| Skills for life training can allow anyone to gain the | | | | should have to travel an unacceptable distance to |
| necessary expertise to integrate better into the | | | | attend one. The standards maintained at training |
| community, or to go on and get the job they need | | | | centres are high, and many courses have recognised |
| where previously their lack of basic skills was holding | | | | qualifications awarded to successful students. |
| them back. The training can involve many things, but | | | | The lack of basic skills in the work force can cost |
| may concentrate only on what is lacking in the | | | | employers money, which is why it is in their interests to |
| individual. The aim is for general life improvement, and | | | | provide learning and skills to those employees who |
| that may simply be the ability to tell the time, or write a | | | | may need them. According to the government |
| letter. | | | | Department for Education and Skills, a business |
| Those of us who completed a good education tend to | | | | employing between 50 and 100 workers can be losing |
| take basic skills for granted. We can often forget that | | | | out to the tune of 86,000 UK pounds a year because |
| there are people who cannot read or write, tell the | | | | of poor numeracy and literacy skills within its work |
| time or add up figures. A skills for life strategy through | | | | force. While there may be some initial cost in an |
| proper training can give these basic skill to those who | | | | education and training programme to counteract the |
| need them, enabling them to overcome their limitations | | | | situation, it will pay for itself quite handsomely in time. |
| and go on to become fully integrated citizens. Being | | | | Gaining functional skills has the effect of empowering |
| able to develop and grow in the skills most of us take | | | | an individual with better social skills too. They can gain |
| for granted is not only good for the individual, but it is | | | | confidence in themselves that they never dreamed |
| conducive to creating a more functional community | | | | they could have. For example, a woman who has |
| too. | | | | always relied on her husband to take care of finances |
| Skills for life training is now widely available through | | | | may be surprised at their own abilities with simple |
| government initiatives and training and development | | | | maths. The revelation can be all it takes to spur her on |
| programmes. These can be delivered by various | | | | to enroll in an improvement programme providing the |
| agencies and providers and most urban areas will | | | | kind of skills for life training she really needs to find her |
| most likely have a training centre close by. No one | | | | own level in life. |