Learndirect launches ‘Make It Count Week’

Online learning provider Learndirect has launched a weeklong event to help break down barriers that prevent people from learning new skills.

The group launched the event, called ‘Make it Count Week’, in response to Prime Minister David Cameron’s announcement that the “jobless must gain useful skills in order to continue receiving welfare payments”.

Make It Count Week aims to encourage 10,000 people to sign-up for learning to get the new skills and qualifications they need to improve their job prospects.

Sarah Jones, CEO of Learndirect, said:

“Skills are fundamental to sustainable employment and Learndirect welcomes the focus on getting people back into work.

“For over ten years Learndirect has provided an alternative to the classroom with online learning, either at home or in a local centre, which has been particularly appealing to people with a range of barriers to learning and employment.”

Teamed up with experts and partners including the National Apprenticeship Service, totaljobs and Centrepoint, ‘Make it Count Week’ will provide advice, guidance and hope to those looking for work.

In addition, Learndirect has commissioned ‘The Work Confident Report’, which exposes the work challenges and confidence crisis faced by Britain’s unemployed and employed job seekers.

The three key areas highlighted and identified as issues for both unemployed and employed when it came to searching for a job were:

• The UK’s crisis of confidence, with 96 per cent of Britain’s unemployed thinking there aren’t any jobs out there suitable for their skills.
• Job hunting blues, with 70 per cent unemployed admitting they feel ‘trapped’ by the endless job hunt cycle and 63 per cent going for a lower-paid position.
• Lack of employer support and the cost barrier, for those already out of work, the perceived cost of training is the biggest barrier.

The figures also reveal that two-thirds of unemployed people feel they have lost confidence in their ability in the last year.

Aastha Gill