General Council Meetings - The STUC

24
learning activities, particularly in relation to the SULF 6
projects. The objective in the longer term is to develop a
sustainability strategy for everyday skills activity by trade
unions to be implemented through the new Scottish
Union Academy.
Two different groups on everyday skills meet regularly.
The STUC SULF Everyday Skills Group has continued to
provide support to all SULF 6 projects. In addition, the
STUC Everyday Skills Strategy Group has continued to take
everyday skills issues forward through to the development
of the new Scottish Union Academy. Through meetings
with these groups, individual unions, the STUC Learning
Forum, the STUC Learning Conference and Local Learning
Forums, affiliated unions have continued to be informed
of the progress of the General Council’s work on everyday
skills.
The Everyday Skills events held in Glasgow in December
2005, Inverness in March 2006 and Dundee in March
2007 have been followed by a further event in Stirling in
February 2008. These events enable Union Learning Reps,
SULF Project Workers, Trade Union Education Officers
and others within the trade union movement with an
interest in everyday skills, to increase the profile of
everyday skills issues in the workplace and explore
methods of supporting those with everyday skills needs.
In addition to the ‘rusty’ skills learners identified during
activity in previous years, trade unions are now tackling
the challenges of supporting those with dyslexia and other
learning difficulties, and migrant workers who do not
have English as a first language.
Strategic links have continued with the WEA and
Community Learning and Development Partnerships. In
addition, links have been further developed with other
partners, in order to provide information and support to
a wide range of learners, including those with dyslexia
and other learning difficulties and disabilities, and those
who do not have English as their first language. The
SALLT has been working with Dyslexia Scotwest and
Dyslexia Scotland to increase awareness of dyslexia in the
workplace, and to enable ULRs to identify and support
learners with indications of dyslexia. A small working
group on dyslexia, with membership consisting of the
SALLT Everyday Skills Development Officer and
representatives from the BFAWU, Community, Glasgow
Adult Literacies Partnership and Dyslexia Scotwest, was
established to look at issues surrounding dyslexia in the
workplace. This led to the development of a Scottish
Trade Union Strategy to create a dyslexia-friendly
workplace, which was launched at the Scottish Parliament
during Trade Union Week in January 2008.
In addition, the very first Scottish Adult Dyslexia
Conference, funded by Learning Connections, took place
in October 2007 and was attended by representatives
from the STUC and trade unions. The STUC Everyday
Skills Development Officer sits on the Planning Committee
for the 2008 Conference, to prioritise the need to support
working adults with dyslexia. A new Professional
Development Award: ‘Working with Adults with Dyslexia’
has also been developed to help professional staff and
volunteers in learning and workplace environments to
provide more effective support to dyslexic adults in
Scotland. The STUC Everyday Skills Development Officer
was a member of the SQA Validation Panel for this award,
which was launched in November 2007, and there has
been great interest from ULRs who wish to obtain this
qualification.
The SALLT is continuing to raise awareness of everyday
skills in the workplace through the awareness-raising
training course delivered to trade unions by TUC
Education (Scotland). The TUC ‘Skills for Life’ course has
been adapted for use in Scotland and has received good
feedback. In addition, the new SQA Professional
Development Award: ‘Literacies in the Workplace’ has
been developed. This is the result of a multi-partnership
initiative on which the General Council is represented,
and is aimed at enabling adult literacy and numeracy
tutors to become aware of workplace literacies issues.
This award is being launched by the SQA in March 2008
and will be available in addition to the ITALL
(Introduction to Adult Literacies Learning) module for
those who wish to become trade union literacy and
numeracy tutors or tutor assistants.
The General Council’s working relationship with Learning
Connections has continued during the last year, during
which time Learning Connections became part of the
Scottish Government’s Directorate of General Education.
The SALLT has continued to work with the Workplace
Literacies Development Co-ordinator, as well as the
Development Co-ordinators for Specific Learning
Difficulties and ESOL. Through Local Learning Forums
and other union learning events and meetings, the SALLT
has continued to promote the Big Plus adult literacy and
numeracy campaign with support from Learning
Connections. The SALLT has also been promoting the BBC
‘RaW’ (Reading and Writing) campaign, the ‘Quick
Reads’ campaign and, more recently, the Scottish
publisher, Sandstone Press; all of which are aimed at
encouraging adults to read.
Everyday skills programmes in the workplace have been
facilitated by SULF 6 projects through collaboration with
unions, employers and providers and with the support of
the SALLT. Due to the success of previous Royal Mail and
the award-winning First Scotrail programmes, delivery to
new learners in these workplaces has continued
throughout the year. The First Scotrail course, ‘Brush up
your skills’, is delivered by Stow College and tackles
everyday skills, such as form filling, correspondence,
household finances and helping children with homework.
USDAW members have also benefited from similar
courses delivered by Stow College and the WEA. Literacy,
numeracy and ICT skills are being delivered jointly by an
Everyday Skills Tutor and a deaf signer to Unite: Amicus
Section learners in two Remploy sites, also by Stow
College. The Glasgow Adult Literacies Partnership
developed a pilot course with PCS and the Tribunals
Service. This course covered work-specific areas, such as
letter writing and minute taking, and has been an
SCOTTISH TRADES UNION CONGRESS