Erasmus for All – Charter for Higher Education Institutions

The European Commission has today published a Call for Higher Education Institutions as part of the Erasmus for All programme, even though the programme itself has not been agreed.

The Call is specifically to set up contracts between the European Commission and Higher Education Institutions (also known as HEIs) which will then allow HEIs to apply for funding under the new programme from 2014 onwards. It is not a Call for funding and does not affect any other kind of organisation.

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Springing into sustainable and inclusive growth

Today is officially the first day of spring, the time where the roots have bedded down and the first shoots start appearing. This might be a rather tenuous link but it started me thinking about the opportunities for growth and how the lifecycle of our projects enable new branches to sprout and develop.

Growth is a priority under the EU2020 objectives with sustainable and inclusive growth a focus. Continuing on the theme of growth, I thought I’d highlight some of our projects that look at the greener side of things. Many of our projects focus on conservation, nature and the environment, working to help communities and individuals through green-centered education. Looking first at Leonardo, the 2011 Mobility funded Parks & Gardens Apprenticeship Scheme, organised by Cardiff Council, provided apprentices with a new understanding of the techniques and processes involved in horticulture: Read the rest of this entry »


Delivering Apprenticeships: Pride, Growth and Choice

Pride: It’s day one of National Apprenticeship Week and we are proud to be supporting apprentices from across the country through the Lifelong Learning Programme!

Growth: This year’s National Apprenticeship Week celebrates a new era for apprentices, looking at how individuals develop through their apprenticeships and the impact this has on themselves, the employers and wider society. Read the rest of this entry »


International Women’s Day!

On a day dedicated to recognising women’s achievements and addressing inequalities that remain across the world, we would like to share with you one of our Leonardo Transfer of Innovation projects, which focusses on bringing out potential in women entrepreneurs. This topic is highly relevant to the UK Government’s response to IWD this year, which focuses on supporting women in business. See http://www.number10.gov.uk/news/international-womens-day-2013/ for more details.

Supporting women entrepreneurs through technology

The Women’s Organisation, a Social Enterprise in Liverpool, are currently 16 months into their Women’s E-Business Enterprise Learning Project which aims to help women entrepreneurs to make better use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to improve their business competitiveness. Read the rest of this entry »


Connecting with you, connecting with us

Hearing the benefits, and impact, that Leonardo, Grundtvig and Transversal funding has on organisations, staff and learners is inspiring. During the 7 years of the Lifelong Learning Programme, we have funded thousands of partnerships and individuals, from large-scale 2 year Transfer of Innovation projects to a 1 day Visit & Exchange, we enjoy hearing the ins and outs of how each opportunity goes and your personal experiences. Connecting with you is important to us and with the recent addition of our Facebook Page you might be wondering how else can we connect? Read the rest of this entry »