Coventry College offers learning opportunities for hard-to-reach community groups

Coventry College will play a key role in completing two major contracts to offer learning opportunities for people from across the West Midlands who may not be able to access them.

The college will be working with North Warwickshire and Hinckley College on Midlands Engine Strategy plans to introduce new and innovative ways of improving English as a second language skills for hard-to-reach community groups.

It will also work with other selected colleges across the West Midlands to offer English, Maths and ICT skills assistance to people already in work through the Department for Education’s Flexible Learning Fund.

The duo of tender wins marks a great start to 2019 for Coventry College and a major opportunity to connect with more businesses across the region.

Rosie Bonner, Head of ESOL and International English and Maths at Coventry College, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be able to deliver these programmes for the Midlands Engine Strategy and the Flexible Learning Fund.

“It is a real show of trust in our capabilities to deliver adult education of the highest level and a big opportunity for us to build relationships with businesses and communities across the region.

“We are going to be able to assist employers help their staff who require English language support to up-skill for free and flexibly.

“This will have a major impact on the Midlands Engine Strategy as it will lead to better access to work and career prospects for individuals and enhanced productivity outcomes for employers.”

The Midlands Engine Strategy work will see Coventry College teaching in the community, going directly to people in hard-to-reach groups and offering them one-to-one assistance in a project that will run through to the end of this academic year.

The college’s work with the Flexible Learning Fund will target staff in industries such as construction and care around their busy schedules.

Gemma Knott, Assistant Principal Business Growth at Coventry College, said: “We are excited to extend our reach to offer assistance to those who need extra training but are unable to access it, this can really help both their career prospects and the local economy.

“We will be offering tutoring of the highest quality and we look forward to seeing the results of this work in years to come.

“This is a great opportunity for us to get out into the community and build relationships, which is something we are keen to focus on this year.”