Somerset Skills & Learning (SS&L) is excited to announce a partnership with Somerset County Council (SCC), to deliver a new Government-funded numeracy programme, Multiply, throughout the county.
The Government has allocated up to £559 million to local councils and mayoral combined authorities to improve the numeracy skills of UK adults, over the next three years. The Government’s DfE funding is provided through the ‘Skills for Life’ programme. The aim is to help adults improve their number confidence and skills in daily life, at home and work, leading to better employment opportunities and wellbeing.
The Multiply programme will support adults to unlock their potential when looking for work, clarifying household finances, helping children with homework, to gain formal qualifications and more. With 20% of people experiencing maths anxiety and 36% saying they would like to improve their numeracy and maths skills, this programme is key to helping those adults who need it most.
SS&L is offering a range of free, flexible courses for those adults in Somerset who do not already have a GCSE grade C/4 or higher in maths, or equivalent, who need or want to build up their maths confidence and skills, or who experience anxiety when faced with maths. These courses are ideal for adults who are not yet ready to access SS&L’s existing courses, such as Functional Skills and GCSE maths.
Employers can also benefit by accessing these free numeracy courses to support their staff, which will help to plug skills gaps, boost productivity, increase profits, and improve employee retention.
Kathryn Baker, CEO of SS&L, said: “At SS&L, we understand that adults may not have had a good maths experience at school or have been away from education for a long time, which impacts their confidence and ability to reach their full potential. We know that with the right support, everyone can do maths. We’re so pleased to be running the Multiply programme across Somerset.”
Cllr Val Keitch, Lead Member for Local Government Re-organisation and Prosperity, said: “Somerset County Council is pleased to be working with SS&L to provide support to individuals looking to improve their confidence with numbers and skill up in maths. We hope it will help a significant number of adults with managing their finances, supporting their families, and perhaps with making a start on achieving a numeracy qualification they have yet to attain, to open up more opportunities for work. Employers can also benefit from this initiative in terms of upskilling their workforce.”
To find out more about the maths courses available with SS&L, visit www.sslcourses.co.uk and search MULTIPLY.
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