The STF Annual Conference and Awards was held on Tuesday 27 and Wednesday 28 September 2016 at Crieff Hydro. Kaye Adams hosted the event for the second year in a row. For the Award Ceremony, she was joined by Judith Ralston.

Conference theme

`Towards New Horizons: Training for a better Scotland’

Looking forward

This year’s conference focussed on the future – what the learning and skills landscape might look like in the coming years. New Employability programmes, a new Apprenticeship Levy and an expansion of DSYW activity are just a few of the things set to influence the skills agenda in Scotland. And of course, there’s the fall-out from Brexit. The conference sought to provide a snapshot of how the future might look – scanning the skills horizon to see the challenges that will need to be addressed – and the opportunities that are likely to exist.

Responding to change

The last 12 months have been challenging for many training providers in Scotland with progressive reductions in the contribution rates for some Modern Apprenticeships – and significant cuts in the Employability Fund. The conference examined how these changes have impacted on members – and provided practical support to help members respond to these changes and move forward.

Programme details

Conference Brochure (PDF)

Speakers

• Kaye Adams, Broadcaster
• Jamie Hepburn MSP, Minister for Employability and Training
• Iain Gray MSP, Education, Skills and Science Spokesperson, Scottish Labour
• Professor Ewart Keep, Oxford University
• Katie Hutton, Skills Development Scotland
• Alasdair MacRae, Scottish Qualifications Authority
• Dave Scott, Nil by Mouth
• Stuart Leitch, Scottish Training Federation
• Stuart McKenna, Scottish Training Federation
• Judith Ralston, BBC Scotland

Workshops

• Apprenticeship Levy
• Foundation Apprenticeships
• Employability
• Equalities and the law
• National Training Programmes (NTP) Update
• Ushare – Join the Community
• SQA Leadership and Management Qualifications
• New system for funding and payment processing (FIPS)
• Create eLearning
• Investors in People
• Motivation for learning and change
• Social media tips for training providers

Speed Networking sessions

Click here for details about the Speed Networking sessions

Sponsors and exhibitors

SQA is the main sponsor of the event this year. Other sponsors are:

• Trainsure
• Create eLearning
• STAG Legacy
• MGT Training
• Crieff Hydro
• JB Management Ltd
• Sibbald Training
• Genius People
• ILM /City & Guilds Scotland
• BT
• YouTrain
• L&G Learning
• Rathbone

The following organisations will be exhibiting at the conference:

• SCQF
• CogniSoft
• OneFile
• iPEGS
• Skills Development Scotland
• Investors in People