Skills Programme

The pro-manchester Skills committee members are Manchester-based professionals who are committed to making a difference to skills in the Greater Manchester area. Skills Committee members work within the legal, accountancy, finance, marketing/PR, training, banking, insurance, property and academic sectors. David Buxton, Partner at Baker Tilly chairs the Committee and Richard Smith, Director, Head of Broker Market for Zurich Insurance is the Deputy Chair.

The objectives of the committee are as follows:

• Develop and improve linkages between financial & professional firms and academia in order to communicate employers’ skills needs and enhance the employability of graduates.
• Enhance the understanding of students/lecturers of the various career paths and employment opportunities within the financial & professional sector in Manchester.
• Facilitate the connections between businesses and academies to improve the opportunities for mentoring, careers advice, placements and employment.
• Support effective leadership and management development within middle tier and smaller FPS firms.
  

Pro-manchester, the skills committee and partner organisations are delivering a series of events, projects and initiatives to bring benefits to member organisations. Our partner organisations include:

• Manchester Metropolitan University;
• Manchester University Careers and Employability Service;
• The College of Law;
• Financial Sector Services Council (FSSC);
• National Skills Academy for Financial Services (NSAFS);
• Education Business Solutions;
• Greater Manchester Strategic Alliance.

Current initiatives include:

• pro-manchester Career Development Roadshow in conjunction with MMU: 25th November 2009
• pro-manchester Professional Women’s Mentoring network 
• pro-manchester Train to Gain Leadership and Management breakfast seminar: 26th November 2009
  

Please contact Catherine Heaton, Skills Manager for further details catherine.heaton@pro-manchester.co.uk