Partnership will deliver digital training to hundreds

TEESSIDE University (@TeessideUni) has partnered with East Durham College and New College Durham to deliver training to 600 people this year.

They are working in collaboration to offer digital skills courses that will help people improve their productivity at work and enhance their career prospects.

The programme will give County Durham workers the technical know-how to use digital tools that will shape the future of their jobs. 

SAP is one of the world’s leading business software companies, and its recent Digital Transformation Executive Study found 84 per cent of companies globally believe digital transformation is critically important to their survival in the next five years.

Kelly Hassell, project co-ordinator at East Durham College, said:

“Digital skills are going to be vital in the next few years. The impact of Covid-19 has made businesses realise that work can be done from home and we don’t have to be in the office – with that comes a need for digital know-how.

“With remote working, the higher-level skills that Teesside University are offering are crucial to teachers or those giving presentations, for example. They need to make the online delivery of classes and presentations as attractive and engaging as possible.”

She continued: “In the older population, we have people who don’t have the basic skills for computers so as digitalisation takes place – they need to be developed.

“A lot of the younger generation are used to using phones and tablets so there’s always opportunity to improve people’s computer literacy.”

Siobhan Fenton, associate dean (Enterprise and Business Engagement) in the School of Computing, Media and the Arts at Teesside University, said:

“This partnership is a great way of providing people living in County Durham with an opportunity to improve their career prospects.

“The courses will help workers step up and become more confident with digital as it becomes more central to the world of work.

“Employers don’t often have the chance to engage in fully-funded upskilling, so it’s a fantastic opportunity.”

Teesside University’s Digital Skills for Growth programme, part funded through European Social Investment Fund, is hosting a Digital Skills Roadshow on the East College Durham campus, August 25.

The event can be attended in person or online and you get the chance to try an array of digital skills workshops with the support of industry experts.

The workshops will focus on everything from getting the most out of programmes like Excel and Microsoft Teams to data analytics and artificial intelligence.

If you work in County Durham and want to sign up for the event, visit: https://www.tees.ac.uk/sections/business/digitalskills/contact_durham.cfm