Martin Baker welcomes greater emphasis on Charity L&D
Recommendations that staff and volunteers in the charity sector should receive 40 hours of development time a year have been largely welcomed by Martin Baker, the founder and CEO of The Charity Learning Consortium. Martin says he welcomes any move to give L&D in the charity sector the recognition that it deserves.
Martin Baker, the founder and CEO of The Charity Learning Consortium, has largely welcomed findings of the Leadership 20:20 Commission, which call for greater emphasis to L&D in the charity sector, with a recommendation of 40 hours professional development every year for all staff and volunteers.
Martin commented: "I warmly welcome the recommendations of the Leadership 20:20 report, that suggests that a greater priority should be given to the development of staff and volunteers in the charity sector.
As a society, we are more reliant than ever before on the services that charitable and not-for-profit organisations provide, and it is essential that staff have the right skills for the job if we are ever to realise the dream of the Big Society.
I am passionate about collaborative working, and what charities can achieve together - which is at the heart of the Consortium. Together, our members inspire and support one another to 'think outside the box' and make the most of limited budgets to develop their staff.
Our members prove time and again that you don't necessarily need a big budget for effective learning & development, but being able to tap into the collective expertise of the Consortium really does help - as does a good helping of creativity and drive. Charities like Barnardo's - the winner of the Best overall eLearning programme in the Charity Learning Awards - are a shining example of excellence in charity learning that any organisation, in any sector, can learn much from.
It is of course essential that learning meets both organisational and employee needs, and is not just a tick box type exercise in response to a recommended minimum number of hours for staff development. I'm glad to say that my experience of the sector makes me confident that Charity Learning professionals are keen to 'work smart'."
A report from the launch of the Commission's findings is available here.