PROJECT SUMMARY

The Frome Education & Training Enterprise (FETE) project aims to provide a broad range of post 14, mainly vocational, training in central Frome and the wider rural hinterland, linked with existing local businesses and social enterprise via a new Local Learning Centre. The project will be delivered by a partnership.

ABOUT THE PROJECT

Project update June 2008

The FETE project is designed to help overcome exclusion, skills gaps & barriers by providing a Local Learning Centre in the centre of Frome. This exciting new project for Frome has enabled the provision of new accessible, flexible office, training and workspaces for a wide range of organisations, social enterprises and businesses in Frome and replaces inaccessible, badly located premises in poor condition. The primary aim of this project is to address recognised skills shortages in the town of Frome and its surrounding rural parishes and will offer a range of vocational courses for the post 14 age group.

The first phase of the project, part funded by Rural Renaissance, has involved the purchase and erection of new Elliot buildings on theSaxonvale site in the town centre, with a view to transferring to a disused mill building on the same site when it has become available. Both buildings are located in Frome town centre, close to public transport nodes.

The new buildings have been fully fitted out to provide bright, accessible space with new equipment and facilities and training providers and learners have eagerly moved in. The new Centre, which opened its doors on the 18th February,  already provides three courses: Entry to Employment, Child Care and Business Skills and involves 33  learners. One external provider has also booked the facility for a Play Work training session so the project is well on the road to meeting its objectives.

By the time the centre was officially launched on the 19th May, courses and learners have grown even further: Strode College (another member of the Consortia) is re-locating their Basic Skills (10+) delivery for the Frome area to Saxonvale, and it is also intended that Skills and Learning will transfer the New Deal and Programme Centre provision (20 to 30 learners) to this venue in the summer. When numbers permit Health & Social Care NVQ’s and the Diploma in Admin will be offered at some point in the near future.

The projects objectives in detail are:

• To increase skill levels, combating social exclusion.

• To increase business productivity.

• To assist new businesses economic vibrancy.

• To act as a catalyst and provide cross curricular fertilisation between organisations.

• To link with businesses to promote enterprise, especially in the area of media by continuing to develop existing good practice with Frome College as a Media Art Specialist College.

• To further develop the range of vocational training options available for the 14-19 age group in Frome and the surrounding rural area.

• To develop employability skills and support job search so that people not only get jobs but retain them