Creative & Cultural Skills forges links with Showmen's Guild
By TJ (26-10-2007)
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Creative & Cultural Skills chief executive, Tom Bewick, has met representatives of the Showmen's Guild to explore opportunities for developing skills in the 20,000-strong travelling show workforce. Issues on the agenda included access to education and training and how initiatives such as the Creative Apprenticeship and the proposed National Skills Academy can help secure the future of the industry.
"It is important to recognise the businesses represented by the Showmen's Guild as a colourful and vibrant part of our heritage and culture," says Tom Bewick, "Here are communities that have been frequently overlooked when it comes to education and training. Travelling showmen are born into the trade. They are highly experienced at what they do. We have to ensure that they have access to the latest innovations in training and technology and, importantly, that they get their skills formally recognised."
Derrick Merrin, Education Liaison Officer for the Showmen's Guild echoed this: "Twenty years ago our communities moved around so much the young people weren't able to stay in school. It's not like that anymore but our children are still leaving education. They've been brought up in the trade all their lives. They know how to do the job and earn a wage. What they haven't got are those little pieces of paper and that is making it harder to get work."
Having access to education and training is only part of the picture. Creative & Cultural Skills research reveals that despite the 180,000 courses and 30,000 providers of creative and cultural education in the UK, employers aren't recognising these qualifications. People are coming through the system lacking adequate training or skills and employers are missing out on fresh talent. Creative & Cultural Skills is addressing this imbalance with pioneering work in qualifications reform. Flagship projects like the Creative Apprenticeship, an alternative entry route with significant on-the-job learning, and the proposed National Skills Academy, offer training in technical skills as well as business development, fundraising and marketing skills.
"These projects are fantastic opportunities for these young people to stay in school and get accredited in the skills that they have grown up with," says Sarah Hodgson, consultant teacher for Showmen's Guild children at Education Walsall. "They build on community traditions and there is a big crossover with the skills offered by the Apprenticeship in Technical Theatre for example, rigging, lighting and staging. Also, these communities will get the chance to learn new skills in enterprise that will enable them stay in their family business and make a real go of it"
The Creative Apprenticeship will be available UK-wide from 2008.
"It is important to recognise the businesses represented by the Showmen's Guild as a colourful and vibrant part of our heritage and culture," says Tom Bewick, "Here are communities that have been frequently overlooked when it comes to education and training. Travelling showmen are born into the trade. They are highly experienced at what they do. We have to ensure that they have access to the latest innovations in training and technology and, importantly, that they get their skills formally recognised."
Derrick Merrin, Education Liaison Officer for the Showmen's Guild echoed this: "Twenty years ago our communities moved around so much the young people weren't able to stay in school. It's not like that anymore but our children are still leaving education. They've been brought up in the trade all their lives. They know how to do the job and earn a wage. What they haven't got are those little pieces of paper and that is making it harder to get work."
Having access to education and training is only part of the picture. Creative & Cultural Skills research reveals that despite the 180,000 courses and 30,000 providers of creative and cultural education in the UK, employers aren't recognising these qualifications. People are coming through the system lacking adequate training or skills and employers are missing out on fresh talent. Creative & Cultural Skills is addressing this imbalance with pioneering work in qualifications reform. Flagship projects like the Creative Apprenticeship, an alternative entry route with significant on-the-job learning, and the proposed National Skills Academy, offer training in technical skills as well as business development, fundraising and marketing skills.
"These projects are fantastic opportunities for these young people to stay in school and get accredited in the skills that they have grown up with," says Sarah Hodgson, consultant teacher for Showmen's Guild children at Education Walsall. "They build on community traditions and there is a big crossover with the skills offered by the Apprenticeship in Technical Theatre for example, rigging, lighting and staging. Also, these communities will get the chance to learn new skills in enterprise that will enable them stay in their family business and make a real go of it"
The Creative Apprenticeship will be available UK-wide from 2008.
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