Lancashire Adult Learning has held a hugely successful employability event at Lancaster Town Hall – attracting 200 people seeking work or a change in career.

The Raising Aspirations event was held to highlight the number of employment and educational opportunities that exist for local residents in the Lancaster and Morecambe area, and by working in partnership with Jobcentre Plus and Lancaster City Council, numerous people attending on the day walked away with offers of work, with even more submitting applications for positions or enrolling onto courses to develop their skills.

More than 20 employers from a range of sectors were in attendance, and a free bus service was put on for Jobcentre Plus customers to allow those from Morecambe and outlying areas to attend the showcase.

The Lancaster event is the first in a list of Raising Aspirations roadshows this autumn, as the LAL team visits Blackpool on Friday 27 September and Leyland on Tuesday 29 October.

Nicola Hall, Head of Curriculum and Strategic Partnerships at Lancashire Adult Learning said: “Our Raising Aspirations events continue to grow, and take an increasingly important place in our calendar of events.

“I’m very pleased to see that the first Raising Aspirations event of its kind for Lancaster and Morecambe residents was extremely successful. Many people were arriving visibly apprehensive, but were leaving the event with a spring in their step, which is incredibly satisfying to see.

“The success of the event is only achievable through quality partnership work, and I’m thrilled that we have been able to positively work with Jobcentre Plus again, and also team up with Lancaster City Council who worked hard on the ground to encourage more than 50 people through the door who were not referred from the job centres.

“We have a formula that works, and a track-record for delivering results, and this enables us to successfully lift and shift our Raising Aspirations event template to other areas of the county. We’re looking forward to rolling out our roadshow again in the coming weeks.”

Julie Casson, Jobcentre Plus Partnership Manager for Lancaster and Morecambe, said: “The Lancashire Adult Learning Raising Aspirations event was a terrific employability and careers showcase and a fantastic example of successful partnership work between LAL, JCP Lancaster and Morecambe, and Lancaster City Council.

“With 200 people coming through the doors, three quarters of these were customers referred to the event by JCP. I’m delighted at this strong figure, and the positive outcomes in terms of job offers and job applications submitted to employers in attendance on the day.

“Across the county, we have an evolving partnership with Lancashire Adult Learning, and I look forward continuing our great work with the team at LAL.”

Cllr Tim Hamilton-Cox, Cabinet member with responsibility for economic development at Lancaster City Council, said: “I’m delighted that the city council was able to support Lancashire Adult Learning and Jobcentre Plus to bring this valuable opportunity to the residents of our district.

“It is important that our local employers and education providers are able to showcase their opportunities and connect with local people looking for work or training, and in this respect the event was a great success. It was the first time an event like this has been held in our district and I look forward to continuing our partnership to deliver similar events in the future.”

As well as its targeted delivery and partnership work, Lancashire Adult Learning offers a huge range of planned provision across the Red Rose County, from Arts and Crafts to Humanities classes, Languages to Health and Wellbeing sessions and Functional Skills English and Maths and Employability courses.

LAL’s new course guide for Autumn is now out, and is packed with a wide range of courses to help adults across the county learn a new skill, enhance their social life, or develop their career prospects during the first term of the new academic year.

In February 2018, Lancashire Adult Learning was named as the inaugural winner of the national Adult and Community Learning Provider of the Year at the TES FE Awards.

Further information about Lancashire Adult Learning can be found at www.lal.ac.uk or by calling 0333 003 1717.