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Agenda

10:30 - 10:35

Energy Session!

10:35 - 10:50

Welcome & Introduction

Emma Beauchamp, North East YAAN Chair
Jason Holt CBE, AAN Chair
Ingrid Hall OBE, AAN Vice Chair
Matthew Newman, YAAN North West Chair

10:50 - 11:10

Keynote speech

Gillian Keegan MP, Minister for Apprenticeships and Skills

11:10 - 11:30

Apprenticeship Programme

Karen Woodward, Deputy Director, Employer Relations

11:30 - 11:50

The economic imperative of connecting more SMEs with apprenticeships: and how Ambassadors can engage with SMEs

Mike Cherry OBE, National Chairman, Federation of Small Businesses

11:50 - 12:00

Break

12:00 - 12:10

How I’ve witnessed the impact of apprenticeships on SMEs

Dominque Unsworth MBE – SME Ambassador

12:10 - 12:20

YAAN – Lockdown experience

Jasmine Ee, Edwards Vacuum

12:20 - 12:30

The views of a T Level Ambassador

Raymond Olive, University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust – North West

12:30 - 12:40

Keynote Speaker

Amy Barber, Apprenticeship Programme Manager, Severn Trent

12:40 - 12:50

YAAN – Lockdown experience

Bradley Longford, Henry Boot – Yorkshire & Humber
Connor Moir, County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue – North East

12:50 - 13:45

Lunch

13:45 - 13:50

Energy Session!

13:50 - 13:55

Afternoon Plenary

13:55 - 14:40

Breakout Sessions


All workshops will be recorded, excluding the mental health workshop as we recognise the sensitivities around this topic.

 

Deliver your best presentation yet – led by Carl Robb and Anne Watts, North East AAN Ambassadors

The session will give tips on creating your presentation in a way that will allow you to be the influencer the role of an Apprentice Ambassador needs you to be. We will help you think about the structure of your presentation in a way that will allow you to get the best out of you and inspire others, after all that’s what people are listening for.

 

IFATE – What’s in store for the Institute in 2021 and how can employers get involved – Jill Nicholls – Senior Relationship Manager


The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education develops, approves, reviews and revises apprenticeships and technical qualifications with employers. It has responsibility for T Levels delivery and for the implementation and approval process for higher technical qualifications. It also maintains the occupational maps which underpin all technical education. 2021 brings a huge ramp up in all aspects of its work including; review and revision of older apprenticeship Standards, apprenticeship policy changes, roll out of higher technical qualifications and further expansion of the T Level offer. None of this can be done without employer input. This workshop aims to bring you up to speed with these areas of work, advise how you can get involved and provide you with information to share with employers that you meet in your ambassador role.

 

Apprenticeship Diversity Champions Network – led by Jessica Bushell from the ESFA’s Widening Participation team.


A workshop to understand the latest on the Network, its aims/objectives (and hopefully the announcement of a new Chair), its members, and how Ambassadors can gain a stronger understanding of why diversity matters in apprenticeships.

 

Mental Health – awareness, actions to take and support available – Video from Chris Kingsbury – National Partnership Manager at Remploy


Pre-recorded video detailing the Access to Work Mental Health Support Service for Apprentices followed by discussion and sharing of good practive.

One in ten young people experience a mental health problem.
Remploy provides a dedicated mental health support service for apprentices – at no cost to the individual. This is funded by the Department for Work and Pensions. The service is delivered by trained professionals with specific expertise of mental health in the workplace.

Support includes:

  • Emotional wellbeing support and advice for nine months
  • Advice on simple workplace adjustments
  • Successful coping strategies
  • A step-by-step support plan.

Help is available if you:
  • Are about to start or on an apprenticeship programme and finding it difficult to attend or concentrate due to a mental health condition, or
  • Have been signed off sick with a mental health condition, (diagnosed/undiagnosed), but want to go back to your apprenticeship.
  • Join this workshop to learn about the service and support available.

 

Lockdown Apprentice – working through the pandemic


Hear from 3 Young Ambassadors about their experiences of working through the last 12 months. Find out about the barriers they had to overcome. Discover what has inspired them during this time and benefit from their advice on what they have gained on their journeys. Hear about what they have learnt about themselves as well.

Neilesh Champaneri, Derby Homes – East Midlands region
Jasmine King, Flagship Group – East of England region
Syeda Tasmia Tahia, UK Export Finance – London region

 

National Skills Fund


Join this workshop to build your understanding of the Fund and find out about the emerging opportunities on the horizon.

The National Skills Fund will help adults to train and gain the valuable skills they need to improve their job prospects. The Chancellor announced £375 million for the National Skills Fund at the Spending Review in November 2020. This includes £95 million in funding for a new level 3 adult offer and £43 million to expand skills bootcamps. This is one part of an overall spend of £2.5bn in the Fund.

On the Level 3 adult offer, from April, any adult aged 24 and over who wants to achieve their first full level 3 qualification will be able to access almost 400 fully funded courses.

Skills bootcamps offer free, flexible courses of just 12 to 16 weeks. They give people the opportunity to build up sector-specific skills and fast-track to an interview with a local employer. Courses are available to develop digitals skills including: software development, digital marketing, and data analytics. Additional courses will cover welding, engineering, and construction.

The courses are available in selected areas; we will expand the skills bootcamp programme into other areas in 2021.

 

Soft Skills in the Workplace – Emma Beauchamp, North East YAAN Chair and Matt Newman, North West YAAN Chair


Whether you are working in an office, or working from home, enhancing and developing your soft skills can be equally as important as developing the practical skills and knowledge required for your role. This workshop is to help you in knowing how to best develop these soft skills ready to support you in your career, or apprenticeship. The workshop will also include various ways apprentices can be supported in developing these skills by their employers and manager's. It will cover things such as listening skills, time management, building your confidence, leadership skills, and even touching on work-life balance and so on. There will also be a section dedicated to how your work within the YAAN could help you develop these important, life-long skills.

 

Integrating the new priorities into the AAN’s 4 quadrants – Neil Weller MBE, London AAN Chair

All Ambassadors are aware of how our activities align to Celebrating, Signposting, Storytelling, and Insight.
 
At our conference, we will hear about new priorities in the apprenticeship programme for Ambassadors to focus on.
 
This workshop will stimulate a discussion about the activities that can be undertaken to bring these new priorities to life; and how they can be successfully incorporated into updated Delivery Plans for regional and multi-regional employers.
 
This workshop will be lead by Neil Weller, Chair, London AAN, who has been instrumental in looking at how Ambassadors can ensure this new direction for the AAN can be integrated into our existing 4 quadrants; and how we can continue to measure the meaningful impact that Ambassadors are making.

Please click here to access this breakout's worksheet.

14:40 - 14:45

Break

14:45 - 14:55

Insight Summary, You said, we did…

ESFA

14:55 - 15:00

Final Comments

Jason Holt CBE

15:00

Conference Closes

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Agenda

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