Workers in Hertfordshire will have the opportunity to boost their skills at a ground breaking learning centre opening this week.
The Hertfordshire Trade Union Learning Centre is the first in the UK not to be based at a workplace or college, and the first to be wholly owned and run by trade unions.
Union members from the county who have been trained as union learning representatives will work at the centre identifying the training needs of their colleagues and advising on courses tailored to improve their skills in a whole host of disciplines, including computer skills and essential skills like writing and numeracy.
The centre, based in Watford, was set up using the Union Learning Fund.
Commenting on the launch, TUC General Secretary, Brendan Barber said that the centre would enable workers to take control of their own skills levels.
"The new Learning Centre offers all local employees the chance to improve their skills and enhance their lives," he said. "The work that union learning reps are doing in opening up learning to a whole generation of workers is crucial to the success of business at both local and national level."
