Learning Together Cheshire & Warrington is a company limited by guarantee with Charitable aims. It is the development of an existing informal Learning Forum, which has been operating in Cheshire and Warrington since 2000.
The key aim of the organisation is to enable organisations in the voluntary and community sector in Cheshire and Warrington to play a full and equal part in the development and delivery of learning; including volunteers and staff, their members and/or their target communities. This in turn, will promote a strong and vibrant voluntary and community sector across the sub-region of Cheshire & Warrington.
It will do this through five key objectives:
To ensure member organisations can access high quality information, advice, support and training on a wide range of learning related topics through a range of communication channels (including newsletter, e-lists and website)
To build on the success of the Learning Forum in developing dynamic netowrks around learning, increasing membership, facilitating and enabling the sharing of ideas and best practice and providing opportunities for members to learn from each other through activities including peer support, training and mentoring.
To play a key role in enabling the development of member organisations by providing or signposting to opportunities that will help them to develop the skills and knowledge of staff, volunteers and Trustees.
To promote and champion the interests of the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) through representation, advocacy and lobbying at sub-regional, regional, national and European levels raising the profile of the Sector and further developing two-way channels of communication with external stakeholders.
To operate, manage and develop Learning Together Cheshire & Warrington in an effective and efficient manner in accordance with Company policy, best practice and for the benefit of member organisations and stakeholders
Our objectives for the period 2007 to 2010 are highlighted in the document accessed through this link.
The impact of the organisation's work will be demonstrated through the emergence of a more confident, skilled and knowledgeable sector, whose organisations are better able to access and deliver learning, and whose role and contribution to partnership working will be better recognised and more effective.
The organisation has developed good working relationships with the local Learning and Skills Council (LSC), Local Education Authorities (LEAs) and Learning Partnerships, together with a number of other agencies. With a strong belief in partnership working it has been successful in facilitating:
A joint VCS/LSC Working Together Steering Group to locally implement the LSC's national strategy (see below)
Negotiated with Cheshire County Council, Adult & Community Learning (CCC, ACL) to facilitate a wide range of learning related support
Skills for Life Capacity Building Project working with the LSC and CCC, ACL to build the capacity of the sector in the Skills for Life Agenda
Developed a response from member organisations to the LSC Strategy for Learners with Learning Disabilities and/or Difficulties (see Resources LSC Page)
Our values
Our basic principles
As a voluntary organisation itself, Learning Together Cheshire and Warrington advances the interests of all Voluntary and Community organisations who are concerned with, or actively involved in learning and training within the sub-region.
We aim to enable organisations in the voluntary and community sector in Cheshire and Warrington to play a full and equal part in the development and delivery of learning to the benefit of their volunteers, staff, members and/or their target communities, which in turn will promote a strong and vibrant voluntary and community sector across the sub-region.
We aim to represent the views and interests of the voluntary and community sectors in the sub-region to key strategic partners in the field of education, training and learning.
We aim to support the development of voluntary and community organisations as users and providers of education, training and learning.
We believe that the voluntary sector has a valuable role in the development of learning and is well placed to be able to support those who may have been excluded from learning. Voluntary and community organisations are engaging in learning and promoting learning in many different ways and via different roles: as employers, providers of learning, community presence, access and brokering, sources of communication and expertise, having intelligence about need and promoting good practice.
Our Values are:
Putting our service users' needs and aspirations at the centre of all we do.
Celebrating and promoting active learning for all as a necessary condition for personal growth, social change and economic development and promoting equality of opportunity for all learners and those working on their behalf and redressing disadvantages.
Aiming at excellence in all we do and achieving professional reliability based on integrity and respect, quality and accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.
Ensuring political independence within the voluntary sector.
Having consideration for the environment and incorporating sustainable development principles in our policies and practice.
Our Policies
The full range of our policies can be viewed in the members' section of the website (only accessible to members ). However, some key policies can be accessed through the links below.
Learning Together Cheshire & Warrington is keen to deliver the best possible service to its members and stakeholders. We can do this if we have feedback about all aspects of what we do.
If you have any comments about this website or any material that is ( or isn't! ) on it please let us know through the 'on line' form below.
