Experience counts: staff development officers
The 'staff development officers' project is funded by the Scottish Government under their 'Experience Counts' programme, which aims to revitalise and enhance the skills of more mature workers in Scotland. Managed by LLUK, the project is being run in partnership with the Scottish Further Education Unit and Careers Scotland.
Staff development officers (SDOs) are employed in Scotland's 43 further education colleges and are responsible for the continuing professional development (CPD) of teaching and support staff within their college.
This is a challenging and critical role, particularly considering the older profile of the workforce and the low staff turnover, and SDOs are charged with keeping up the skill levels and motivation of this crucial workforce. However, they often receive little specific training to support them and so LLUK is developing a training toolkit to address this, which aims to assist staff who have responsibility for developing the skills of their colleagues. It identifies examples of best practice in staff development from throughout Scotland, as well as directing SDOs to existing CPD activity, training and qualifications, to assist them in their vital role.
The toolkit has been produced by four SDOs, who have used their personal experience and expertise, backed by research undertaken across Scotland. The first draft was piloted in 7 colleges during in Autumn 2007, whilst simultaneously undergoing a peer review by Skills Active to assess its relevance for other sectors.
The completed toolkit has now been launched and copies have been sent to all of Scotland's colleges. The Toolkit for Professional Development can also be downloaded by clicking on the link.
For further information about the 'staff development officers' project, please contact Holly Milne, Project Manager, by email.
