A first! The CfA Annual Conference

Make a note in your laptops, diaries and calendars! The CfA is pleased to announce the date of its first Annual Conference. This special event is to be held at the NCSL Learning & Conference Centre, Nottingham, on 27th November 2009.

CfA Annual Conference
Friday 27th November 2009
NCSL Learning & Conference Centre, Nottingham

The CfA Annual Conference, the first of its kind to be offered by the CfA, will focus on the importance of Business & Administration skills set against the background of the changing landscape of education in UK PLC. There continues to be strong government expectations for all sectors of the UK to maintain skills, identify skills gaps and identify how learners must progress and maintain their continuing professional development.

Key issues facing the CfA and its education policy are the delivery of the new Business Administration and Finance Diploma, the transition of funding mechanisms from the Learning Skills Council to the Skills Funding Agency (and local authorities) and the introduction of the National Apprenticeships Service. 

Join us in Nottingham for a one-day conference that offers expert opinion on these key issues and other important developments affecting our sector.

Key note speakers confirmed so far include:

• John McNamara, Chief Executive, Alliance of Sector Skills Councils
  
• Paul Eeles, Director of Sector Reforms & 14-19, Association of Learning Providers
• Jim Chambers, Chief Executive Officer, JHP Group

There will also be the opportunity to attend two hour-long seminar sessions of your choice.  

Look out for our upcoming eAlert soon for further information and to book your place.

The CfA needs you!

As you know, during 2009 the CfA is carrying out a dynamic review of the current Business & Administration Standards. This informs the development of all Business & Administration qualifications introduced from August 2010.

Who will be interested in the Business & Administration review consultation? You! Business administrators, employers, training providers, schools, FE colleges and HE institutions, national regulators, awarding bodies and professional bodies.
We need your continued help to make this a success, so please sign up and have your say. And a big ‘thank you’ in advance to those that have already said you’ll help out.

• Sign-up to a weekly 15 min electronic consultation
  
• Sign-up to a one-off 15 min phone consultation
• Complete the on-line NOS review questionnaire
• Attend a half-day review workshop – only a few places remain in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales

Electronic consultations start in June 2009 for approximately 14 weeks. Each week, electronic consultation members are provided with two draft NOS to review and provide feedback on; review and feedback takes just 15 minutes.

Phone consultations start in May 2009. They focus on confirming key Business & Administration themes identified in the updated 2009 Business & Administration Functional Map. Telephone discussions last approximately 15 minutes.

On-line NOS review questionnaires -available from Anthony Lapsley.

Workshops are held in May, June and October 2009 for half a day. They take place in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Each workshop discusses and confirms the key Business & Administration themes, functions and occupational performance requirements of Business Administrators. 

Here are the remaining dates for your diary:

Please confirm by return email that you would like to take part in the electronic consultation, phone consultation, online NOS review questionnaire or attend one of the workshops above - or even take part in all four review consultations!

Contact Pearlene Fields to confirm your attendance at one of the above workshops by Friday, 29th May 2009.

Contact Anthony Lapsley to register your interest in the electronic and phone consultations and the online NOS review questionnaire by Friday 29th May 2009.

We look forward to working with you

email Pearlene email Anthony

Launch of the IPA Online Training Store

To help members benefit from all relevant training opportunities during the downturn so that they are the best placed when it comes to the upturn, the IPA (Institute of Professional Administrators) sees the launch of its new online training store this month.

Located on the IPA website, you’ll find an easy-to-access store of over 200 online training courses with prices starting from £20 and what’s more, each one attracts CPD credits. There are tons of topics to choose from such as budgeting, IT, project management, HR, meetings organisation and time management to name just a few.

You’ll be able to access both the store and the most up-to-date price list by clicking here. Go on, beat the recession and give it a go!

For more information about the IPA and to on how to become a member, please go to the website.

visit the IPA

Free ePortfolio demonstration events

Following the success of our forward ePortfolio PLUS demonstration sessions during 2008, we are delighted to announce a brand new series of events throughout the UK in 2009.

Use this opportunity to see the ePortfolio product demonstration in real-time and meet other forward users. These free events are the ideal chance to understand the ins and outs of the best value for money online solution available on the market. Don’t delay!

Contact Cameron Woodrow for further information and to register your interest – dates available are:

email Cameron

Lutterworth YA step out in style

A group of students from Lutterworth College recently had the chance to go behind the scenes of Leicester’s premier out of town shopping centre – Fosse Shopping Park.

Currently on a Young Apprenticeship Business Administration Programme, the students were given a thorough tour of the management suite at the centre to help them relate aspects of their course to the world of work. 

The Young Apprenticeship Programme will be completed at the end of this summer term and with 50 days of work experience alongside their GCSEs and their Business qualification, each student has certainly learned about the exciting challenges of the workplace first-hand and has been able to demonstrate both commitment and ability in this area.

Please click here to read more.

To find out more about apprenticeships in the Leicester area, visit the Leicestershire Education Business Company Limited (LEBC) website.

visit the LEBC website

Three Peaks for WS Training

Last year, the women of WS Training Ltd, Suffolk, carried out the race for life 5km walk/run. That not being enough and to set a worthy challenge to raise money for St Nicholas Hospice this year, they came up with the next step of completing three peaks in 24 hours.

The Three Peaks Challenge involves climbing the three highest peaks of Snowdon (1085m), Scafell Pike (978m) and Ben Nevis (1344m). Eleven staff at WS Training agreed to accept the challenge and have already started to train for it. They start on the 19th June and after ten whole hours in a mini bus with each other, arrive at the youth hostel near the foot of Ben Nevis. Hauling themselves out of bed at 4am the following morning gets them to the foot of Ben Nevis for the start of the challenge at 5am. The team plans to complete this climb in a breathtaking five hours and then drive to Scafell Pike and on to Snowdon to watch the sunrise.

If you would like to support this challenge or donate money to the chosen charity, please visit the website or contact WS Training directly via email or on 01284 788005.

We’ll have a post-challenge update for you in our next eBriefing in June so stay with us to find out what happens along the way.

Tel 01284 788005 or email

YA within the Diploma - Consultation 

The CfA has been tasked to research and develop the Business & Administration Young Apprenticeship Programme within the Business, Administration and Finance Diploma. Trialling the programme with several partnerships begins in September 2009.  The CfA has so far been consulting with awarding bodies and YA partnerships to explore how the Business & Administration YA program could fit within the Diploma.

Background

Now that Diplomas have been introduced, there is an opportunity to develop a way of delivering Young Apprenticeships alongside Higher Diplomas, as the two programmes share many common features.

This means making some changes to the existing Young Apprenticeship model, as much of the content of the current qualifications gained by Young Apprentices will be covered within the Principal Learning of the Higher BAF Diploma.

It should be highlighted that the overall aims of the Young Apprenticeship offering a realistic insight into ‘real work’, as part of a programme that results in work-related qualifications and offering students a more practical style of learning remain unchanged.

Young Apprenticeship learning will mostly occur within the Additional and specialist Learning options of the Higher BAF Diploma and through the project. The extended work experience element will remain an essential part of Young Apprentices' learning programmes and a key difference from the minimum required for Diplomas.

Please join us by reading the paper, responding to the questions and providing feedback to Sara Vanderheld by the 1st June 2009 in order to have your views included in the findings.

email Sara download the paper

A Focus on Charmaine Ximines, Business Support Officer

My day begins promptly at 9:00am when I go through my emails and answer any queries that might have come in overnight.  After this the all-important daily post usually arrives and I spend the next hour or so opening and logging items on an Excel spreadsheet which helps me to organise my workload. I often allocate the next couple of hours to process Certificate applications which we receive every day to make sure that they are turned around efficiently.

During the working day I take many calls from colleges, suppliers and other external contacts relevant to our organisation. In between this I often need to book taxis and couriers as we send out a lot of materials, such as study guides, to colleges. I also get to regularly monitor our ‘info’ mail box and answer any queries that come in. This is interesting as it helps my understanding of new areas of Business & Administration.
 
Once I’ve checked the main diary, if there is a meeting scheduled, I need to set up tea and coffee for the required number of people and also make sure the room is set up to fit the guests’ requirements. As I am a confirmed shopaholic, the best part of my job is ordering the stationery for the office; this is done on a weekly basis according to what is needed by staff. It also lets me look through the catalogues that have been sent in.

At the end of the day at 5:00pm, either myself or my colleague will frank the daily post and share the task of packing away all confidential paperwork ready for the next day. Then it’s time for home…..my favourite part of the day.

Question of the month

Q:Can Adult Literacy and Adult Numeracy be used as exemptions for Key Skills Communications and Key skills Application of Number?

A:The Adult Literacy and Adult Numeracy can only be used as exemptions for the Key Skills Communications and Key skills Application of Number Test element.  Candidates are still required to complete the portfolio element of the Key Skill.

To subscribe to the CfA eBriefing, please email Helen Gerlach.

The CfA is not responsible for the content of any external links from this newsletter.

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