Crown Commercial Service’s Post

Our Own Initiative investigation, ‘Are we caring for our carers?’, found that carers’ needs assessments at four investigated authorities are generally completed appropriately when undertaken. However, there are gaps in young carers’ needs assessments in Ceredigion and Neath Port Talbot. We identified areas for improvement, including better recording of: · The extent carers are able and willing to provide care · Their wishes regarding work, education, training, and leisure. We recommended updates to carers’ needs assessment forms to ensure consistent recording of all relevant information. We also suggested changes to letter templates to include: · A summary of the assessment · An explanation of review arrangements · Guidance on how carers can request a review or re-assessment. Read the full report at https://bit.ly/4ihZCJu.

Membership Categories #ICFF #ProfessionalDevelopment #CareerDevelopment #MembershipCategories #StandardMembership #StudentMembership #ProfessionalMembership #Customs #freightforwarders

Good to see the issue of Victoria’s driving age raised again. Victoria’s provisional licence age of 18 is unaligned to other states (age 17) and creates a major barrier to young people in regional areas who the need to travel long distances for work and education and have no access to public transport. It is time it changed so that apprentices can get to work and training in regional industry. It is essential to addressing disadvantage and skills shortages. Good work to Northern Victorian MLA Gaelle Broad for raising this. https://lnkd.in/g9DFHV8s

Providing the right training to PRM assistance agents contributes to the quality of your PRM assistance. The event below gives senior PRM assistance agents the opportunity to do just that. #accessibletravel#PRMassistance#

Along with three of my intrepid Wellington office colleagues and a team from UDC I had the pleasure of standing at the summit carpark on SH2 Remutaka Hill Road this week giving out bacon butties, drinks and lollies to truck drivers to show our appreciation for the great work they do. A big shoutout to UDC for their initiative and delivery of this event, and we’re already looking forward to the next one. What was sad was the number of drivers that indicated they wanted to stop but they couldn’t, or certainly that was what we interpreted from those that were pointing at their watches as they slowed but decided they couldn’t afford to stop. It was a stark demonstration of how much pressure drivers are under. The location was good because it provided an opportunity to appreciate the drivers’ skill as they made their way up the southern side, on what is some of the more testing topography on the State highway network. Most that had CB radios routinely use them to give warning to other truckies as they approached the tight points. The location was also relevant to us given we recently recommended to NZTA that if money becomes available for any work on this route, then improving the next two pinch points for heavy vehicles that our members have identified would be a good place to start. Relieving the pinch points would also help improve resilience of our public transport system. Unfortunately issues with trains that morning had meant buses were replacing the train services and given the length and wheel bases of modern coaches, manoeuvering them around the tight and windy sections is no mean feat. However, while we might want those improvements, for some historical perspective it was sobering to read at the noticeboard at the summit that between 1915 and 1918 about 60,000 soldiers that trained at Featherston Military Camp marched over the Hill to Trentham. It was a distance of 43.5 km and would take 3 days. Most of the combinations units I saw this week had at least 540 HP and would have covered that distance in about 45 minutes so it’s easy to forget how far we’ve come! 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆 In the advocacy front Policy Lead Billy Clemens is working with MBIE on the Accredited Employer Work Visa, and ACC has begun consultation on changes to its levies. We’ve also developed our submission on NZTA’s proposals to change the Medical Aspects of Fitness to Drive which is guidance given to health practitioners when assessing the fitness. Another issue we’re getting our heads around is the NZTA toll road proposals. While it’s still early days, I’ve already had a significant amount of feedback from members concerned with the proposal to toll roads that are already in construction with funding has been allocated. I’m sure this will be a subject of much discussion at our Napier Summit! My full Friday Blog is here. https://lnkd.in/gig5anxe

The UK government has rolled out proposals that could steer young Britons towards promising careers in bus and coach driving. Announced by Roads Minister Guy Opperman, the initiative seeks to tackle driver shortages head-on, ensuring buses and coaches traverse the English countryside and urban sprawls with renewed vigour. #busdriverageproposal #coachdrivertrainingUK #drivershortagesolutions #governmenttransportproposals #haulagesectorsupport #improvingbusservices #Publictransportimprovements #reliablebusservices #transportcareersforyoung #transportsectorjobgrowth #UKYouthTransportCareers

Exciting times ahead

Choosing the right Aged Care Qualifications If you are planning to explore a career in Aged Care services, you might be wondering: what qualifications do I need? The answer is there is a vast range of courses available through Equinox College to suit your needs, however: while a qualification isn’t strictly required to work in Aged Care, gaining one will prepare you for working in the sector and enable you to begin working straight away, such as CHC33021 Certificate III in Individual Support (ageing/disability).   Many employers prefer workers with a qualification since they need less training and supervision to start with.   Whether you have the time to study full-time, part-time either face to face or online, there’s an option for you.   For more information on all of our courses visit our website https://lnkd.in/gnnif63g #agedcare #training #careerchange2025 #facetoface #online #enrolnow #certificate #qualifacation

This week marks Carers Week 2024, a time to shine a spotlight on the silent dedication of unpaid carers. This year’s theme “putting carers on the map”, is a call to acknowledge the invaluable contributions these individuals make every day in the UK.  As an organisation that values compassion, we’re proud to have achieved the second level of Carer Positive Award at the Established Employer level. This distinction underscores our commitment to providing an environment where carers feel valued and supported. Embracing a carer positive culture has tangible benefits , including reduced stress levels and sickness absence and lower costs related to recruitment and training. More importantly, it allows us to benefit from the exceptional qualities that carers embody – remarkable organisational skills, adept multi-tasking, profound empathy and unwavering resilience. We understand that juggling work with caring duties can be very difficult. That’s why we make every effort to put in place reasonable adjustments and the necessary support to ensure our carers can thrive both in the workplace and at home. Find out more about carer positive employers at https://lnkd.in/e4uCVVbC

This Carer’s Rights Day, we’re supporting new research (https://lnkd.in/eSmAGqzD) with Carers UK on the impact of caring on employment and calling for more employers to offer paid carers leave to the nearly 3 million working people juggling their careers with caring for a loved one. 👉Currently, over half of working carers say they can’t afford to take the unpaid leave they’re entitled to. 👉 Just under half say they have already had to reduce their working hours. At TSB we’re proud to offer our colleagues who are carers up to 70 hours of fully paid leave per year, alongside a wider package of support. It means colleagues have the flexibility they need to fulfil their carer responsibilities, while also progressing their career. And for TSB, we benefit from retaining our colleagues’ skills, knowledge and talent. Thank you Helen Walker and Carers UK, Employment Rights Minister Justin Madders MP and Anna Dixon MP for joining our Chief People Officer Ariam Enraght-Moony and our brilliant TSB carers Clair Canvin, Michelle White, and Katie Leaning to launch the research in Parliament last night. #ProudToBeTSB #CarersRightsDay