Please make contact using any of the details on the contact page.
We would also be delighted to meet and discuss with you any training needs either at your organisation or at our office in Havant.
21-11-2008: "KATS at the Better People Better Business Exhibition - Southampton, 20th November 2008
It was a pleasure to meet so many local employers at the ‘Better People Better Business’ event on
Thursday 20th November in St Mary’s Stadium. We made contact with over 50 employers during the day both on our stand and as
we ‘cruised’ the stadium. The prize draw that we had on offer in exchange for a business card took place
after the last seminar on ‘Straight talking-Managing relationships at work’. Congratulations to Lisa Wilkinson of CIH Ltd for
winning the bottle of Mumms Champagne in exchange for a business card.
18-11-2008: See KATS at the Better People Better Business Exhibition - Southampton, 20th November 2008
As a key training provider tasked with delivering Train to Gain we have been pleased to accept the offer of a free stand at the Better People Better Business Exhibition on Thursday 20th November at St Mary’s Stadium in Southampton. This is an opportunity to showcase our products and services to over 700 senior decision makers, HR professionals and training managers across Hampshire.
We would like to thank the team at A3M Designs Ltd. who have been no less than stars at helping us prepare for this event.
Chrisy Kemp will be delivering one of the 14 sessions on Straight talking - Managing relationships at work.
We hope to meet you there on what promises to be a lively and important event for employers hoping to improve their competitive edge by capitalising on staff development.
For more details on attending this event contact:
Marlena Zacharuk
Project Manager
Business to Business Ltd
T: 020 7700 0008
E: marlena@btob.co.uk
W: www.btob.co.uk
26-08-2008: KATS recruiting more Trainers
KATS Learning is launching an advertising campaign aimed at recruiting more trainers to help us meet the needs of a growing number
of employers and learners. Because we believe in the power of vocational learning, we're not just looking for trainers who are
already in an established career - we'd also love to hear from you if you have a passion for training but feel your skills are not used
to the full in your present job, or if you are working as a trainer but don't have the relevant qualifications to progress. We'll work
with you to develop your skills and gain those qualifications. Full details here:
KATS Recruitment advert
23-07-2008: VQ Day: Celebrating vocational heroes
Millions of people gain a vocational qualification every year as a stepping stone to further vocational study or university, better jobs and enhanced skills. For too long, this success has gone without the recognition and national celebration it deserves. VQ Day has been launched to raise the profile of vocational qualifications and celebrate vocational success.
23rd July 2008 was the first ever VQ Day - a celebration of the people who gain vocational qualifications every year, and those who help them achieve this success.
VQ Day was a success across the country, with more than 50 individual events taking place at schools, colleges and workplaces to celebrate vocational achievements. Take a look at the VQ Day Events site to find out more about the festivities: www.vqday.org.
