Michelle Young is a Peripatetic Probation Officer at West Yorkshire Probation Board and below she explains her role in more detail.

"I am part of a small team of Probation Officers in West Yorkshire who fire-fight problems as they occur within teams. Essentially, we are drafted in where there is a deficit of staff or deluge of work."

"We generally take on larger pieces of work that can easily be taken from other offender managers to ease workload pressures which are phenomenal at the moment. Our overarching aim is to reduce offending and reduce the risk to the public that offenders pose."

Michelle goes on to explain how she ended up in the role.

"I had to undertake a degree in criminal justice to be able to do the job.. Prior experience helped me to gain a place on this degree course and this included volunteer work and working in the prison sector."

"As well as my degree I have attended a variety of mandatory training as well as voluntary training to update my skills. These courses include everything from systems, procedures, information technology, managing risk, report writing skills etc."

"I enjoy the variety and the challenges that my work poses. I really love the camaraderie from colleagues at the coal-face."

To read more about Michelle's career path into the Justice sector read the full interview.

We are creating a useful resource on our website for careers information, advice and guidance. We would love to hear from you if you are happy to tell us your story about how you got to where you are. If you're interested, please contact chris.chapman@skillsforjustice.com.

National Apprenticeship Week will take place from Monday 1 February to Friday 5 February. It will celebrate the talent and skills of apprentices from across the UK and see apprentices, employers and providers showcase the benefits of Apprenticeship programmes and the value apprentices bring to organisations. We know all about the benefits, because we've got one of own!

Here at Skills for Justice, we have recently taken on Jo Walchester-Bailes, aged 20, on the Leadership & Management Apprenticeship (Level 3). In the last few months Jo has been involved in a range of work to develop her skills, and is already becoming a significant asset to the organisation.

"I wanted to get on the path towards a good career whilst having the opportunity to gain a recognised qualification at the same time," Jo explains. "At the moment I am working with the Marketing team on a range of event and conference management projects, which I am really enjoying, and this gives me the opportunity to learn more about the organisation by working with a variety of different people and teams."

"The Apprenticeship gives me the opportunity to learn more about how businesses operate and after completion I hope to have a clear idea of my ideal career path and the skills and knowledge to pursue it."

Apprenticeship Week 2010 sees national and regional activities taking place and each day will have a different focus.

Following the success of Apprenticeship Week 2009, activities this year will include agenda-setting media features, employer events, job swaps, breakfast briefings and apprentice challenges.

More information is available on the National Apprenticeship Week website.

We have only nine places left on the five day Women and Work training courses we have been offering over 2009-10: four places on a course running in Exeter on 1/2/3 February and 10/11 March, and five places on a course running near Bath on 8/9/10 February and 4/5 March.

These courses provide with a thorough grounding in Action Learning Set facilitation, and cost only £150 per woman.

This offer is unlikely to be repeated next year, so if you want to get a place before they go, or learn more about the course, contact our Women and Work team at womenandwork@skillsforjustice.com or give us a call on 0114 231 7392. We'd love to hear from you.

The Government's response to the Justice Select Committee report on the role of the Prison Officer has just been published.

The report outlines the Government view on the role of the Prison Officer and provides details of investment in training and support for Prison Officers completing the vocational qualification in Custodial Care.

Read the Government response on the Ministry of Justice website.

Achieving a common approach to induction across the Children and Young People's Workforce has been identified as an important goal by the Department of Children, Schools and Families and the Children's Workforce Network.

The Vision and Principles for Induction were referred to in the 2020 Children and Young People's Workforce Strategy and have been developed to provide the tools to plan, execute and evaluate induction activities across all sectors of the workforce.

We would like your comments and thoughts on experiences of organisations involved in induction activities as well as your views on the Vision and Principles for Induction. Your input will help us identify the support and assistance needed to make implementation effective. We need to understand the different perspectives from the workforce and would like to gain the views of

Those with HR / Workforce development responsibilities who are

• actively involved in the design, development and implementation of induction programmes and activities
  
• from a variety of organisations across the Children and Young People's Workforce - we need to understand different perspectives on the issues.

Managers/Employees who are

• from a mix of Management and Employee job roles
  
• have had recent - past year - experience of either delivery or receipt of induction of some kind.
  
• from a variety of organisations across the Children and Young People's Workforce - so that different perspectives can be explored.

Results will be used to inform and improve the effectiveness of activities designed to embed the Vision and Principles for Induction across the workforce and therefore improve the way we work to improve the lives of children, young people and families.

Take the survey now.
If you have any problems accessing the above link to the survey you can also access it from our Children's Workforce homepage.

As well as the questionnaire we are holding a series of workshops. The first workshop was held in London on 12 January, with another on 11 February 2010 in London. There are still places available. If you or your colleagues are interested in attending please contact Rebecca Morgan at rebecca.morgan@skillsforjustice.com or call 0114 231 7252.

The Diploma in Science is an exciting new qualification for 14-19 year olds being designed to give students a foundation in scientific theory and the practical skills necessary to meet the global challenges of tomorrow.

It will provide

• work-related learning
  
• a multidisciplinary approach to problem-solving
  
• innovative teaching, learning and assessment
  
• a focus on practical/investigative work to develop scientific and mathematical skills

A 12 week public consultation is due to take place on the Advanced Level Diploma in Science, the highest level of this qualification which will be the equivalent of 3.5 A-Levels.

The consultation period will run between 9 February and 4 May 2010. Participants will be able to choose to attend a regional focus group or to complete an online survey.

For more information about the events and to register to attend one please visit the Diploma in Science website.

Content in the article/s below has been supplied by external source/s. Skills for Justice can take no responsibility for the accuracy of content, nor should their inclusion be taken to indicate endorsement.

The Apprenticeship Awards 2010 aims to honour and celebrate England's apprentices, old and new, along with the businesses that employ them, at the seventh annual Apprenticeship Awards.

Employers and businesses of all sizes and across all sectors that employ apprentices can nominate themselves or their apprentices for an Apprenticeship award. The prizes will be judged across nine regions and winners will be taken through to a national award ceremony in July 2010.

Find out more about the Awards and how to enter. The closing date for entries is Friday 26 February 2010.

A new grant for employers has been announced to make it easier to take on young apprentices.

Over the next 10 weeks the National Apprenticeship Service (NAS) will provide up to 5,000 Apprenticeship Grants for Employers of 16 and 17 year olds (AGE 16 and 17).

The grant of £2,500 will enable you to offer new Apprenticeship places and take on an unemployed 16 or 17 year old apprentice immediately. It is in addition to the costs of training which are already met by the National Apprenticeship Service.

Last year, despite tough labour market conditions, more than 70,000 young people aged 16 and 17 started an Apprenticeship. However, there are still many more young people who want to learn while they are in work.

Vacancies can be advertised online through NAS that match interested candidates with employers offering Apprenticeships.

This is a short-term, time-limited measure, available immediately for employers who are able to offer a job opportunity to a young person. The grant is only available until the end of March.

To apply call NAS on 08000 150 600 or visit the NAS AGE 16 and 17 web pages.