To ensure that learners of all stages have the opportunity to develop essential skills, we have implemented various initiatives. Life Skills certificates are awarded monthly to students, motivating them to build their skills continuously. Additionally, an annual mandatory staff briefing included a dedicated section on Skills Builder, emphasizing its importance. By actively engaging curriculum staff in regular Skills Builder training, we strive to create a comprehensive learning environment that nurtures essential skills effectively, ensuring the Benchmark tool is also revisited at regular intervals.

We employ various approaches and tools to assess students' essential skills and track their progress effectively. One key tool is the Skills Builder Benchmark platform, which provides a structured way to evaluate and monitor skills development. This insight has been invaluable in understanding individual students' strengths and areas for improvement, guiding personalised support and interventions. To address the challenge of consistency among lecturers and tutors, we have initiated training sessions and workshops to ensure a unified approach to assessing and developing essential skills. Moving forward, we plan to extend this approach to encompass all adult learners and apprenticeship learners, aligning with courses too such as SWAPs (Sector-Based Work Academy Programmes). The interest and engagement across multiple staff teams have been instrumental in driving this initiative forward, fostering a collaborative and integrated approach to skills development.

We provide our students with regular opportunities to develop their essential skills by incorporating Skills Builder Hub activities, group projects, and real-world problem-solving tasks into our lessons. These activities are designed to encourage teamwork and problem-solving skills while fostering an inclusive learning environment. To support this approach, we utilise tools such as the Skills Builder Framework, which allows us to track students' progress in specific skills areas and set development targets for each individual. By focusing on a minimum of three skills per student and aiming beyond initial proficiency, we provide a structured and personalised approach to skill development. This targeted focus helps students build a comprehensive skill set and enhances their overall learning experience.

Projects and group work guidance from the Hub are particularly used to enhance teamwork, problem-solving, communication, and critical thinking skills. These activities are designed to provide practical, hands-on experiences that allow students to develop and showcase their skills in various contexts. To further enhance this practice, we plan to continue focusing on Skills Champions to promote and share best practices across the institution. At the beginning of each academic year, interested staff and departments will continue to be encouraged to collaborate and integrate essential skills development into their teaching plans and activities. This will ensure a comprehensive and consistent approach to nurturing essential skills among our students.

To help students see how they can use essential skills in wider life, such as those related to communication, problem solving, and teamwork, we would incorporate real-life challenges, projects, and collaborations with employers to provide practical applications and opportunities for students to apply these skills. For example, learners took part in a progression fair where students could explore different career pathways, interact with industry representatives, and gain exposure to diverse opportunities that require strong listening and speaking skills. They used Skills Passports to review their own progress against the framework, collecting stamps from employers as evidence of this. Employers and guest speakers in weeks such as PRISE week made reference to the skills and the relevance of these in chosen industry areas.