The Avenue Professional Development Programme

Be tutored online by Neil Thompson

What is the Avenue Professional Development Programme?

The Programme focuses upon personal and professional development through the structured development of practice-based knowledge, skills and values and an innovative online learning community. This is designed specifically to helpyou define, focus upon, and achieve your personal workplace and career objectives, while managing your pressures and improving your, and your organisation’s, performance and effectiveness.

Whether you are an established professional or newly qualified, a practitioner, manager or educator, the Programme helps you nurture long-term professional networks that follow and enhance your personal lifelong learning and career development.

Boost your learning by studying online with one of our most well-respected authors

Who is it for?

The Programme is designed for a wide range of professionals who wish to build their skills and competencies. Examples would include practitioners, managers and educators in:

HR and staff development • Social services • Healthcare and allied professions • Frontline customer service operations• Leadership across all sectors • Workplace well-being practice • Change management practice

• Third sector and social enterprise leadership • Devolved public sector service provision

A flexible multidisciplinary programme with a focus on people

A Distinctive Approach

Flexible Access: The Programme enables a high degree of personal control over how, when and where to study. Better manage your critical development time against competing demands with flexible access to a community of learners and a unique set of tailored resources.

Reflective Practice: The Programme is designed around the twin principles of self-directed active learning and critically reflective practice. Feel confident and secure in exploring and learning from your experience in a supportive environment and with expert guidance to seek effective ways forward. Develop the capability – and confidence – to take responsibility for your own learning.

An exciting and innovative programme of self-directed learning

Collaborative Learning: Group-based learning enables you as a professional to experience a diverse range of views, thoughts and approaches to assist you in evaluating and exploring issues productively while under the supportive guidance of Dr Neil Thompson.

Personal Journey: Keep track of your progress and showcase your achievements with your ePortfolio. Demonstrate the value of skills and achievements developed through your unique personal journey. Draw upon your e-portfolio evidence to maximise career opportunities and, where appropriate, to fulfil professional registration requirements.

Develop critically reflective practice

The Programme Leader: Dr Neil Thompson

Author and leading authority on management, leadership and human resource development for the People Professions. Neil Thompson has been inspiring, challenging, and informing professional teams both as a well-respected Professor in academia and, for over 16 years, as an acclaimed independent consultant.

He has written over thirty books on improving professional practice, has been heavily involved in editing journals and is a much sought-after international conference speaker. In addition, he has extensive experience in conducting professional practice investigations and acting as an expert witness.

Neil’s mission in life is to promote development through collaborative learning and reflective practice which is strongly underpinned by a supportive and personal approach. His writings and presentations are consistently praised for untangling complex issues and for bringing the theory to life.

Neil’s extensive experience and his acknowledged thought leadership bring a uniquely fresh and practical perspective with new ideas and solutions. His approach is to stimulate change and development from within the organisation.

Neil’s distinctive Professional Development Programme focuses upon personal and professional development through the development of structured practice-based knowledge, skills and values and an innovative online learning community. This is designed specifically to help you define, focus upon, and achieve your personal workplace and career objectives, while managing your pressures and improving your, and your organisation’s, performance and effectiveness.

The GOLD pathway includes one-to-one e-mentoring with Neil

Why has the programme been developed?

The current highly pressurised economic and social climate generates additional work demands that challenge the productivity and culture of even the most effective of our organisations and staff. This highlights the ever greater need and significance of maintaining professional competences at their highest level.

In the past professionalism has sometimes been confused with elitism – this is no longer so. Professionalism is at the core of our personal and organisational operation. Dr Neil Thompson has specifically designed the Programme to enable staff and organisations to develop a strong sense of purpose and resilience in managing the present, and future, strategic needs.

Work pressures can constrain a person’s ability to operate at their full potential. There is a genuine risk of harm if these occupational challenges are not actively managed by the individual and the organisation.

Learning from and for practice

Ultimately, it is about making Professionalism an integral and achievable personal and organisational goal. The Programme delivers a supportive framework for learning. It will enable professionals at all stages of their careers to develop their knowledge, skills, values and confidence and move forward. A particular emphasis is on the core skills and practice of:

Self-management • Interpersonal skills • Leadership • Values-based practice

• Empowerment • Rapport building and networking

These six learning themes are then applied to six ‘domains’ – that is, six aspects of professional practice:

Professionalism • Learning and development • Aiming higher• Competent practice • Employee well-being • Spirituality

These core learning themes and domains form the SILVER / PLACES framework

The Avenue Professional Development Programme

The library

Seminar rooms

The study

The classroom

My portfolio

The coffee shop

The Learning SpacesThe Library: Kept up to date with high-quality content this resource includes: articles, specially prepared audio and video materials,webinars, mind maps and a ‘wiki’ (an online collaborative encyclopedia that learners will be encouraged to contribute to as part of their learning),The Study: Members initially undertake a module on ‘Learning to Learn’ to enhance their learning skills. After this induction, The Study offers two e-books which provide a foundation for their learning and help them to identify their personal learning needs and formulate an action plan to meet these needs. One of the ebooks will provide a form of ongoing regular self-assessment toenable learners to track progress.Seminar Rooms: These discussion forums are an area where learners can engage in dialogue and debate. There will be a focus on the exploration of the knowledge, skills, values and confidence needed in practice.

My ePortfolio: An online showcase of the work and progress a learner has achieved. It includes a critically reflective journal facility for members to use as part of the Programme. Guidance on reflective writing is provided to enable learners to get the most from their development. The ePortfolio is an excellent way to control and manage the sharing of your work with others, as well as evidencing and demonstrating professional development activity throughout your career.

The Classroom: This space is where there is regular input of learning resources. The focus will be on supplementing members’ practice experience with stimulating input about key issues.

The Coffee Shop: This discussion room offers a relaxed and friendly space to speak and network with other members of the community. It provides an excellent opportunity to chat with other members of your learning community and build professional relationships. Relaxing and getting to know other members are important parts of learning.

The Programme Pathways

The SILVER Pathway

This pathway brings a number of core benefits by means of a focus upon personal and professional development:

• The structured development of practice-based knowledge,

skills and values

• Membership of a stimulating and supportive learning

community and professional network, led by Dr Neil Thompson

• Access to a varied, high-quality and up-to-date resource library

• A high degree of control over your learning journey

• Critically reflective practice-based learning

• An ePortfolio to showcase achievements and maximise

career opportunities • A safe and secure framework for collaboratively sharing

and exploring ideas, issues, concerns and possible ways of tackling real-life problems.

Be part of a supportive online learning community

The GOLD Pathway

This includes all the benefits of the SILVER Pathway, but with one-to-

one e-mentoring with Dr Neil Thompson using e-mail and online

conferencing facilities. This involves dedicated support to help

individuals maximise their learning throughout the Programme with individualised, bespoke guidance from Neil.

Work directly with Neil to navigate your own learning pathway

Lifelong learning

The Programme has been designed to offer professional development that is flexible, supportive and meets your personal development needs. The Programme warmly welcomes a wide range of professionals at different stages in their careers.Its design and the learning journey are there to accommodate your busy schedule and to balance your work-life commitments.

Not a course in the conventional sense – a foundation for ongoing learning

The Study offers an e-book designed to help learners to identify their personal learning needs and formulate an action plan to meet these needs. A second e-book provides a form of ongoing regular self-assessment to enable learners to track progress. You will build your capacity for learning to learn that will serve your career-long development.

A safe, friendly and supportive environment for taking your learning forward

Key benefits

We aim to help you bring out the best in yourself and your practice by:

Being part of a stimulating and supportive online learning community led by a highly respected author and educator • Having access to a range of high-quality learning resources, with new items being added over time • Having a high degree of control over when and how you learn – it is your learning • Having the opportunity to record your learning in an e-portfolio • Having a safe place to explore ideas, issues and possible ways of tackling real-life problems

Keep your mind – and your practice – sharp and focused

FAQs

Q: How long does the Programme last?

A: It is intended to be a long-term commitment to lifelong learning. Subscription fees are payable 12 months at a time, so your initial commitment is for one year. We expect that the vast majority of people will want to renew each year but there is no obligation to do so.

Q: Is the Programme accredited in any way?

A: No, but the e-portfolio could potentially be used towards a qualification or matriculation for a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree programme in some cases. These possibilities will be explored further as the Programme matures

Q: Are there assignments for me to complete?

A: Not specifically, but learning exercises will be suggested to help you draw out the learning from your practice experiences, from the learning resources provided on the Programme and from interactions with other members.

Q: Are there any hidden costs?

A: No, a one-off annual fee, which can be paid in monthly insta;ments, is all that is payable. There are significant discounts for block bookings. Contact us for details.

Interested? Just turn the page and you’ll be able to see what to do next.

Next steps …

If you’re interested in being a member of this exciting new programme, please go to http://store.avenuelearningcentre.co.ukand click ‘The Avenue Professional Development Programme’ on the left-hand menu to enrol. If you’re still not sure, there is

a short introductory video (10 minutes) and a video giving a tour of the Programme’s website (16 minutes) at www.apdp.org.uk.

If you are hoping that your employer will sponsor you onthe programme (that is, pay your fees for you), please approach the appropriate person in your organisation and ask them to visit www.apdp.org.uk where they will find information about pricing and will be able to download a copy of this brochure. We have a Corporate Membership Scheme which offers generous discounts to organisations making block bookings. It can work out a little as £35 per person per year.

Any further questions? Just let us know – we’ll be happy to help.

We will look forward to welcoming you to the Programme.

The Avenue Professional Development Programme is part of the Avenue Learning Centre: www.avenuelearningcentre.co.uk

Avenue House, PO Box 2060, Wrexham, LL13 0ZG

Tel 01978 781173 info@avenuemediasolutions.com