ESRC Seminar Series: Re-framing service delivery, professional practices and professional identities in UK careers work

Against a turbulent policy background in which the profession of careers guidance is being reviewed and reformulated, this seminar series will provide a forum in which academics, policy makers and policy shapers, trainees and practitioners can contribute to the understanding, and solution, of crucial issues, as well as their inter-connections. In so doing, it will make a timely contribution to current policy formulation and debates about high quality services. The seminar series will contribute to and integrate knowledge in relation to three major policy agendas that all have careers guidance as a key strand.

1. First is the Europe-wide lifelong learning agenda which aims to facilitate Europe’s development as a knowledge society through individuals’ engagement in learning and training.
2. Second, is the social equity agenda, focusing on fair, inclusive and just processes and practices in the delivery of public services.
3. Third, is the up-skilling agenda, which seeks to address key skill gaps in the workforce in order to increase global economic competitiveness and growth.

The series is supported by funding from the ESRC and will comprise 6 one-day seminars, between December, 2010 and November, 2010, based in the four home countries and the Republic of Ireland. 

 Aims:

• To deconstruct and reframe the professional identities of careers guidance and careers practitioners in the context of UK service delivery policies.
• To foster interdisciplinary and inter-sectoral dialogue by bringing key stakeholders together to debate issues of mutual interest.
• To contribute to policy about the future shape of services and building workforce capacity.

NOW AVAILABLE to downland ESRC Seminar series Policy Briefing by Professor Jenny Bimrose and Dr Deirdre Hughes (December 2012)