26 | Update | Autumn/winter 2010
A provider’s learning journey
The winning formula
Interview with Lynette Baldwin of the Baldwin Training Centre
Image: Lynette Baldwin of the Baldwin Training Centre
Meet Lynette Baldwin. Her impressive learning journey started with her first job as a cleaner in a care home. Her energy, skills and commitment have led her to running a training company based in Eastbourne. It was set up in 2003, employs more than 20 people and delivers training to hundreds of workers in the care sector. Her company is going from strength to strength since she became involved in the LSIS Skills for Life Improvement programme in 2007. The company was awarded Beacon status in 2009, has the Training Quality Standard and gained an overall Level 2 in their recent Ofsted inspection. This year she is supporting LSIS as a lead practitioner in the South East region.
How did you first get involved with LSIS? The Baldwin Training Centre (BTC) was operating very successfully on the south coast, supporting learners with Key Skills portfolio building. However, we had no real awareness of literacy, language and numeracy (LLN) issues, although we did realise that many learners had problems with these basic skills. In 2007, we were invited to take part in the LSIS whole organisation approach (WOA) initiative. This was part of the Skills for Life Improvement programme. The health check we did as part of this initiative was a real eye-opener. We knew we weren’t being as successful as we wanted to be with all learners, but WOA got us to think about our own skills as trainers and how we needed to embed LLN teaching into our support for learners. In the process of the health check and subsequent training, I discovered that I was dyslexic and that many of our staff needed to brush up on their own numeracy skills.
Tell us about the challenges you faced. Getting staff on board was certainly a big challenge as they needed to improve their skills and confidence to support learners. However, they are all very committed and have taken to embedded teaching and learning quickly. Embedding comes completely naturally now. It is also true that some learners were reluctant to accept support, but the initial one-to-one support available and a real understanding of the barriers people face has meant that learners greatly appreciate the improvement in their skills.
Tell us about what you’ve gained from being involved in the Skills for Life Improvement programme. We have developed a 20-hour training programme for staff that raises awareness of LLN and dyslexia and looks at a range of strategies for support, which are taken from the excellent ‘Supporting dyslexic learners in different contexts’ distance learning programme. All staff achieve Level 2 literacy and numeracy qualifications and many progress to teaching qualifications. I myself started with Level 2
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