Making functional skills part of the appraisal process will help you relate it to job roles and the school's needs – and show staff how it can make a difference to their personal and professional development.
Remember, staff may be sensitive about discussing 'skills gaps', so avoid a deficit model by focusing on the positive. Emphasise that developing functional skills will open the door to a range of opportunities and talk about brushing up skills rather than learning from scratch.
Skills4Schools' online journey planner provides customised skills checks for roles across the whole school workforce. You can combine these with information specific to the potential learner's job role to establish an accurate picture of their current skills levels and draw up a realistic, appropriate development plan.
Checklist
- Plan how to make functional skills part of the appraisal process.
- Think about setting achievable objectives for functional skills.
