midlife career reviews - helping older workers plan their future

Mid-life career reviewsHelping older workers plan their futureEvaluation report

Introduction 2

The role of the union rep 5

Benefits to individuals, ULRs and employers 6

What are the issues for working people at mid-life? 8

The details of the unionlearn pilot project 11

Engaging employers 14

Working with partners 17

Supporting mid-life development – the unionlearn model 18

Mid-life development review resources 23

Project challenges 25

Project successes 27

The future: a sustainable and effective model for ULRs 30

Appendix 1: Supporting mid-life development – the unionlearn model 32

Appendix 2: Individual case studies 38

Appendix 3: Workshops and events to introduce and promote the project to ULRs and other reps 42

1

Contents

Society and the workforce are ageing:

In 2010, 21 million people in the UKwere over the age of 50.

Workers over 50 are unemployed longerthan younger workers (43 per cent out of work more than a year compared to26–35 per cent of younger workers).

During January–March 2012, 65.5 per cent of people aged 50–64 and 8.7 per cent of those aged 65 and over were in employment.

Seventy-six per cent of people over 65believe the country fails to make gooduse of the skills and talents of olderpeople, and 65 per cent of them believe age discrimination still exists in the workplace.

By 2034 the state pension age will riseto 68 for both men and women – and at present only 38 per cent of workingage people are contributing to a non-state pension.

Sources:Mid-2010 Population Estimates UK Office for National Statistics, 2011;Labour Market Statistics, Office for National Statistics, May 2012; OneVoice: Shaping our ageing society, Age Concern and Help the Aged, 2009

Employers are not necessarily aware of theimplications of the demographic profile of theworkforce. Older workers may be disadvantaged inthe workplace and may also be low-paid, low-skilledand have little or no access to promotion, training orskill development. Yet they are an important resourceand efforts need to be made to keep them in theworkforce and to make the most of their potential.Employers need to assess their working practices toaddress issues such as: opening up training andpromotion routes to everyone in the workforce;flexible working arrangements to help workers withcaring responsibilities, and pension and retirementplanning. This will facilitate effective successionplanning and to ensure that a skilled workforce isavailable to meet future business needs.

In this context of an ageing society and an ageingworkforce, with no statutory retirement age and anincrease in the state pension age, unionlearn hasbeen a partner in the Mid-Life Career Review Project.In the summer of 2012 John Hayes, then Minister forSkills, announced that the Department for Business,Innovation and Skills (BIS) would be funding theNational Institute for Adult and Continuing Education(NIACE) to develop and pilot a mid-life career reviewprocess. The project commenced in June 2013 andfinished in March 2014. The project involved 18partners and the target was to work with 2,500individuals to test and evaluate different mid-lifecareer review models, and to develop resources tosupport the process. The target has been met andexceeded, and the project has laid the foundationsfor future work.

2 Introduction

Mid-life career reviews

Introduction: the Mid-LifeCareer Review Project

Unionlearn played a pivotal role in the project byengaging 15 unions, more than 45 ULRs and 770workers in mid-life career review activities. Unionsworked with more people than the other projectpartners and were able to demonstrate the impactand reach of ULRs in the workplace, and how theirinvolvement can meet the needs of working people.The project fitted well with the strategic aims ofunionlearn and specifically the Supporting LearnersStrategy, and with broad agendas such as activeageing, extending working life, intergenerationalstrategies, personal financial planning, healthyworkplaces and equality and diversity. This is thebackdrop to unionlearn involvement in the Mid-lifeCareer Review Project.

Working people need to re-think their plans for life,learning and work and to re-assess their financialposition. They need current information, expertadvice and time to talk things through and focus onthemselves, to deal with their lack of confidence,insecurities and fears about the future. For workingpeople, prevention of drop-out from the labourmarket is crucial, since if jobs are lost, the chances ofreturning to work after 55 are very low. Employedpeople, whatever their age, are not getting attentionsoon enough to prevent job losses, redundancy orearly retirement. Many of them are not aware thatthey can receive help and do not have access to theservices they are entitled to. Age discrimination in theworkplace, although illegal, is a serious issue. Olderworkers need to be supported, and targeted byagencies which can help. Early intervention mayprevent people from leaving the labour marketprematurely. A mid-life development review processcan contribute to and provide a focus for theseinterventions, and is particularly valuable if unions,employers and specialist agencies work together.

The National Careers Service (NCS) targetsunemployed people and young people, and has notbeen strongly marketed, so many adults are notaware of NCS services. People aged 50 or more were apriority group for the service, but this is not currentlythe case. However, working adults at risk ofredundancy continue to be a priority, so many peopleat mid-life may find themselves eligible for careersadvice and other support. The level of NCS fundingdoes not provide an incentive for providers to seeemployed older people. Access to services forworking people, particularly the working poor andothers disadvantaged in the workplace, is a big issue.Union Learning Representatives (ULRs) working inpartnership with the NCS, employers and otherorganisations can help to address this issue bydelivering mid-life development reviews.

Different approaches are needed for working peopleat mid-life and beyond, approaches that are holistic,intergenerational and engage families and colleaguesas well as individuals. There should be strong linksbetween career guidance and financial guidance andalso links with the health and well-being agendas.The word ‘career’ has been used in the NIACE project,and has been used in a very broad sense to equallearning through life, work, progression anddevelopment. The term is controversial for workingpeople, particularly when applied only to certaintypes and levels of paid work. Many people do notsee themselves as having a career, so unionlearn isnow using the term ‘supporting mid-life development’to describe on-going work in this area. The term ‘mid-life’ is also controversial but it does seem to allow forthe varied perspectives people have on their lives,and this pilot has demonstrated that adults of allages can benefit from a development review,although the priority issues may be different as theyget older.

3Introduction

Helping older workers plan their future

Many working people found the mid-life career reviewa valuable reflective tool to take stock of their skills,knowledge and experience, regardless of their age.This intervention can be an important preventativemeasure in helping mid-life and older workers remainin the labour market by supporting them to updatetheir skills and progress in their current workplace orto make a career change. In France everyone has theright to a mid-life career review at the age of 47.Unionlearn would like to see a similar rightimplemented in the UK, and is working with projectpartner The Age and Employment Network (TAEN) tocampaign for this. Unionlearn would like to seepeople have the right to a mid-life career review whenthey reach their 50th birthday. This birthday is animportant milestone in people’s lives and would bean appropriate transition stage for them to take stock,consider options and move forward in a positive way.

This successful project has shown there is both aneed and a demand for this process, and, to a largeextent, learning opportunities and skill developmentcan address these needs. There is no lack ofaspiration among working people but a lack ofintensive, experienced support to motivate andencourage them. The project has shown the need forgood quality advice and guidance on a broad range oftopics, co-ordinated in this project under the heading‘career’. The profile and awareness of the importanceof careers advice and guidance has lessened recentlyand could be re-launched under this banneralongside the campaign to have the right to a reviewof working life. One of the achievements of theproject has been to stimulate the peer support role inthese initiatives. In the case of unionlearn, this is thecentral role of the trade union representative workingtogether with a range of experts to develop effectiveholistic approaches.

This unionlearn evaluation reportThis report is based on a qualitative and formativeevaluation process underpinning the unionlearn pilotactivities. Feedback has been given by the evaluatorthroughout the project, to shape the direction of thepilot. The report aims to describe the unionlearnmodel, to identify the challenges and successes ofthe project, to highlight examples and case studies ofeffective practice, and to outline the way forward.

The report draws on a range of source material,including: monthly reports to NIACE; records of mid-life reviews on the unionlearn Climbing Frame;evaluation forms from events and feedback fromthose who attended; an employer engagementsurvey; a final survey of ULRs who took part andworkers who participated; interviews with ULRs andemployers; filming sessions with ULRs; meetings andtelephone conferences with the regional coordinatorsfor the project and the unionlearn SupportingLearners Working Group; and discussions with theService Manager and the Climbing FrameDevelopment Officer at Congress House.

4 Introduction


The central focus in the unionlearn pilot project hasbeen the role of the union learning rep (ULR). Theproject built on the strong and well-established roleand training of ULRs.

“Facilities time at work is being cut. Learning forlearning’s sake gives me confidence and a sense ofachievement to discover, explore and boost myexistence. But I do not have money to learn anymore. The career review is very relevant and a goodway to move forward. It gives me a focus to move onand take action. I want to be able to help others dothe same. It was helpful to have a strategy orskeleton to build on. I have had the chance to thinkabout my skills and strengths. Do away withprocrastination and talk to the National CareersService! I want to help others to make the most oftheir experience. However, I found the timescale forthe project too short considering workloads.”

Evelyn Mills, PCS, DEFRA

While they have played a pivotal role, most ULRs donot hold professional qualifications in advice andguidance, and have not been expected to be expertsin everything. Knowing their limitations, and who inthe network to contact for specialist help, is animportant part of their peer support role. Importantelements of this role were confidence building,motivation, continuous support, networking,providing access to free services and to learningopportunities. ULRs provided a reflective space andan atmosphere of trust to allow workers to discussopenly their career options, hopes, fears, andaspirations without feeling uncomfortable.

“It is a union role and there are elements ofconfidentiality that go with that role. Traditionallyyou go to your union rep if you want advice aboutterms and conditions of employment. ULRs are seenas a trusted intermediary with their peers, andpeople were very open about their personal lives inthe Mid-Life Career Review Project. We are notasking union learning reps to be experts but to bethere to provide that reflective space for their peersin order to be able to signpost them and supportthem in the areas and issues that are important forthem at that stage of their life.”

Jane Warwick, Supporting Learners Development Officer,unionlearn

The unionlearn model for supporting mid-lifedevelopment is explained in more detail in AppendixOne. This includes more detail on the role of the ULR.

5The role of the union rep


The role of the union rep

There were three main groups of beneficiaries for theunionlearn pilot of the Mid-Life Career Review Project.

The benefits for individuals were that they could:

identify transferable skills and knowledge

identify training or learning needs

identify new or flexible roles or promotionopportunities at work

think about a career change

consider the right time to think about retirement

consider ways of passing on skills and knowledgeto younger workers

build confidence and motivation

create a personal and professional development plan

improve IT skills through use of the Climbing Frameand other web-based resources.

“I think a lot of people who I speak with on a day-to-day basis don’t have a lot of self-confidence and Ithink using this process we can really help people tomap out how they can best get on and how to givethem confidence and help them to realise they doactually have some employable skills.”

Emma Dudley, PCS, HMRC

“I thought all of the review was helpful because ittakes a holistic approach. It took into account mypersonal life, hobbies, training and experience,what kind of training that would be available,whether I would have the time, family commitments.So it was very much a holistic approach.”

Hazel Kjebbekk, UNISON, South Tyneside Foundation Trust

“The review was systematic, thorough and the factthat it was conducted over the telephone was nobarrier. I was asked to consider sometimes difficultquestions about my future, but given plenty of timeto do some research and reflection before follow-onsessions. Many RCM members are facing similarsituations. This valuable personal experience willenable me to empathise with midwives and offerthem support.”

Peter Amphlett, UNITE, Royal College of Midwives

The benefits for the ULRs and other reps were thatthey could:

reach people who may never have had help inplanning their career or their learning

help those people and their families to plan for the future

help those people to become more confident inmaking decisions about learning and work

engage with their employer

work in partnership with the National CareersService and other organisations

gain experience in using the Climbing Frame tosupport learners, and have a chance to use thenew Climbing Frame app.

“The role and position of ULRs has increased andimproved greatly over the years. I think the NationalCareers Service working with the trade unions andunionlearn is a fantastic support that, as a ULR,you’ve got on hand straight away to help you to helpyour learners.”

Howard Fawcett, UNISON, Sunderland City Council

6 Benefits to individuals, ULRs, and employers


Benefits to individuals,ULRs, and employers

“The nuts and bolts of ULR work are identifying askills gap or a training need and then assisting yourcolleagues to search for that particular training orprovide that particular training, or work withmanagement in order for them to provide thattraining. It is the fundamentals of being a unionlearning rep. It enables you to go out there and getthat job done.”

Nigel Cawley, PCS, HMRC

The benefits for employers were:

Staff are more motivated to stay and to take uptraining offers and new opportunities at work.

Staff can develop new skills, knowledge, andexperience to benefit the organisation.

Staff can provide mentoring and pass on their skills and experience to other staff.

Knowledge transfer within the organisation is made easier.

Reduced staff turnover, recruitment and trainingcosts can result.

The organisation can develop and grow its owntalent, and management.

The organisation can develop new policies andprocedures to help older workers to reach their fullpotential, and effective strategies for managingsuccession.

“As part of my role within the National CareersService employment engagement team, I amworking with organisations undergoingredeployment or redundancy situations. I startedworking with ULR Howard Fawcett who works atSunderland City Council, offering CV preparation,interview skills, application forms, and helping thestaff to find out what was available out there forthem. Eventually, because so many learners werecoming to see Howard to access the NCS service, themanagement embed it in organisational practice.Howard also contacts me and some of the otherlearning providers to get free learning or heavilydiscounted learning in the workplace for staff.”

National Careers Service

7Benefits to individuals, ULRs, and employers


“I need to re-jig my work/life balance so that I canenjoy time with my family or do other things. I amorganised at work but can’t seem to get it right athome. I can’t afford to cut my hours but I can’timprove my income if I stay where I am.”

“I have more responsibility for elderly relatives andfeel I don’t have enough time for grandchildren. Mycurrent working pattern does not make muchallowance for short notice leave.”

“Finding a new job is an issue – currently I’vestruggled to find direction in knowing what jobs toapply for. I have not found suitable vacancies. I wantto change career but don’t know what to apply for.”

“Life is too short to be doing what you don’t like, buton the other hand bills need to be paid. What I wantis to find a job that I enjoy, if only I could work outwhat I really enjoyed doing and am good at.”

PCS Members, HMRC

These comments are from the pre-reviewquestionnaires filled in by working people whoparticipated in the project. There are a range ofchallenges facing people at mid-life. They can beseen as problems but also as catalysts for change.People are living longer, are healthier, and have moreopportunities open to them. The concept ofsequential life stages has been replaced by manydifferent life roles which may be played at the sametime. There are new models of relationships, familiesand gender roles, and people may find that they haveresponsibility for both children and elderly parents orbe caring for partners all at the same time. Lifeexpectancy is improving and with it a hope and anexpectation of enjoying good health for longer.

At work, the old model of jobs for life followed byretirement no longer exists, pensions are uncertainand people can expect to be in paid work for longer.Age discrimination and equality and diversitylegislation have made this possible, although manyworkers are sceptical and think that agediscrimination still exists in the workplace.Retirement planning is complex, and many workersmay have to accept unplanned early retirement beforethey are ready. Work may not be satisfying, andpeople in mid-life may be under-employed, poorlypaid, their skills not recognised or developed by theiremployer, and jobs may be inflexible and difficult tocombine with family responsibilities. Re-structuringand redundancy may be badly handled and evenunnecessary if workers’ skills are reviewed and fullyutilised, and people prepared for re-deployment.

“I think it is important to consider the transitionstages workers go through, depending on theircareers. For example firefighters retire earlier and are looking at career choices and options inmid-life. Many workers, after the changes topensions and the policy changes about extendingworking life, will have to think about working longer and possibly changing their career toaccommodate changes in health and well-being and family responsibilities.”

Ian Borkett, Service Manager, unionlearn

“One of the key issues that we encountered was withregard to CVs and job application skills. This issuecame from our union branch in our mid-life careerreviews. Other issues were with regard to IT skills,people needing to up-skill their IT skills because ofthe changes in the Department, mainly in usingExcel. People need training on Excel in order to moveup the promotion ladder, because all the jobs thatare going to be available require Excel skills. Therewere also issues regarding work-life balance andhealth and well-being.”


8 What are the issues for working people in mid-life?


What are the issues forworking people in mid-life?

People may feel that their experience, skills andwisdom are not valued at work. Work/life balance andquality of life are important to people, and they wantto talk about it. They may be looking at other areas oftheir life to provide a sense of purpose, a channel fortheir abilities and knowledge, and a way of engagingwith society. For trade unionists the role as arepresentative may satisfy this need, and the skillsgained are transferable to other areas of life. In thisway, employers and unions can work together tocreate workplaces where everyone is working towardsthe goal of satisfying jobs, skill development,productivity and growth.

According to the ratings in the unionlearn pre-reviewquestionnaires completed by participants, the topfive issues that participants in the pilot projectwanted to discuss were: better work/life balance;keeping current job; health; flexible workingarrangements; and personal finances. Other personalworries were about a general lack of confidence,people thinking they are too old to participate intraining and development opportunities or to changecareer completely, and how to deal with caringresponsibilities while working. Many wanted todiscuss development activities for activities outsideof the workplace such as volunteering and learningfor pleasure.

“In this economic climate job security is almost non-existent and benefits are not sufficient to maintainpeople’s lifestyles. I feel that flexibility is the key toa happier lifestyle, less stress and better all round.Flexible arrangements can also have a positiveimpact for people who care for another or havedependents. Job satisfaction comes not just fromknowing you are doing a good job and that beingacknowledged, but also autonomy and arelationship between effort and reward. Mypriorities at present are: keeping my current job;having flexible working arrangements; and gettingpromotion with my current employer.

“Good health is the most important factor, as without this you cannot benefit from a betterwork/life balance. I would like to progress mycareer, however I feel like I would have to sacrificemy work/life balance to do this. Relationships withpartner, family and friends will always be mynumber one priority. Making a difference to societyhas become more important to me since I startedvolunteering at Samaritans and have realised justhow worthwhile and satisfying it is to feel you arehelping your community.”

Robin Middleton, UNISON, EDF Energy

9What are the issues for working people in mid-life?


This wide range of issues creates challenges for ULRsand other advisers. People want to talk about bigquestions: Who am I? What am I good at? Who do Iwant to be? How can I get there? How can I overcomefears, insecurities and practical problems? ULRs whotook part in the project were surprised at how openworkers were with them about personal issues, butthis process is actually well suited to the role of theULR as a trusted intermediary. What people neededwas a space to talk, to build confidence andmotivation, to boost self-belief, to identify anddescribe their skills and be able to present or ‘sell’themselves in a difficult market place, to getsomething positive from restructuring andredundancy, to keep jobs and progress at work, tocommunicate with employers get reassurance and tohave some help to focus on future plans which mayinclude career change and eventually activeretirement. ULRs who took part in the project werecalled upon to use the basic skills of career guidancework, listening, exploring, identifying and presentingtransferable skills and knowledge, helping people todevelop career management skills, action planningand signposting.

“A colleague has just performed a mid-life review and it has helped me think what my next move is,helped me identify my skills that I can use for thefuture and also helped me to identify new skills thatI want to develop in the future as well, so it’s beenreally useful.”

Emma Dudley, PCS, HMRC

“The things I wanted to discuss really were findingout my strengths and weaknesses within theworkplace, which I think the review did highlightquite clearly.”

Steven Darbyshire, PCS, HMRC

“The transferable skills cards make you look atyourself: what do you know; what would you like toknow; and what you do know but you don’t realiseyou know. It changes the whole perspective”

John Hamshere, PCS, HMRC

ULRs were also surprised at how long the reviewsessions took once people started to talk. This is notsurprising at all when the challenges facing people atmid-life today are taken into account. In their workinglives alone they may face discrimination andstereotyping because of their age, more significantlife transitions, a range of roles in life to juggle,massive technological and other changes to keep upwith, and changing career patterns with constantchange in the workplace and in the opportunitiesopen to them.

10 What are the issues for working people in mid-life?


The unionlearn pilot project took place in threeregions, North, North West, and Southern andEastern. The unionlearn staff members involved werethe Service Manager, the Climbing FrameDevelopment Officer, the central administrative team,regional staff, and a project consultant.Approximately 100 ULRs participated from 15 unions:PCS; BECTU; FBU; UNISON; Unite; GMB; UCATT; TSSA;FDA; Napo; POA; CWU; Equity; UCU; and Usdaw.

The original target was to complete 360 mid-lifecareer reviews. Unionlearn decided to use the UnionLearning Climbing Frame, an action planning andinformation tool available as a website or an App, torecord data, create action plans and give easy accessto information sources through the Learning Themes.Data for 770 reviews was entered on the ClimbingFrame. Some ULRs opted to work collectively with alead ULR registering on the Climbing Frame on behalfof the group and entering data for them all. It is likelythat the data has under-reported the number of ULRsinvolved and the number of beneficiaries. ULRs arevolunteers and although their role is clearly definedand legally constituted, and they are all trained, theywork informally and have not generally been requiredto keep records of their interaction with learners atwork in a specific format. The Mid-life Career ReviewProject was very demanding for them in requiringthem to keep records in a specific way, and thevolume of data collected is a significant achievementon the part of the ULRs.

Briefing papers about the project and about regionalsupport were developed, and some initial resourcesfor testing during the project which were lodged in aspecially designed Climbing Frame Learning Theme.This resource was added to throughout the durationof the project.

Considerable efforts were made to engage ULRs andunion learners in the project. Initially three one-dayMid-life Career Review Workshops were designed,developed and delivered in three locations,Newcastle, London and Bolton in July, attended by 56 ULRs. The workshops provided backgroundinformation about the project, identified the needs of workers at mid-life and later, introduced the modeland resources through practical activities, involvedpartners such as the NCS to outline the way in whichthey could help with delivery, presented theunionlearn Climbing Frame as a tool for recording and action planning and finished with an individualaction planning session where ULRs thought abouthow to engage their union, workers and employers inthe project. The workshops aimed to encouragereflective practice, and were received with greatenthusiasm. In addition ULRs were encouraged to use the TUC Learning eNotes to help them withinterviewing skills (Supporting Learners) and withusing the Climbing Frame.

Support, advice, encouragement, reassurance andfurther one-to-one and group briefings were providedby unionlearn staff, both regional and national.Briefing materials were designed for use at furtherregional ULR Forums, and Powerpoint presentations,handouts and session plans added to the ClimbingFrame Learning Theme. These materials were alsosuitable for use at meetings with unions looking towork in specific contexts. Promotional and supportemails were sent to ULRs who have participated in the briefings, and reminders to those who originallysubmitted action plans.

11The details of the unionlearn pilot project


The details of theunionlearn pilot project

The email alert system on the unionlearn website wasalso used to engage ULRs and later in the project toencourage people to participate in surveys and togive feedback. An article about the project appearedin the autumn edition of the Learning Rep e-magazine, Helping Older Workers to Plan their NextSteps, circulated to a distribution list of over 10,000.There were also articles in the Supporting LearnersNews and the Climbing Frame News, e-bulletinscirculated to unionlearn staff, learning centres, tradeunion officials and ULRs. The unionlearn regionalteams circulated publicity material encouraging ULRsto use the free mid-life career review resources. UnionLearning Fund project managers were contacted andinvited to participate by carrying out some mid-lifereviews in their workplaces and promoting the projectto ULRs.

Events, workshops and ULR forums in the threeregions were well attended, some attracting up to 70participants, and all ULRs were briefed about theproject alongside other relevant agendas andinitiatives. Informal learning was used successfully asa hook to engage people in the project. A list ofevents is included in Appendix Three. This initiative,now re-named Supporting Mid-life Development, willcontinue to be a central part of the unionlearnSupporting Learners Strategy and will be promoted atunionlearn and union events across England in thefuture. The pilot has never been seen as an end initself – this is a sustainable activity for unions and for unionlearn.

BECTU ULRs at BVE North delivered CV workshopsat their Celebration of Learning event inManchester. 61 registered at the stall and 38undertook one to one CV and careers advice withThe Crewing Company, an approved BECTUtraining provider. BECTU ULRs also participated inthe Salford Media Festival at the University ofSalford Media City campus. 24 people visited thestall and 13 took part in a CV workshop deliveredby Puma Events and Training.

In the Fire Service people tend to retire youngerthan in other workplaces and will think about asecond career, so preparing for a change by re-skilling and up-skilling is very important. The FBUat Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Serviceincorporated the mid-life career review project intotheir Celebration of Learning day by providinggroup activities on: developing new skills throughlearning (Functional Skills, NEBOSH, PTLLS, ECDL);health and well-being (mental health and exercise)and equality and diversity.

Many ULRs made referrals or signposted people tothe National Careers Service, or arranged for the NCSto deliver workshops in the workplace. These werenot recorded on the Climbing Frame and were notcaptured in the reporting for the project. However,they illustrate the value of the partnership and thenetwork in providing access to a range of freeservices, and this is an important part of theunionlearn model.

12 The details of the unionlearn pilot project


UNISON ULRs at EDF Energy Sunderland undertook20 reviews. Following the unionlearn MLCRworkshop in Newcastle in November, theyengaged colleagues and carried out one-to-oneinterviews. Unionlearn put them in touch with theNational Careers Service and made initial contacton their behalf. The NCS then offered careersadvice workshops, using David Hodgson’s ‘Buzz’questionnaires, and were able to work withindividuals. The unionlearn short film featuresinterviews with Robin Middleton a ULR at EDF andAlison Rochford, an NCS adviser who was also aULR herself. Alison says:

“I am passionate about ensuring that the unionlearning reps are at the forefront of activity in theworkplace, encouraging their learners to take uplearning to increase their opportunities within theworkplace, whether it is vocational learning,reading, or informal learning. I can also make surethat the employers know that the ULRs can brokernon-formal learning within the workplace and thatthe learner is likely to talk to the ULR before theygo to the employer.”

A key method of engaging ULRs in the project was tooffer ULRs a review themselves, either a shortexperience at an event, a peer review with acolleague, or a review delivered by unionlearn staff orNCS, which were longer and often extended to two orthree follow-up sessions. It was astonishing howmuch could be achieved in a short peer review at anevent. This engaged people, provided an initial set ofaction points for individuals, and, by giving thechance to have a practice run, gave confidence toULRs to go back to the workplace and offer reviews tocolleagues. Throughout the initial engagementprocess, ULRs and learners were asked if they werewilling to be followed up as a case study.

13The details of the unionlearn pilot project


Engaging employers was a very important aspect ofthe project, but due to the short time-scale, there wasinsufficient run-in time to do this as effectively assome reps would have liked. It will be an importantfeature of the unionlearn model for the future. Thepilot project was most successful where it waspossible to build on a strong workplace infrastructure(which may include a learning committee, learningcentres and learning agreements where these exist).Senior management commitment to the Mid-LifeCareer Review Project was very important, as wasregular communication between union andmanagement and the provision of reasonable facilitytime to carry out ULR duties. Experienced ULRs wereable to build a business case and present thebenefits of working together on this agenda toemployers, and then found that it was easier to getrelease of time if a business need was recognised.

The potential benefits to employers in supportingunions to deliver mid-life career reviews are great.Employees will be more motivated to stay with theemployer and to take up training offers and newopportunities at work to develop new skills,knowledge, and experience to benefit theorganisation. This may result in reduced staffturnover, recruitment and training costs. Matureemployees can provide mentoring and pass on theirskills and experience to younger staff. Knowledgetransfer within the organisation is made easier andthe organisation can develop and grow its own talentand management teams. Where re-structuring isnecessary, the potential of all employees tocontribute to new arrangements can be properlyconsidered, and skills, talent and competence will notbe wasted. Those who responded to a surveyconfirmed that these benefits were attractive toemployers, and could form the basis of a businesscase. The Mid-Life Career Review Project fitted withother workplace agendas of interest to employerssuch as extending working life, health and well-beingin the workplace (for example, menopause, cancer),and health and safety.

There were many ways in which employers couldsupport the initiative, both during the pilot and in thefuture. The process was most successful where jointidentification of learning and training needs wasengaged in by both the ULR and the employer, andthe career review fed in to HR processes, for exampleappraisal, matching against competence frameworks,and making decisions about up-skilling the existingworkforce. The career review process also helpedthose at risk of redundancy, and was helpful as partof re-structuring processes. One of the mostimportant employer contributions was to allow ULRs and staff time or cover arrangements to undergo training for the mid-life review process, toconduct the reviews and to complete follow upactions and make referrals. It was also useful whenspace or equipment was made available to carry outthe review.

There was insufficient time in the pilot to evaluate thesupport that could be offered by employers in thelong term but hopefully this will include HR policiesand procedures to benefit older workers beingreviewed, training and promotion opportunities beingmade available to workers in the mid-life age range,and even mentoring and coaching schemes andworkplace careers advice services being set up. Thosewho responded to the survey and had made someheadway in engaging employers reported a betterclimate for employment relations, increasedopenness of management to new union initiatives onlearning and more union-management joint workingon learning issues. Levels of consultation on learningissues had increased, as had organisational supportfor union learning activities. Senior management andline management support for the mid-life careerreview initiative increased as the pilot progressed.Increases in employee demand for learning werebeneficial to all.

Good examples of employer engagement during theproject were Durham Cathedral, the Fire Service, EDFEnergy, South Tyneside Foundation Trust, Bridges toLearning, and Sunderland Council.

14 Engaging employers


Engaging employers

A ULR Supporting Learners event was held inTaunton and the programme included a sessionabout the mid-life career review project. As a resultof attending this event GMB ULRs invited CareersSW into Babcock Appledore to deliver some mid-life career review sessions. This is an importantissue for the company as they have an ageingworkforce and are concerned about the loss ofhighly skilled workers.

Intensive workplace activity took place from thestart of the project at HMRC in Salford, with thePublic and Commercial Services union (PCS),where there are temporary contracts andpermanent posts at risk. A review day was held inNovember funded by the Celebration of Learning.This was based around civil service skills andcompetencies in order to enhance redeploymentprospects. Approximately 380 people completedpre-review questionnaires and 20 reviews wereconducted on the day. A diverse range ofworkshops covering a spectrum of learningactivities were delivered, including health andwell-being, financial advice, HE, CPD andmentoring, and various cultural activities. PCSULRs and HMRC employees at Blackburn also ranan event and the MLCR questionnaires generatedan interest in development and further supportaround pre-retirement, ICT training, volunteering,personal finance and careers advice. Employeeswere given an hour off work to attend the eventand undertake a one-to-one mid-life developmentreview. Two ULRs attended the NIACE goodpractice seminar.

Hazel Kjebekk, UNISON ULR at South TynesideNHS Trust, organised a ‘Buzz’ session with the NCSin the North East. Staff had the opportunity toexplore their preferred learning styles and to seewhich learning methods best met their needs. Thesession was well attended and well received. Theinitial target group was hospital support staff butthis was followed up with a session for nurses anddoctors. Further sessions are planned.

15Engaging employers


Debbie Inglett, from Durham Cathedral said:“There are many benefits for employers in offeringmid-life career reviews. During the process, youcan learn more about your staff that perhaps youwould not normally have known, this helps createa new broader profile of your staff, but also makesthem feel valued. We have discovered new skillsand enthusiasms in our workforce. It is very goodto have the opportunity to engage with employeeson a more personal note, and they have been ableto share things about themselves such as theiraspirations for the future, and what their lives arelike now. This provides an opportunity for theemployer to help them where possible throughtraining, learning and career development, and tofacilitate and support their needs. Even if thiscannot be done directly, it is possible for anemployer to sow the seeds for people to thinkabout their whole lives, to encourage and followup the discussions informally. This is part of aculture change for us as an employer and it hassignificant rewards.”

“The project was most effective when those strongbuilding blocks are in place: employers who arereally committed to the learning and skills agendaand have learning agreements with unions; thosethat have a learning committee, where union repscan take these kinds of initiatives and issues to getemployer buy-in; workplaces where maybe there arelearning centres as well to help support this kind ofactivity and where there is a strong and vibrant ULRnetwork. It is also about finding the right issues thatwill engage employers. For example at HMRC, anumber of workers are under the risk of redundancyand so mid-life reviews were held to get workerslooking at different options for them and what thiswould possibly mean, maybe career changes orlooking at financial planning. In other workplaceswhere reps have carried out that preparatory work,they have found that health and well-being hasbeen an important issue for the workforce and havetaken it to management. These have been ways ofreally effectively engaging and getting the supportof employers.”


16 Engaging employers


Unionlearn and unions benefited from the strongpartnerships which were developed and consolidatedduring the project. The unionlearn network model forSupporting Learners relies on partnership working toprovide access to services and to learningopportunities for working people. The Mid-Life CareerReview Project built on this and has been mutuallybeneficial. NIACE and unionlearn have a history ofworking closely together. Strong relationships andMemoranda of Understanding (MoUs) already existedwith National Careers Service Prime Contractors insome regions. Joint working with the NCS during theproject was very successful. At least 30 peopleattended each workshop run by the NCS in the NE,based on David Hodgson’s self-assessment tool, TheBuzz. The NCS found many of the resourcesdeveloped by unionlearn helpful to use with theircustomers, and for training and briefing advisers.

A MoU was signed with The Age and EmploymentNetwork (TAEN) during the project which establisheda joint agenda and work plan for the future,particularly to work together to campaign for the rightto a mid-life review for all working people in England.Unionlearn is also discussing the terms of a MoU withthe Workplace Learning Advocates, who providevoluntary support for learning in non-unionisedworkplaces, particularly SMEs. Resources wereshared during the project to ensure that as manyworking people as possible could be reached by themid-life career review project.

It was also important to have local referral points, andto take advantage of free provision from localpractitioners and projects (for example, healthorganisations, CAB, financial advice services,National Careers Service advisers). Reps wereencouraged to identify their own networks and createlocal directories to support this work.

17Working with partners


Working with partners

The unionlearn model tested during the pilotprovided a menu of activities in three stages fromwhich ULRs could select components and resourcesto suit their workplaces. This is included in full inAppendix One. The model has proved to be flexible,adaptable and responsive to demand. Activity duringthe pilot included group sessions and one-to-onediscussions, some of which were over the telephone.Different timings and lengths of sessions wererecorded by ULRs, and different patterns of follow-upsessions. In addition pensions workshops, CVworkshops, ‘Buzz’ sessions provided by the NationalCareers Service, and a wide range of other informallearning events were offered to complement thereview sessions.

The Climbing Frame is a popular resource, originallydesigned for ULRs to use with colleagues, but now afreely available web-based resource. Anyone canregister to use the Climbing Frame and much of thecontent is generic and suitable to use outside of atrade union context. It consists of a learnermanagement area for recording personal data andrecording and updating action plans, and aninformation resource in the form of 20 LearningThemes, which give access to web links, pdfs andother easy-to-use information sources.

18 Supporting mid-life development – the unionlearn model


Supporting mid-life development– the unionlearn model

My: Story Skills Experience Work Learning Family andfriends Feelings ValuesFuture

ListensExploresIdentifies needsBuilds confidenceMotivatesInformsSignpostsSets up LearningAction PlansSupports

Me ULR

Finances

Relationships

Caring

Responsibilities

Work careerand ambitions

Union role Learning

Values

Health and well-being

Work/Life balanceLeisure and retirement

Mid-life development reviews

Wherever possible, the Climbing Frame was used forrecording project data, for finding information andsignposting contacts from the Learning Themes, andfor an action planning template. During the pilot, a‘mix and match’ approach was taken to the recordingof activity, and ULRs could enter data themselvesusing the website or the App on their phones ortablets, or they could keep a hard copy and sendthese to unionlearn to be processed. This data entrytook a lot of staff time. Positive feedback was givenabout the use of the App and ULRs liked havingaccess to the suite of Learning Themes from theirphone. Hundreds of ULRs have downloaded the Appsince it was launched in July, at the same time as themid-life career review project started.

The unionlearn model for supporting mid-lifedevelopment puts the union learning representative(ULR) or other union rep at the heart of a reviewprocess which takes the whole person into account,and applies to any working adult, whatever sector orworkplace they are in, and whether they are amember of a union or not. The process is particularlyhelpful to support workers and prevent drop-out fromthe labour market, and to support those whoseworkplaces are being re-structured.

Mid-life can be any age that is appropriate for theindividual or the job they do.

A career in the unionlearn model means the wholeof life, underpinned by values, interests, skilldevelopment, relationships and networking.

People may want to develop themselves in all ofthese personal and professional areas: paid work;learning; voluntary work; leisure activities; andfamily commitments such as caring for others.

The model has been designed to be adaptable so thatdifferent unions and workplaces can meet the specificneeds of individuals. They can:

fit the review process into the time available toboth reps and workers

choose the topics for discussion and the resourcesbest suited to those topics

decide how and when to involve other specialistsor contacts

decide whether to get together as a group toexplore the issues or whether to work one-to-one.

19Supporting mid-life development – the unionlearn model




Change my career?

Care for my parents and work part-time?

Ask for flexible working

arrangements?

Balance work and life?Make a differen

ce through volu

ntary work?

Develop new skills for paid work?

Learn something new?Kee

p my cu

rrent job

?

Plan my re

tirement?

Get a pension?

Find a new job?Get a promotion?

Deal with

stress an

d feel hea

lthier?

Develop my union role?

?

Supporting mid-life development – seven key themesThe development review looks at the whole picture, notjust at work and career. All these things are interlinked:

1. Work options

2. Finances

3. Relationships

4. Learning

More details are included in Appendix One.

5. Health and well-being

6. Leisure

7. Values

“help!”

Role of the ULR or other union repThese are the main components of the role of a union rep in a mid-life development review:

Listen and ask questions

Explore the issues

Identify needs

Build confidence

Increase motivation

Give information

Signpost and make referrals

Set up learning opportunities

Help to make an action plan

Provide continuing support

Make a case to employers.

More details of how to do this are in Appendix One. Itis very important for a union rep to signpostcolleagues to a specialist when needed. This may befor information and advice about careers, pensions,other financial issues, mental or physical health,caring responsibilities and anything else whereexpert knowledge is required.

Websites, helplines and support organisations can be found in the Supporting Mid-Life Developmentlearning theme athttps://www.climbingframe.unionlearn.org.uk

It is also very important that the ULR has support fromunionlearn staff or from union project workers. Thissupport includes training, briefing, encouraging andmotivating through face to face, telephone and emailcontact, as well as providing information, advice,resources and networking contacts.

21Supporting mid-life development – the unionlearn model


The Mid-Life Development Review – a three stage modelThe three stages of the model offer a menu of activities which reps can choose fromin order to meet the needs of workers. More detail is included in Appendix One.

Stage 1Preparation

briefing and resources fromUnionlearn and the NationalCareers Service

building the infrastructure inthe workplace

getting employers on board

getting people in the workplaceto come forward

using pre-review questionnaires

making a networking directoryfor information and referrals

registering on the unionlearning Climbing Frame.

Stage 2One-to-one or group work

listening and exploring

overcoming issues and barriers

identifying transferable skills

finding information

getting specialist support

action planning.

Stage 3Follow-up and ongoing support

individual support

reviewing action plans

celebrating achievement

mentoring and coaching

making the case to employers.

The ULRs at HMRC Blackburn have developed theirown model using the resources, activities andtools available on the Climbing Frame. Theycirculated the pre-review questionnaire prior tomeetings with individuals and asked that theyattend with the completed questionnaire. Thisinformation formed the basis of the initialdiscussion. The ULRs then introduced thetransferable skills card sort activity to identifystrengths and weaknesses. The outcomes of thecard sort were mapped against the employer’scompetency framework and the results helped toidentify training needs and to produce individualaction plans. The ULRs then replicated this at twoother sites. A PCS regional official reported thatthe review process had been a catalyst forgenerating new ideas, demands andopportunities, from career decision-making tofinancial management to health and well-being.PCS had not expected the range of differentthemes that appeared as a result of the reviews.The regional official and the ULRs will be refiningthe learning offer to ensure that they keep up themomentum that the reviews have instigated.Senior management support has increased sincethe initiative was introduced.



A wide range of resources has been adapted anddeveloped for use during the project and for futureuse by union reps and other advisers to continue withthis work in the future. From the start of the project, atoolkit of simple resources was assembled in adedicated Learning Theme on the Climbing Frame.This has now been updated and expanded to form anew Learning Theme, Supporting Mid-lifeDevelopment, which includes the content of theproject resource and also the content of the theme,Supporting Learners at 50+, which was written twoyears ago and has now been fully updated.

The resources available to union reps and others tosupport the model are as follows:

briefing materials for regional events, ULR forumsand the national conference (including Powerpointpresentations, activities such as practice mid-lifereview sessions, and a guidance note about how touse the Climbing Frame in mid-life career reviews

Value My Skills card sort activity to help peopleidentify and describe their transferable skills(adapted from The Rainbow Years by Barrie Hopsonand Mike Scally, now produced as a printed packavailable from the unionlearn website and from the Climbing Frame Learning Theme, SupportingMid-Life Development)

Life Values card sort activity to help people todecide what they want out of life and what rolepaid employment plays in this (also adapted from The Rainbow Years by Barrie Hopson and Mike Scally)

pre-review questionnaires completed byparticipants in advance to inform the discussionand provide ULRs with information about the topicsthey may need to research

‘timeline’ and other activities to help people toreview their career to date and to look forward tothe next steps

skills inventory questionnaires, some specifically linked to the role of higher learning in career progression

quizzes with statistics about older workers, thelabour market and other relevant areas to promotediscussion of the issues

Learning Themes on the Climbing Frame websiteand the App, Supporting Mid-Life Development;and also other Learning Themes, for example,Personal Development and Career Planning, Health and Well-Being, Higher Learning, andSupporting Learners

Supporting Mid-Life Development eNote, a short e-learning module on the TUC Education websitewhich takes 45 minutes to work through and is apractical account of how to implement the model,with activities and information (to register to useeNotes, click here www.tuceducation.org.uk )

a ten-minute film (produced by unionlearn withULRs in Newcastle and Salford) and further filmingof case studies at the Southern and Eastern RegionPathways to Progression event as part of ongoingresource development

a Supporting Mid-Life Development page on theunionlearn website

case studies (published on the Climbing Frame and unionlearn website, in The Learning Repe-magazine and included in the final evaluation report)

a list of websites and resources to be used by otherpartners in the NIACE project

this final evaluation report which outlines thechallenges and successes of the pilot project.

23Mid-life development review resources


Mid-life developmentreview resources

“The questionnaires we would send out prior to thereview. It’s basically to get an overview of what theindividual prioritises, and what their worries andconcerns are. There’s a list of fifteen questions andthey put them in order and basically that just givesus an overview prior to the review as to what thisindividual is interested in and what they consider tobe their priorities in their work or their personal lifeor their social life even, and that enables us to justlook at that and it gives us a bit of a clue as to wherethe person wants to be and we can then use thetransferable skills cards in order to reflect that oradvise from there.”


The transferable skills cards promote open discussion about careers and build confidence,identify strengths, skills gaps and personal interests, also look for patterns. Some HMRC staffborrowed the cards to use with family. They also used the unionlearn Match Up cards, which helppeople to understand qualification levels and howadult learners can often move more freely betweenlevels if their prior learning and experience is takeninto account.

“The things I wanted to discuss really were findingout my strengths and weaknesses within theworkplace, which I think using the transferableskills cards did highlight quite clearly.”

Steven Darbyshire, PCS, HMRC

“They make you look at yourself: what do you know;what would you like to know; and what you do knowbut you don’t realise you know. It changes thewhole perspective, once you put the cards in orderyou think I do know that, but I didn’t think I did andit’s just different skills.”

John Hamshere, PCS, HMRC

24 Mid-life development review resources


The unionlearn pilot of the mid-life career reviewproject has been very successful and has contributedbeyond initial expectations to the NIACE project as awhole. The successes are outlined in the next sectionof the report. However, there have been challengesand lessons learnt, which will inform future activities.

There was some time slippage initially, and the startof project also coincided with the summer holidayperiod, which had an impact both on the engagementof reps to take part and on the number of reviewsdelivered. This also affected the time available to getemployer buy-in to the project, to develop a businesscase, or to put in place a good workplaceinfrastructure where none existed previously.Employer engagement was inconsistent across thecountry, and across organisations and unions (forexample, the PCS union at HMRC were successful ininitiating activity in the North West, but not in theSouth East). The HMRC reps discovered that rollingout activity for all employees may depend onindividual managers and departmental culture.Employee apathy was mentioned as a reason for theinitiative not having a high take-up rate, but this mayagain be due to the short lead-in time for the projector because workers may have been put off by the useof the term ‘career’ and did not think that this appliedto them.

The pilot project was undertaken at a time whencapacity to support such activities was being severelyreduced at unionlearn. Nonetheless a lot of supportwas provided to union reps by unionlearn staff both inthe regions and nationally. This was very worthwhile.On the other hand, considerable staff time was spenton data processing and on eliciting and analysingresponses to surveys in order to produce anevaluation report.

A lot of interest was generated at the briefing events for ULRs and through unionlearn contact with experienced reps, but although there wasconsiderable enthusiasm at the time of the events, in many cases this was not followed by any recordedactivity on the project. In the South East, even though individual two hour briefings were muchappreciated, as was the offer to record data on theClimbing Frame, take up was very low. The reason forthis is not clear. Follow-up workshops may have beenhelpful to motivate people but time and resourceconstraints didn’t allow for this during the timescaleof the project.

“Raising awareness and understanding was achallenge – the initial training was a good start buta lot of work needed doing on the ground tocontextualise the project's potential and developmeaningful strategies for making it work”

Janet Valentine, unionlearn, North West region

Another issue for reps was time for them to conductcareer reviews and also time for workers to have theirreviews. Facility time for ULRs and release time forworkers to participate in the project was difficult tonegotiate except in a few cases where it wasimmediately seen to fit with the employer’s agenda.This was also a problem when trying to arrangefollow-up activities. These development reviews taketime and need time in order to be effective. SomeULRs were surprised at how long they took, and thedegree to which colleagues would ‘open up’ abouttheir private lives and commitments outside of work.This could be quite stressful for reps and training,learning, resources and considerable support wereneeded for ULRs to develop this role and adapt themodel for their own workplaces.

Some reps were not comfortable with the idea ofdiscussing people’s lives in such detail or with givingadvice, since their role had mostly involved brokeringlearning opportunities and signposting to date.

25Project challenges


Project challenges

“I think we’ve still got to be a little bit cautious thatwe might start opening things that we can’t get thelid back onto, so we’re very aware that we’re notgoing to do this in big groups. We’re going to keepit on a one-to-one basis and if people need to stepback then it will be easy for them to do so. We needto know our own limitations, we need to know ifpeople need to go into counselling or whatever, weneed to kind of stop the process and pass them ontosomeone that can take this up, but every time youmeet somebody you find something new aboutthem. I think it’s amazing.”

Matty Greenhalgh, PCS, HMRC

Engaging participants in the pilot to come forward tohave a review was also not without problems. Lack ofconfidence and other personal barriers such as familycommitments, health, caring responsibilities and theneed for flexible working sometimes prevented themfrom engaging. This was ironic, because thesebarriers are the very issues which a mid-lifedevelopment review could help with.

Finally there were issues about recording data andaction plans. The use of the Climbing Frame, althoughit is a very popular resource, was not suitable for allreps, and considerable unionlearn staff time wasneeded to input data for the pilot project and to feedin information to NIACE.

26 Project challenges


Unionlearn both met and exceeded the requirementsset out by NIACE in the contract for the pilot project.Originally it was expected that 360 reviews would becarried out, followed up and recorded, and the finaltotal at the point at which the pilot period ended was770. The model evolved during this time, and wasadapted by different unions for different workplaces.It has now been written up and also adapted as a‘how to do it’ guide for ULRs and other reps. A rangeof individual and organisational case studies andexamples were collected and included in resources,reports and on the website, some of these on video. Avideo presentation of ULRs talking about the value ofthe process in their workplaces was shown at the finalevent for the NIACE project. Resources were createdand adapted for the project as agreed, with manyadditional resources being produced as activitiesprogressed, so that new ULRs can now be supportedto deliver mid-life development reviews in the future.

The unionlearn pilot project tapped in to a hugedemand and appetite for workers to have mid-lifedevelopment reviews, and was clearly meeting aneed. There was a massive demand for one-to-onesessions, and group activities such as pensionsworkshops and CV workshops. The activitiesdesigned to help workers to identify their strengths, transferable skills and to create a personal profile were particularly popular anddescribed as very empowering.

“Try it for yourselves, but try it with a colleague andtry it with somebody that knows you, because I thinkone of the things that’s coming out, and maybe it’sjust a British thing, but people are alwaysundervaluing what skills that they have, so thoughyou might think you’re not very developed atsomething your colleague may think you are. As Isay people have ambitions to become musicians, orthey have ambitions to do things which they mayput on the back burner and maybe just a friend saysyou’re really good at that, that might then pushthem along to pick up from these dreams that theymight have forgotten about.

I would advise anybody to go along with a mid-lifecareer review, as I’m speaking from experience, Ifound it very helpful myself.”

Matty Greenhalgh, PCS, HMRC

Peer support was important in many ways – as well asbeing the key to the relationship between ULRs andtheir fellow workers, reps at HMRC found that somepeople attended their review with a friend which gavethem a lot of confidence. Those who participated alsoinvolved families, and other people at home, andcolleagues who were not union members. The pilotalso demonstrated that the model and process willwork successfully with any age group – the youngestbeneficiary was 24, and has already engaged othersin her age range in assessing their transferable skills.For some people the experience has been life-changing and has set them on a path to open newhorizons in the future.

27Project successes


Project successes

Emma Dudley is an important ‘tester’ for theUnionlearn mid-life development review processbecause as she said when she came to an event inNewcastle, “I’m only 24”. Emma found that theprocess was helpful and relevant for a review at anystage of a career. She has since engaged youngcolleagues in the process. Although health and caring responsibilities are not issues as yet, Emma isacutely aware that planning your career is importantat any age:

“I worry about the jobs market and the amount ofcompetition I face; I feel I need a lot of development.This relates to my worry of losing my financialindependence. I don’t want to be a burden to myparents or society. The market is very competitiveand I am becoming increasingly anxious about myself-preservation skills. I want employment skillsbut I also want to increase my resilience to ensuremy future security. I don’t want to be humiliated bybeing pushed back into a childhood culture. Thismay compromise my self-confidence which willinhibit my resilience.”

The project provided a natural extension of theunique role of the ULR, as a trusted intermediary with whom fellow workers could be open and gainconfidence and motivation to progress at work and in their lives. ULRs are ideally placed to reachdisadvantaged and vulnerable workers. ULRs are also in a position to engage with employers and get employer buy-in for providing services andlearning opportunities for the workforce. In thisproject, ULRs were trained and briefed by unionlearnstaff, and were able to take a professional approachto the role and establish a good network for back-upand referral.

The briefing events and resources were very wellreceived, and raised awareness of the issues facingworkers at mid-life. The support provided by theunionlearn infrastructure and staff and by unionproject workers was vital to the success of the pilot,and will be vital for sustaining this initiative in thefuture. ULRs gained confidence through having areview themselves from peers or from unionlearnstaff, and were immediately able to start deliveringreviews in the workplace.

The unionlearn model proved to be not only fit forpurpose, but both flexible and responsive, and repsliked being able to choose from a menu of activitiesto suit their union, their workplace, their employerand their own level of experience. It has proved to bea sustainable, cost-effective model to take forward inother workplaces, unions, and regions. It will form the centrepiece of the new unionlearn SupportingLearners Strategy 2014–17, and the basis for acampaign to gain a right for people to have a mid-life development review.

Another successful aspect of the project was thecreation of a range of high-quality resources for ULRs to use to support their role and activities in the workplace (for example the Value my Skills cards,and the Supporting Mid-Life Development LearningTheme and toolkit, and the eNote). All resources canalso be freely used by other organisations. Otherresources which were used or adapted successfullyfor use in the project were the popular ClimbingFrame, available as a website and as an App, and thepre-review questionnaires, which provided astructured way of preparing both the ULR and workers for the reviews.

28 Project successes


The project worked best when building on a strongworkplace learning and skills infrastructure: learningagreements, learning committees, learning centres,trained ULRs, agreed facility time for reps andemployer support and engagement. It was alsohelpful to find the right issues to get employer buy-inand support for development reviews (for example,redundancy situations and restructuring). Stage Oneof the model offers union reps advice about ways ofengaging with employers. This can be found inAppendix One.

Informal learning activities, examples of which areCelebration of Learning, Festival of Learning, andLearning at Work Day proved to be successful ‘hooks’to engage people and also to bring togetherseemingly disparate elements which were actuallypart of a holistic approach. Health and well-being,personal finance, CV building, pre-retirement,equality and diversity and a wide range of communitylearning interests were linked with the mid-life careerreview workshops and briefings. Through externalfunding, small grants were available to unions to puton relevant workshops. These events were oftencombined with a celebration of individualachievements.

Partnership working was very successful, on anational, regional and local level, and partnershipactivity was mutually beneficial.

29Project successes


Funding from BIS for the Mid-life Career ReviewProject, managed by NIACE, has made it possible forunionlearn, unions and ULRs to test a model whichlinks closely with key unionlearn strategies andpriorities. Under the heading Supporting Mid-LifeDevelopment, it will now be a central feature of theunionlearn Strategy for Supporting Learners 2014–2017. Unionlearn plans to engage other regions andunions (through the Union Learning Fund projects)and to support ongoing initiatives in the pilot regions(for example, HMRC, Tesco, First Bus, and theCathedrals (Durham is leading in engagingWinchester, and York). Unionlearn will continue towork closely in partnership with a range of national,regional and local organisations. However, it will bedifficult for unionlearn to support and follow up thisvaluable work without further resources, and it will be necessary to seek and secure funding to ensurethat the momentum is not lost.

The backdrop to this in terms of government policy isa good fit. The TUC contributed to the Department forWork and Pensions (DWP) New GovernmentFramework for Extending Working Life round tablediscussion to inform the development of apublication and an action plan. DWP officials werevery interested in unionlearn’s mid-life developmentwork and indicated they would like to explore thisfurther. This initiative also sits alongside key agendassuch as health and well-being and active ageing.

The TUC campaign about the rights of working womenin their 50s, ‘Age Immaterial’ has resulted in apublication, a blog and a website, and the unionlearnpilot project is mentioned in this popular report.Unionlearn, with partner organisation TAEN, willcampaign for working people to have a right to acareer review as in France, by engaging with keypolicy-makers and opinion-formers to get this issue inparty manifestos. Unionlearn will continue to supporttrade unions to embed mid-life development reviewsin their learning and skills work within the context ofall-age, intergenerational approaches to supportinglearners at work.

The demand for this work from working people is now established, particularly for one to one sessions.Unionlearn needs to review the lessons learnt fromthe project in the context of a new structure to theorganisation with new strategic aims and objectivesfor the next three years. If funding can be secured, the demand stimulated by the project will be met and continue to grow. A three year strategy will allowfor more in-depth activity which can develop overtime. Further research is needed about how to engage employers.

Developing the role of the ULR to support mid-lifedevelopment has demonstrated that the use ofvolunteers at the front line is not only successful interms of enthusiasm, commitment and engagementof workers and employers, but it is also good value for money. This does not by any means mean that it is free. Volunteers need encouragement, support,training, and updated resources. When they move on, new reps need to be recruited, trained andsupported. Grants are needed to enable reps to puton events, celebrate success and engage people. The role of ULRs should be developed to help them inmentoring and coaching colleagues, which will meanproviding training and support.

30 The future: a sustainable and effective model for unionlearn and ULRs


The future: a sustainableand effective model forunionlearn and ULRs

“I have been really pleased about the results of theMid-Life Career Reviews; how they have opened uppeople’s horizons and helped to transform people’slives. It has surpassed my expectations. We are veryimpressed with some of the stories we have heardwhere people have gone on to do courses or plan acareer change as a result of these interventions, andalso with the help and support that has beenprovided as a result of signposting workers ontoappropriate agencies and organisations. I think in alot of cases people came into some of these reviewmeetings without much expectation in terms of whatit was going to deliver but then came away with somany ideas. It really opened up their horizons,opened up new chapters for them and has been veryempowering and enriching for them. From thatperspective, I think it has been extremely powerful.”


It is very important that this work continues. A PCS ULR from HMRC pointed out that mid-lifedevelopment reviews should become a natural androutine process, like dental or health check-ups. Theproject has shown the massive importance ofpersonal interactions, face to face, not just via acomputer or even a telephone. This is about ‘startinga conversation’, about discussing careers in theworkplace in the context of the whole of people’slives. People don’t get enough chances to talk aboutthemselves in a positive way and it can be veryexciting to discover that someone is taking an interestand it is not too late to make a change or take up newopportunities. It has had considerable impact on thelives of those who have participated. The project hasshown the importance of giving people a space tothink, take stock, reflect and locate specialist help.Most of all, the project has demonstrated yet again,the unique value of the ULR as a trusted intermediaryin the workplace, reaching those who may bedisadvantaged or vulnerable in the workplace,recognising that the aspirations of all working peopleare important and that everyone can develop theirskills and make progress in their lives.

“This project has significantly enhanced the ULR roleand enabled them to promote and undertakeactivities which can build confidence, raiseaspirations and underpin future learning anddevelopment. Many employers will already be usingtools for team building, succession planning andrestructuring, and where that is the case the projecthas enabled individuals to gain insights into theirskills and aptitudes so that they can be betterequipped for these processes."

Janet Valentine, unionlearn north-west region

31The future: a sustainable and effective model for unionlearn and ULRs


The unionlearn model for supporting mid-lifedevelopment puts the union learning representative(ULR) or other union rep at the heart of a reviewprocess which takes the whole person into account,and applies to any working adult, whatever sector orworkplace they are in, or whether they are a memberof a union or not. The process is particularly helpful tosupport workers and prevent drop-out from the labourmarket, and to support those whose workplaces arebeing re-structured.

Mid-life has been interpreted flexibly, any age that isappropriate for the individual or the job they do. Thereview process is applicable to everyone, not justthose who see themselves as having a professionalcareer, or those who have been lucky enough to havestayed in work and been promoted.

A career in the unionlearn model means the whole oflife, underpinned by values, interests, skilldevelopment, relationships and networking. Peoplemay want to develop themselves in all of thesepersonal and professional areas:

paid work

learning

voluntary work

leisure activities

family commitments, such as caring for others.

The model has been designed to be adaptable so thatdifferent unions and workplaces can meet the specificneeds of individuals, and fit the review process intothe time available to both reps and colleagues. Theycan choose the topics for discussion and theresources best suited to those topics, and decide howand when to involve other specialists or contacts.They can also decide whether to get together as agroup to explore the issues or whether to work one toone. The model consists of:

seven key themes

three stages of the review process

networks and resources.

ThemesA mid-life review can be very wide-ranging andcomplex – these are just some of the areas whichpeople may wish to discuss as part of a review. Repscan download a pre-review questionnaire to find outwhat needs and priorities workers want to discuss sothat they can be prepared for the topics they wish toaddress first.

ULRs or other union reps are not expected to beexpert in everything – part of the briefing or traininggiven is to ensure that they know their limitations andare not giving wrong, partial or incompleteinformation or advice. Unionlearn has identified arange of agencies which can help with information,resources and advice – the role of the union rep is to‘signpost’ or to make referrals when specialist help is needed.

1. Work options

Union members who took part in the pilot projecthave indicated that job security and flexible workingarrangements are key issues for them at this stage intheir lives. A ULR can help workers to think throughwhat the options might be for both paid and unpaidor voluntary work, but it is helpful to involvespecialists such as Human Resource (HR) staff andNational Careers Service advisers to get an idea of thefull range of opportunities. A ULR can also help torecognise transferable skills and knowledge and toput together a Curriculum Vitae (CV).

32 Appendix 1: Supporting mid-life development – the unionlearn model


Appendix 1

Supporting mid-life development– the unionlearn model

2. Finances

Although this issue is an important concern and hasto be considered before making an action plan, ULRsare not expected to give advice about personalfinances, pensions, pay or redundancy payments. AULR should know who to refer people to in order toget expert and personalised advice about theseareas, both within the union and from externalagencies. ULRs can find out about funding forlearning, and grants and bursaries to support studybut will advise the individual to check for themselveswith an expert, taking their personal circumstancesinto account. A rep could arrange for an expert tocome in to the workplace to run a workshop session(for example, about pensions), and to make personalcontact with individuals so that they know how to findthe information they need.

3. RelationshipsThis may be part of the initial exploration of what anindividual would like to discuss – caringresponsibilities in particular may become a majorissue in continuing to work. It may be important tosort out relationships at home, in personal life and atwork before the person can progress and move on intheir career. The ULR is not expected to be acounsellor unless they have specialist training andwill refer colleagues to relevant counsellingorganisations for further help. Caring relationshipsmay have significant impact on careers and againthere are specialist organisations which can help.

4. LearningLearning is likely to be part of an action plan followinga mid-life development review. This is at the centre ofthe role of the ULR, and reps can find information,arrange for both informal and formal learningopportunities to be made available in the workplace,put workers in touch with providers, and offercontinuing support for learning. The ULR and fellowworkers can also get help from the National CareersService and from course providers.

5. Health and well-being

This will be an important part of a mid-life careerreview. People do not know whether they will be luckyenough to enjoy good health and whether this willaffect their work. They do need to know how to planfor optimum health, and what role learning activitiescan play in this. ULRs will always refer people tomedical specialists for specific problems, but can setup learning opportunities in the workplace to helpeveryone to keep mentally and physically fit.

6. Leisure

People develop many transferable skills throughleisure activities and may wish to spend more time onthese as they approach retirement. ULRs can findinformation about leisure activities and learninglinked to these.

7. Values

This may form part of the initial discussion aboutcareers – people may feel that their current job doesnot reflect their values. They may also feel that theywant to spend the latter part of their career or theirretirement doing something that seems worthwhile to them, or putting something back into society byhelping others. Giving people some space to discussthese issues and taking them seriously can be veryimportant, but again a ULR can refer people tospecialist organisations for spiritual guidance as appropriate.

Role of the ULR or other union repThe ULR, as a trusted intermediary in the workplace,may be the first port of call in a complex pattern ofdiscussions which may take place before people cantake action to reach their goals. Although the unionrep is not expected to be an expert in the areasoutlined above, they have a pivotal role in providingaccess to a range of specialist agencies andinformation sources, and in providing continuingsupport to individuals.

33Appendix 1: Supporting mid-life development – the unionlearn model


It may be that individuals have never been given theopportunity to talk about themselves and their futurebefore, and they may have very low levels ofconfidence and self-esteem. They may also prefer notto talk to their family, friends or employer until theyare clearer about what they would like to do and whatmight be possible. This role is very important, andULRs are well equipped through their basic trainingand experience in the workplace to carry it out. Theseare the main components of their role in a mid-lifedevelopment review:

Listen and ask questions.

Explore the issues.

Identify needs.

Build confidence.

Increase motivation.

Give information.

Signpost and make referrals.

Set up learning opportunities.

Help to make an action plan.

Provide continuing support.

Make a case to employers.

It is also very important that the ULR has support fromunionlearn staff or from union project workers. Thissupport includes training, briefing, encouraging andmotivating through face to face, telephone and emailcontact, as well as providing information, advice,resources and networking contacts.

The Mid-life Development Review – a three-stage modelThe three stages of the model offer a menu ofactivities which reps can choose from in order to meetthe needs of their colleagues.

Stage 1 – Getting started

Briefing and resources from unionlearn and theNational Careers ServiceUnionlearn staff can offer information, resources,support and encouragement for the mid-lifedevelopment review process, and are able to providea briefing session to start things off. The NationalCareers Service can work with adults who are facingrestructuring in the workplace or redundancy, andmay be able to offer workshops, group or one to onesessions in the workplace.

Building the infrastructure in the workplace Unions have found that involving union reps inreviewing employee development works best whenthe groundwork has been laid for learning and skillsactivity in the workplace. This may involve a learningagreement, a learning committee, learning centres,trained ULRs and agreed facility time for ULRs to carryout their role.

Getting employers on boardThere are many benefits for employers in supportingmid-life career reviews, and different ways of creatingopportunities for staff to progress at work. Union repscould do a presentation about this to seniormanagers, line managers or the HR department anduse this as an opportunity to ask for time to carry outthese reviews and other forms of support. If theworkplace is being re-structured unions may be ableto work together with employers to achieve the bestoutcomes for everyone.



Getting people in the workplace to come forwardUnion reps have lots of ideas about how to engagecolleagues and generate interest, using email,posters, focus groups, newsletters, learning needsquestionnaires, learning centres and courses,workplace intranets, union and partner organisationwebsites, social networking sites, case studies,informal learning events like Learning at Work Day,Adult Learners Week and Celebration of Learning,bite-size or taster sessions, and, of course, talking toindividuals – word of mouth. There may be an issueabout where to carry out individual reviews so thatprivacy and confidentiality are possible. However,during the pilots, short starter reviews were carriedout at events, with reps working in pairs – privacy didnot seem to be an issue.

Using pre-review questionnairesThese get people thinking about the issues that areimportant to them in mid-life, and give the union repan indication of what their priorities are.Questionnaires may include the themes identifiedabove: paid or voluntary work; finances; relationships;learning; leisure; health and well-being; spiritualityand values. The range of issues is likely to be wide,but the top six for participants in the pilot projectwere: keeping current job; health; flexible workingarrangements; better work/life balance; finance andparticularly pensions; and caring responsibilities.Reps can design their own questionnaires or use onethat unionlearn has produced.

Making a networking directory for information and referralsThe scope of the mid-life career review may be verywide, and include areas for discussion which unionreps are not qualified to help with. Reps can preparefor offering reviews by compiling a list or directory ofwebsites, national and local organisations orspecialists and telephone helplines for referralpurposes. A good place to start is the LearningThemes on the Climbing Frame, or to draw on theresources of agencies like the National CareersService or the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.

Registering on the Unionlearn Climbing FrameThe Climbing Frame can be very helpful in carrying out mid-life career reviews, both as a recording andaction planning tool and also to give easy access toinformation on a range of topics. There is a specialLearning Theme about Supporting Mid-lifeDevelopment, which includes card games, quizzesand other resources to help people to think things through.

www.climbingframe.unionlearn.org.uk



Stage 2 – One-to-one or group work

Meeting one-to-one can be the best way ofapproaching reviews, but union reps have beengetting people together to start things off or to helpeach other in groups. Group sessions are often bestfor delivering information because specialist visitorscan be invited (for example the National CareersService or a pensions expert) to introduce themselvesand their services or do a presentation with handoutson different topics of interest.

It also works well in a group that people can revieweach other (this is known as peer review), working inpairs. They can help each other to get started andthen refer individuals to a ULR or to a specialist forfurther help. All of the processes described below canbe done in a group or an event. These don’t have tobe long sessions, a lot can be achieved in a shortbite-size or buzz session. One to one sessions canalso be carried out on the telephone or online butface to face may be best if it can be arranged. Anindividual may have a mixture of different types ofcontact with different people during the review,depending on what suits them.

During the pilot project, reps were offered a review forthemselves before offering them to colleagues. This isa great way of getting a feel for the process, and theissues that colleagues will want to discuss. It can beset up with a fellow union rep, unionlearn staff, anNCS adviser, or it sometimes works best to talk tosomeone new at an event or a group session so thatindividuals can re-invent themselves without any pre-conceived ideas or assumptions getting in the way!

Listening and exploringInterviewing techniques used by reps include activelistening and questioning. This is covered in the basicULR training and there is a Supporting Learners eNoteto help to develop or refresh these skills. This stage ofthe mid-life development review is very important inhelping people to think through their current situationand where they would like to be. Reps can use toolssuch as the Timeline activity, or imagining what lifewill be like in ten years time, and how this can beplanned for by an individual.

Overcoming issues and barriersPeople who have lived and worked for a long time willhave overcome many barriers to progression in theirlives. At mid-life, these may be different, and includefinancial issues, caring responsibilities, ill health, orlack of IT skills to take on new roles. These may allneed to be addressed before someone can progress.Reps can help to identify these barriers and to buildconfidence to develop strategies to overcome them.

Identifying transferable skillsIdentifying transferable skills is an important processat any stage of a career. This means skills which maybe learnt in one situation and used in another.Everyone has a range of skills learnt in training, atwork, in voluntary and leisure activities and in thehome. ULRs develop a range of transferable skills incarrying out their work. People often find it difficult tofind the right words to describe their skills, so thisprocess can give them a lot of confidence. Thisprocess can form the basis of writing a winning CV orapplication form and covering letter when applyingfor jobs, promotions, courses or other opportunities.



Finding informationFor every stage in a career, different information will be needed. For the mid-life review it may be about finance, pensions, learning opportunities,redundancy support, health or disability, or careerchange. Information changes all the time and shouldalways be checked to make sure that it is current, andrelevant to the individual and their situation. ULRscan help people to become more confident aboutfinding information for themselves, and ‘signpost’them to sources of information they may not havebeen aware of.

Getting specialist supportLife is likely to be much more complicated at mid-lifethan it is on leaving full-time education, or at the timeof full retirement. ULRs have been briefed not to giveinformation or solve problems for people themselvesunless they are sure they have the expertise. A rangeof specialists exist to help with finance, health, careerplanning and other issues, many of these in freeservices. ULRs have an important role in referringpeople to specialists, and in helping them tocoordinate all the different aspects of making a career action plan.

Action planningULRs can help people to make an action plan, bothfor short and long term actions. This will probablyconsist of a series of small steps to an individual’sfinal goals, with information and support needsidentified for each step. It can be recorded on paper,or using an online tool or App like the ClimbingFrame. Hard copies of the action planning forms onthe Climbing Frame are available to print out if repsprefer to use them in this way and enter the datalater. Or there are some simple action planning formsfor note-taking to download in the Supporting Mid-lifeDevelopment Learning Theme. The process of settinggoals, action planning and recording achievement isempowering and builds confidence.

Stage 3 – Reviewing, follow-up and ongoing support

Individual supportA mid-life career review should be an ongoingprocess in order to be effective. People may need alot of time to think things through and to progresstheir plans. ULRs can provide continuing support inthe workplace, and this will provide opportunities forreviewing action plans regularly. The Climbing Frameincludes ways of recording revised action plans andgoals that have been achieved. Celebratingachievements, however small, can build confidenceand encourage people to take the next steps.

Mentoring and coachingMentoring and coaching activities will help to buildconfidence, to keep motivation going, and review thesuccess of carrying out planned actions. Some unionshave trained groups of ULRs in mentoring andcoaching skills.

Making the case to employersIf employers are engaged in the process, the rep mayneed to keep a dialogue going about providing timeoff for training, considering new approaches toflexible working, succession planning for the olderworkforce, and providing support for learning in theworkplace. ULRs may also be able to supportemployees to make a case for support to carry outtheir plans in their current workplace.

Networks and resourcesResources to help with every stage of the mid-lifedevelopment review process can be found in theSupporting Mid-life Development learning theme athttps://www.climbingframe.unionlearn.org.uk.



KevinKevin is a civil servant, and is a member of the tradeunion PCS. He is also a union learning representative(ULR). He had a short mid-life review with a fellow ULRat a Unionlearn event in where he was able to explorethe issues that were most important to him at thisstage in his life, and to make a brief action plan.

Kevin is 58, and, in addition to his paid work,currently shares with his sister the care of his parents, who are disabled. He lists the mostimportant issues for him to address at the momentas: his own health; caring responsibilities;relationships; keeping his current job and gettingflexible working arrangements.

He has had a stable career throughout his working lifeas a civil servant. He is happy in his current role atwork, but has concerns about the impact of his healthissues and caring responsibilities on his attendanceand performance at work. He feels that supportthrough flexible working arrangements would behelpful to allow him to fulfil his caring responsibilitiesand also to do his job to the best of his abilities.

“My overall health is not good at present. 2013 was a bad year with various illnesses and a death in the family. I help to care for my two 88-year-oldparents, who are disabled. I have suffered bouts of mild depression.”

His immediate action points as a result of his reviewsession are to approach Age UK for help and adviceabout caring responsibilities, and to investigate thepossibilities of more flexible working.

If these current issues can be addressed, Kevin canthink more about plans for the future for his timeoutside of paid work: to spend time getting the houseupdated and repaired before retirement, to spendmore time with his grandchildren in Scotland, tocontinue with a role he enjoys but doesn’t have muchtime for at present as an amateur DJ and to do somemore learning for pleasure.

Kevin’s review raises some issues which are verycommon at mid-life. People’s lives can be verycomplicated, and having lots of time to talk about the issues and untangle them with a sympatheticlistener can be very helpful. It can also help to have a step-by-step action plan, reviewed regularly, to stop the issues becoming overwhelming. In Kevin’scase, there are a range of specialist agencies who can offer advice about caring. A longer conversationwith a ULR could help Kevin to make a case to hisemployer for flexible arrangements which reflect hiscurrent situation.

The time available for this activity was just 20minutes, and Kevin was also able then to help acolleague to review his thoughts at this stage of hislife. The mid-life development review process doesnot have to be lengthy and does not require aprofessional helper to start things off and to providecontinuous mentoring support if needed. It isimportant to involve specialists where needed to takethings forward, but ULRs are skilled at listening,exploring issues, identifying barriers and how toovercome them, making action plans, andsignposting to other services, so they are in an idealposition to provide the central contact point for themid-life development review process.

38 Appendix 2: Individual case studies


Appendix 2

Individual case studies

PeterPeter works for the Royal College of Midwives (RCM),and is a member of the trade union Unite. He haswide experience of paid roles in learning and skills inthe trade union movement, and still wishes todevelop his career in this way. He has had a mid-lifedevelopment review with a member of the unionlearnteam by telephone, and two follow-up sessions wherehe was able to explore the issues that were mostimportant to him at this stage in his life, and to makean action plan to shape his thinking about taking hisfuture plans forward. His action plan is recorded onthe Union Learning Climbing Frame.

Peter is 58, and, prior to the mid-life developmentreview, he identified his most important priorities as: keeping his current job, finding a new job ifnecessary; developing new skills for paid work;flexible working arrangements; learning for its ownsake and planning for retirement. He is currently on a short-term contract and is not sure that it will berenewed.

Peter is currently finishing a degree course inBusiness Studies and History of Art, and, aftercompleting a Level 2 course, has booked himself onto a seminar about delivering IAG by telephone and email, a new service being offered by RCM,opening more doors for career progression. He has awide variety of skills and knowledge to bring to a newrole, and is used to transferring skills into new jobsand new organisations.

Peter says ‘The review was systematic, thorough andthe fact that it was conducted over the telephone wasno barrier. I was asked to consider sometimesdifficult questions about my future, but given plentyof time to do some research and reflection beforefollow-on sessions.’ Many RCM members are facingsimilar situations and Peter said ‘This valuablepersonal experience will enable me to empathise withmidwives and offer them support.’

His immediate action points as a result of his reviewsession are:

1. complete degree course and ALISON Photoshop course

2. follow up contacts for financial and pension planning

3. ensure job-seeking skills are up to date and keep in touch with NCS.

Learning is an important tool for Peter to progress inwork and with his personal goals. The mid-lifedevelopment review process does not have to belengthy and does not require a professional helper tostart things off and to provide continuous mentoringsupport if needed. It is important to involvespecialists where needed to take things forward, butULRs, other reps and unionlearn staff are skilled atlistening, exploring issues, identifying barriers andhow to overcome them, setting up learningopportunities, making action plans, and signpostingto other services, so they are in an ideal position toprovide the central contact point for the mid-lifedevelopment review process.

Peter is hoping to offer some mid-life developmentreview workshops to colleagues at work. During thepilot project, this was a great strength, where ULRsand union professionals had a review themselvesfrom a colleague and then offered them to others.

39Appendix 2: Individual case studies


HazelTime is a big issue for Hazel. She balances her job asa phlebotomist for the South Tyneside FoundationTrust with her role of Project Worker for the UNISONBridges to Learning project. The project is a jointventure between the Open University, the WEA andUNISON and is part funded by the Union LearningFund. In addition to her work commitments Hazelbalances her duties as a daughter, mother andgrandmother alongside her union roles of unionlearning representative (ULR) and Branch Chair.

In July, Hazel attended one of the Mid-life CareerReview project workshops delivered by TUCunionlearn and was quick to engage in the project.Initially she undertook a one-to-one review with afellow ULR to discuss her career, her life plans andaspirations for the future. The review concluded withan action plan for Hazel to follow.

During the discussion Hazel highlighted that she had been previously been offered training anddevelopment opportunities including NVQ Level 4Information, Advice & Guidance and a PTLSS coursebut hadn’t followed up these opportunities. Hazelexplained that she had been feeling “too old” toundertake new training and developmentopportunities adding “if it hadn't been for the project I would not have spent time reviewing andplanning for my future career”. Hazel and her ULRagreed to meet again to hold a follow-up reviewduring September.

Following her own Mid-life Career Review, Hazel, inher ULR role, was very active and quick to engage with colleagues from her workplace to conduct fourMid-life Career reviews. She also organised aworkplace session with the National Careers Service.Hazel is utilising the unionlearn Climbing Frame torecord the details of the reviews and the careerssupport she has provided colleagues.

Hazel met with her ULR again in September. This wasscheduled to revisit the action plan from her initialreview; however, things had really changed for Hazel.She reported that since her initial review her planshad changed significantly. The courses that she hadintended to pursue had been put on hold as, shortlyafter her first review, she received an email entitled‘Leadership & Management Level 5’. Hazel explainedthat before her involvement in the Mid-life CareerReview project she would have immediately deletedthe email but discussing her plans for the future hadgiven her the added confidence she needed.

Hazel recalled “If it hadn’t been for Mid-life CareerReview project, I wouldn’t have even opened theemail”. But she did! Hazel went on to explain that shewent to talk to her line manager, who agreed toprovide some funding for the course and, before sheknew it, she was enrolled. Hazel said “I can’t believeit; I am enjoying this so much. I’ve only attendedtwice so far but it’s great. I know it’s not going to beeasy, but it’s great”.

40 Appendix 2: Individual case studies


EmmaEmma works for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs(HMRC), and is a member of the trade union PCS. Sheis also a union learning representative (ULR). Re-structuring at work means that her job is under threat.Emma had a short development review with a fellowULR at a Unionlearn event in Newcastle where shewas able to explore the issues that were mostimportant to her at this stage in her life, and to makea brief action plan to shape her thinking about takingher future plans forward. She was then able to offerthe same experience to her colleague.

Emma is an important ‘tester’ for the unionlearn mid-life development review process because as she said,“I’m only 24”. Emma found that the process washelpful and relevant for a review at any stage of acareer. Although health and caring responsibilitiesare not issues as yet, Emma is acutely aware thatplanning your career is important at any age:

“I worry about the jobs market and the amount ofcompetition I face; I feel I need a lot of development.This relates to my worry of losing my financialindependence. I don’t want to be a burden to myparents or society.

The market is very competitive and I am becomingincreasingly anxious about my self-preservationskills. I want employment skills but I also want toincrease my resilience to ensure my future security. Idon’t want to be humiliated by being pushed backinto a childhood culture. This may compromise myself-confidence which will inhibit my resilience.”

As Emma points out, it is a concern, even at 24, toplan for financial stability and eventually retirement.The unstable situation with state and privatepensions makes this very difficult. She lists her mostimportant priorities at the moment as: finding a newjob or changing career completely; developing newskills for paid work; finance and relationships.Learning for its own sake and developing skills forleisure and voluntary work are also high on the list;Emma is a strong believer in learning throughout life.

Emma is aware that she was gained a range of work-related skills in her current job and her previous jobincluded administration and sales. She would like tofind a new job which will make good use of this skillsand experience and where she can continue todevelop her skills through training and learningopportunities. Her immediate action points as aresult of the review session are to:

1. go on a PTLLS course (Preparing to Teach in theLifelong Learning Sector), and also dancing training

2. improve job-searching and application skills withhelp from the National Careers Service

3. learn to drive.

Emma’s action points all highlight the importance oflearning in any stage of development. She has a wideskillset drawn from paid work, leisure activities andfrom her involvement in the union.

The mid-life development review process does nothave to be lengthy or limited to people of a certainage. It does not require a professional helper to startthings off and a ULR can provide continuousmentoring support if needed. It is important toinvolve specialists where needed to take thingsforward, but ULRs are skilled at listening, exploringissues, identifying barriers and how to overcomethem, making action plans, and signposting to otherservices, so they are in an ideal position to providethe central contact point for the mid-life developmentreview process.

41Appendix 2: Individual case studies


In the South East, ULR meetings were held at: Southampton CouncilDepot; Brighton Council Depot; the Red Star Learning Centre in Chatham;Meadows Community Centre in Cambridge; the USDAW office in Bury StEdmunds; County Hall in Hertford and the Conway Hall, Red Lion Square,London. Other workshops and events were held in the autumn – a widerange across the three regions, including an event for Prospect mentorsand a subsequent professionals mid-career event, working closely withthe C2 careers information service; the Chartered Society ofPhysiotherapy (CSP); TSSA South Eastern Trains learning at work event;CWU/Royal Mail union branch meeting in Chester; multi-union andemployer North West Equalities Forum in Salford, North East Education,Learning and Skills Forum; UNISON meeting at Hertfordshire CountyCouncil; PCS branch meeting in Peterborough; FBU in the East of England;the Careers Open Day at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow;Merseytravel; a Supporting Learners event in Taunton; ULR meeting inWarrington; a workshop at the unionlearn national conference; TUC WalesLearning Services conference workshops; 17 Celebration of Learningevents in Blackburn, Bootle, Salford, Liverpool and Manchester (involvingFBU, BECTU, PCS); training sessions for ULRs working in the aviation andretail distribution sectors; SE Region annual conference; unionlearnNorth West region annual conference; pensions briefings at HMRCSalford; Royal College of Midwives (RCM) workshops planned in spring2014 in Leeds and London; and Supporting Mid-life DevelopmentNewcastle and Pathways to Progression in London.

42 Appendix 3: Events to introduce and promote the project to ULRs and other reps


Appendix 3

Workshops and events tointroduce and promote the projectto ULRs and other reps

Published by

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Tel 020 7079 6920 www.unionlearn.org.uk

JUNE 2014

Cover photograph: John Harris/reportdigital.co.uk Design: wave.coopPrint: pwpfs

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midlife career reviews - helping older workers plan their future

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