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Careers advice and help to get people into work will soon be available at West Bromwich Fire Station. West Midlands Fire Service has teamed up with Learndirect to set up a new Adult Education and Careers Advice Centre at the station in Hargate Lane. An open day is taking place from 10am until 3.30pm on Saturday (May 17) to celebrate the opening of the new facility. The new centre will offer free courses in CV writing and how to use IT including the internet and e-mail, as well as qualifications in English and maths. West Midlands Fire Services Recruitment Team will offer careers advice, and guidance will also be available from the Learndirect team for any other careers people are interested in. Food Safety courses will be offered, and the centre will also be able to arrange interviews with Sandwell Councils Templink Agency, the temporary work agency for the authority. Mark Lawton, Station Commander for West Bromwich, said: I know that careers advice is not the first thing that people think of when they think of a fire station, but we believe this will be a very valuable resource that will have a positive impact on peoples lives. Teaming up with Learndirect gives them an excellent base to help equip people with the skills they need in the workplace and to find jobs, while we get to play a greater role in the community we serve. It also gives us an opportunity to get across important safety messages to those using the centre. Opening times at the centre will include mornings, afternoons and evenings to allow as many people as possible to fit learning into their busy schedules. Sally Aherne, Online Learning Manager for Learndirect, said: "This centre will give adults the opportunity to study towards essential qualifications such as English, maths and IT. "These qualifications are key to most jobs and careers nowadays and its great that they can all be achieved by studying at West Bromwich Fire Station. "The courses may also open up doors to a variety of other activities and career development opportunities. Interviews with Templink, CV writing courses or a one-to-one with a trained careers advisor may offer that important start to some residents. "We have lots of wonderful stories about learners that have already achieved their dream jobs, gained qualifications or just improved their day to day life skills since studying with Learndirect and I am sure that this centre will help lots more adults to achieve theirs." Careers advisors from Learndirect and from the Fire Service recruitment team will be at the Open Day to talk to visitors. If available, firefighters from the station will also talk to visitors about their work and fire safety. For more information about the Adult Education and Careers Advice Centre, please call 0121 569 8409. |
