Review of Main Developments in Adult Guidance in Scotland 2003/4

Key developments in Scotland have included:

1. Community Guidance Strategy developments in local authority areas.

• Discussions have taken place between Careers Scotland and local community guidance providers to identify how best to progress this to integrate with national and local development of Community Learning and Development policy initiatives.

2. Integrating Guidance in Adult Literacies

• Within the national initiative to develop adult literacies, local areas have received funding for a further two years to March 2006 to consolidate local Action Plans. The role of guidance in engaging and progressing learners has been identified as an area for development by local partnerships and from research undertaken by the Scottish Guidance Forum.
• As part of their support for Community Guidance Careers Scotland has made a successful bid for ESF funding to provide first level guidance awareness training for up to 300 literacies practitioners. Training opportunities will be made available throughout 2004/2005.

3. Careers Scotland (career planning/all age guidance/...)

• Careers Scotland is now firmly established as a national organisation which provides career planning services underpinned by strategies in inclusion, employability and enterprise, to people of all ages across Scotland. A new operating model, offering a differentiated level of service based on diagnosis of client need, has been introduced to help ensure that individuals are equipped with the skills to be self-sufficient career planners - able to make realistic decisions, locate the job and training opportunities that are right for them and reassess their situation when circumstances change.
• Careers Scotland has commissioned research on both the role of school students' part time employment in learning about work and the links between career goals and academic attainment. Copies of the final reports are being disseminated nationally. There is clear and systematic evidence that school pupils with career goals have higher attainment levels than those without.
• As a key player in national and international developments Careers Scotland contributes to and influences international developments from a Scottish perspective. This includes participation in the development of a National Guidance Forum and the International Centre for Career Development and Public Policy, as well as undertaking an OECD case study of careers guidance in Scotland.

4. Scottish Guidance Forum

Guidance in Further Education

• NAEGA is a member of the Scottish Guidance Forum, which includes members from the key sectors involved in developing and delivering guidance provision for adults. Through its programme of quarterly meetings, there have been opportunities to discuss:

  - role of guidance in the Scottish strategy on literacy and numeracy

  - refocusing of the Guidance Council's activities

  - key priorities for Learning Connections (Communities Scotland)

  - relaunch of the Challenge of Change

  - first level guidance pilot project for Literacies workers

  - learndirect Scotland's agenda in relation to social inclusion

  - proposals for a UK National Forum for Guidance

  - priorities for the future operation of the Scottish Guidance Forum

  A new network supported by all Scottish Further Education College Principals has been formed to support the development of Guidance in Further Education Colleges. Since its establishment in November 2003, the Guidance and Student Support Network has consulted with its members to identify its key themes:

  - to influence policy

  - to provide access to CPD for practitioners

  - to support research

  There have already been CPD and conference events organised and funding for research is being investigated.

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