Introduction from Nancy Kelly and Lynne Rankin.

Welcome to the activists education programme for 2012. This training programme is based on the demand for courses last year together with comments from Branches, Service Groups, Self-Organised Groups and other Committees.

In 2011 we ran more courses at both Branch and Regional level than ever before. We introduced the new five day Organising Steward’s course in April and feedback has been very positive on the content and lay out of the course.

More than 1000 activists participated in UNISON Scotland training which shows the level of demand - and that’s just the formal training. It doesn’t include the many activists and members who participated in Branch briefings, development activities or attended workshops and campaigning events like Mobilise. Many activists also attend TUC unionlearn courses.

Colleagues, now more than ever with our public services under attack, UNISON Branches and representatives need the knowledge and skills to defend jobs and services. Please keep learning high on the agenda in your branches and committees –we need to ensure our activists are supported and fully equipped to deal with the challenges facing us all.

We have been fortunate enough to recruit a lot of new stewards and greatly appreciate the time and commitment they give voluntarily. In return, we must ensure they get the training they need and we must not forget the responsibility of our more experienced stewards and Branch Officers to keep their skills updated and renew their ERA accreditation with the refresher courses. We all need to make sure our Branch Officers and senior Lay Activists demonstrate their leadership skills and support less experienced reps. We can offer a mentoring course in branches to assist you with this.

Our programme covers CORE training but we are always happy to look at introducing something new if there is a demand for it. For example, the Women’s Committee were concerned that the women’s assertiveness course had not run for some years so we looked jointly at what the needs were and have identified that it is confidence building that is required so we have included that. Similarly there is a view that the 5 day Organising Steward course is a little daunting for those who are relatively new so we have included sessions called Introduction to UNISON. These are a “taster” for people who want to find out more before committing fully to the more formal workplace representative role.

If your Branch or Committee is looking for something that is not included in the programme, please get in touch either with the Regional Education Officer or through your Regional Organiser.

The majority of demand is for courses in Glasgow or Edinburgh although successful local training programmes are run in both Inverness and Aberdeen. Occasionally we foray to Perth or Dundee and sometimes even outside the cities! All our courses are delivered by experienced staff or lay tutors who are highly skilled at helping participants develop themselves and get the skills they need to do the job. The courses are friendly and informal and (hopefully!) enjoyable.

UNISON Scotland is fortunate in that we have exceptional people who volunteer their own time to represent and organise our members. The Learning and Organising Committee recognise our responsibility to provide those exceptional people with the skills they need to do the job to their best ability. We have the best people – they deserve the best training.

We hope you find something of interest in the programme and wish you well with your training. Good Luck and enjoy it!

Lynne Rankin, Chairperson Learning and Organising Committee
Nancy Kelly, Regional Organiser (Education)