ESF Updates
Latest ESF News
Europe Day - 9 May 2008 Added 28/4/08
On 9 May 1950 the first move was made towards the creation of what is now known as the European Union. At the Milan Summit in 1985 EU leaders decided to celebrate 9 May as Europe Day. It is now an annual celebration of the cultural diversity within Europe and provides an opportunity to learn more about the European Union.
To mark this year's Europe Day there will be various celebratory events held in the South West.
To find out more click here.
Best Practice Events - 17 & 18 March 2008 Added 27/3/08
On 17 and 18 March 2008 the LSC held two events aimed at sharing best practice from the previous funding rounds (Objectives 1, 2 and 3) and taking that best practice forward into the new programmes (Competitiveness and Convergence).
To view the presentations used at these events please click here.
New Procurement Round - roadshow presentation slides Added 11/9/07
The procurement roadshow for the current LSC tendering round has now ended. These events were held in each region across the country to give an introduction to the new LSC e-tendering process, with the South West event being held in Taunton on 28 August 2007. To view the presentation slides from the roadshow please click here and then click on "eTendering Roadshow Slides.pdf". This presentation was the same for all the events and was only handout distributed.
Please note that the slides are in .pdf format and will therefore require Adobe Acrobat to open them.
To find out more about the new LSC procurement round please click here.
DWP ESF tendering information Added 11/9/07
ESF funding is also available via the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The following link will take you to the DWP website, where you will find details about their ESF tendering opportunities. Background information is provided as well as a timetable showing their procurement process.
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/supplyingdwp/what_we_buy/notice_to_providers.asp.
Convergence Event - 17 August 2007 Added 24/8/07
The Learning and Skills Council and Jobcentre Plus held a Co-financing Organisation ESF Information Event on 17 August 2007 in Fraddon, Cornwall. The purpose of the event was to provide an update on the developments for co-financing ESF under the Convergence programme (for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly). It covered timescales, partnership arrangements, etc, however it was not a tendering event.
To view the papers from this event, including the presentation slides, click here.
New Procurement Round 2008/09 Added 21/8/07
The Learning and Skills Council is hosting a series of regional briefing events about the e-procurement round for all 2008/09 LSC funding – including co-financing funding from the European Social Fund 2007-13 programme. For further details, including how to reserve a place at one of these events, click here.
New ESF Frameworks Added 21/8/07
The South West Regional Skills Partnership (RSP) have concluded the consultation on the new ESF Frameworks, "Convergence" (which will cover Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, replacing the existing Objective 1 funding) and "Competitiveness" (which will cover the rest of the South West, replacing the current funding under Objectives 2 and 3). To view these documents, visit the RSP's website here.
My Future Added 8/6/07
Raising awareness of opportunities in key Plymouth industry sectors
As part of the ESF Plymouth 14-19 Vocational Collaboration Project run by Connexions Cornwall and Devon Ltd an exciting interactive student event took place earlier in the year at Plymouth Pavilions. Read more
Skills Analysis Added 8/6/07
Realising the value of the older worker
Skills Analysis is part of an EU programme called EQUAL - a European Social Fund Initiative which tests and promotes new means of combating all forms of discrimination and inequality in the labour market. It is run by a Development Partnership of 16 partners with 3 transnational partners in Belgium, the Czech Republic and Poland. The LSC has been a committed partner in the project since 2005 and is actively helping to support its success. To find out more, please click here.
Research in the Bournemouth, Dorset & Poole LSC area Added 8/6/07
In 2006, BMG Research was commissioned by Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole Learning and Skills Council to assist the LSC to develop its policies and programmes in respect of eight local sectors. These are Engineering, Construction, Retail, Hospitality and tourism, Financial services, Social care, Childcare and Health. To find out more, and to view these reports, please click here.
