Workplace Change Makers Award Winner

A suggestion from a staff member attending a course has led to a ground-breaking new partnership that is equipping her colleagues with inclusive skills now being delivered across a huge part of South Wales.  

Innovate Trust is a not-for-profit disability support organisation supplying services throughout the Vale of Glamorgan, Rhondda Cynon Taf and Cardiff.  

One employee engaged with a webinar organised by her union, UNISON’s Wales Union Learning Fund (WULF) and following this, she asked if the course could be offered to more of her colleagues.  

Unison’s WULF project, funded by Welsh Government, is committed to providing social care workers with dedicated webinars and face-to-face courses, both in partnership with employers and through its all-Wales webinar programme.  

Jenny Griffin, from UNISON, worked closely with management to negotiate a programme of courses, delivered in work time with staff paid and released to attend.  

“The agreement shows our members that the employer wants to work with the union to prioritise learning and demonstrates that the courses weren’t a one-off – learning is going to be happening all the time now,” said Jenny.  

An initial phase of three British Sign Language Level 1 courses were delivered by Adult Learning Wales throughout 2023, with a follow-on Level 2 course to enable staff to continue developing their new-found skills. These courses were co-funded by the WULF project and the employer, with 68 learners taking part.  

The second stage was delivery of bespoke Time Management and Managing Difficult Conversations courses, funded through the union’s exclusive member learning offer. This led to increased union membership, giving more workers union protection and access to UNISON college courses.  

Innovate Trust has now appointed two new union learning representatives to support colleagues and ensure union-led learning is a part of its DNA.  

Donna Miller, Innovate Trust Training Manager, said: “The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive with our learners reporting that their new skills have been warmly received by individuals who use our services, increasing confidence and improving communication.”  

An Official Learning Agreement was signed last autumn to reinforce the importance of workplace learning. It has become a model for how UNISON and social care employers can work together to make courses available to non-traditional learners.  

The pioneering partnership has been praised by UNISON Regional Manager, Andy Rutherford, who said: “Social care workers are at the heart of our union and this initiative builds their skills and confidence directly helping the people, families, and communities that Innovate Trust supports.” 

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