Campaign for Learning gearing up the nation for another Learning at Work Week

Campaign for Learning is celebrating the 24th Learning at Work Week, which is taking place from 16–22 May. This year's theme of 'Learning Uncovered' is focused on raising the profile of lifelong learning at work and encouraging everyone to uncover and share their learning power.  

The national celebration is calling on employers across the country to promote a learning culture for all in their organisation. The Learning at Work Week website has everything employers need to create great activities with impact, from an ideas generator and planning advice, to promotional materials and free resources.  

Businesses this year are already empowering colleagues with thousands of learning opportunities on topics such as digital skills, sustainability, wellbeing and internal career paths. Some of the UK’s largest organisations are getting involved to celebrate:  

• Co-op will be spotlighting their Personal Growth Offer, Apprenticeships, mentoring and coaching, learning partnerships, and their dedicated Learning and Development hub alongside sharing colleagues’ stories.  The aim is for all colleagues to know how to access resources in a way that works for them and their learning style. At Co-op, it's important that everyone is given the opportunities to unlock their potential and try new things, so having a focus on colleague development is key in nurturing internal talent and having skilled and confident colleagues within a positive learning and workplace environment.   
• Channel 4 is also taking part, and this year will be asking all of its Executive Team, including its CEO, to run sessions on their learning journeys to uncover how they got to where they are. They aim to ensure an emphasis on their younger learners and apprentices, ensuring they have a tailored experience. They will also be running a show and tell of their business areas and focusing on their new digital platform for learning, as well as running face to face sessions from our Cinema in a hybrid form.  
• Aligned with the theme of Learning Uncovered, producer of soft drinks Britvic are also taking part. They will be connecting their mid-year performance conversations with quality development planning and using Learning at Work Week as the perfect catalyst for their colleagues to discover, and get a taste for, the huge range of developmental opportunities, tools and resources available. The aim is for employees to see the benefits in personal and professional growth, in engagement in the business and in everyone's wellbeing.  

Employer-led events for Learning at Work Week demonstrate the importance of lifelong learning and how it helps both organisations and people respond positively to change. Learning at Work Week is about uncovering the learning potential in all of us.

Organisers around the country will be running sessions to help their people unlock their learning power – from tasters of bite-size learning to using coaching techniques, from discovering new qualifications and apprenticeships to finding new career journeys. 

Julia Wright, National Director of Campaign for Learning, said:  

“Our organisations have immense learning power. They have a wealth of knowledge, skills and experience that their people have gained from work, life and learning. A big element of Learning at Work Week is the opportunity for everyone to collaborate on learning and share what they know. Learning at Work Week events will uncover colleagues’ ‘hidden powers’ and amplify learning through internal talks and workshops, masterclasses, Q&As and social media. 

“As the World Economic Forum highlights, ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’ technologies will have a massive impact on our jobs and work affecting millions of people. Events like Learning at Work Week give employers and their people a space to explore what this means in their own specific contexts and situations and identify the lifelong learning that is needed to navigate these changes and thrive.”  

Kerry Jary, Learning & Development Campaigns Manager at Co-op, said:  

“Having joined Co-op’s L&D Leadership team in March, I was keen for us to take part in Learning at Work Week this year as part of my work in further engaging our colleagues with the importance of self-development.   

“For me, this year’s theme 'Learning Uncovered' is all about unlocking our colleague’s potential and giving them the tools they need to develop. This is a good opportunity to continue promoting a lifelong learning culture across the business and signpost colleagues to the fantastic array of resources we have available to support them.” 

There’s still time for your organisation to take part using the five simple steps and ideas generator. To find out more, visit the Campaign for Learning website.