34
DECEMBER 2015 PRO INSTALLER
PRO SKILLS
www.proinstaller.co.uk
Leadership of small businesses
set to receive vital boost
The leadership of small businesses across the UK is to receive a vital boost thanks
to eight innovative projects which have received Government approval.
Aiming to improve the
overall productivity of UK
small businesses, “anchor
institutions” will work with
the Government-backed UK
Commission for Employment
and Skills (UKCES) to boost
their entrepreneurship and
leadership abilities.
The projects, which are part
of the UKCES-run UK Futures
Programme plan in particular to
help small businesses who haven’t
had any leadership or entrepreneurship training, with each
anchor institution committed to
assisting their local community.
The institutions the CES will be
working with include chambers
of commerce, universities, colleges, councils, enterprise agencies,
learning partnerships and business
schools, in conjunction with local
employers.
‘We need new ways to reach these
businesses, and we need solutions that
are relevant to each small firm’
Julie Kenny CBE DL, founder
of Pyronix Ltd, a leading small
business in the security sector and
Commissioner at the UKCES commented: “Small businesses form
the backbone of the UK economy.
Yet constraints on their time and
resources mean they are the least
likely to develop the leadership
and management skills that will
help them grow.”
“Owner managers and senior
leaders of small companies need
to spend their time and money
wisely, and see clear benefits from
the start. Current training programmes are often too broad or
vague to be usefully applied in the
real world. Simply gaining access
to good programmes can also be
difficult – for instance if you operate in a more rural area.”
“We need new ways to reach these
businesses, and we need solutions
that are relevant to each small firm.
The anchor institutions we will be
working with have demonstrated a
strong understanding of the specific
issues that small businesses face
in their local community. They
have also shown that they have the
ability to reach out to businesses
who often find themselves excluded
from national programmes.”
The selected programmes in
England and Wales are:
• Support Programme co-created
by Regional SMEs in Entrepreneurship and Leadership Skills,
led by the Regional Learning
Partnership – South West &
Central Wales
• CAPTURED, led by Newcastle
University
• LEAP (Leadership & Entrepreneurship Advancing Productivity), led by the University of
Sunderland
• The Leadership Forge, led by
Teesside University
• Doncaster Leadership & Entrepreneurship Academy, led by
Doncaster Council
• The Leadership Project, led by
St Helens Chamber Ltd
Each project represents a joint investment with UKCES, with organisations investing in cash, in-kind,
or both, alongside a maximum government contribution of £200,000
per project. The total government
contribution is £1.3 million.
‘total governement
contribution is
£1.3 million’
John Thompson, Chief Executive
at APHC, commented “We welcome
the news that small businesses will
be able to benefit from essential
entrepreneurship and leadership
training, which can have such a
significant impact on productivity
but are often lacking due to the
limitations placed on small firms.”
For further information visit
www.aphc.co.uk Source: The
Installes