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  • Are you prepared for Universal Credit?

  • Universal Credit Awareness Sessions

  • In December Advice NI launched its new and updated website. As part of the upgrade, we have added an online booking system for our training courses.

  • Sands Northern Ireland Network (SandsNI) is the regional branch of SandsUK. Sands was founded in 1978 by a small group of bereaved parents devastated by the death of their babies and in particular what they felt was a complete lack of knowledge and understanding of the significance and impact of their loss. Sands has around 100 support groups across the UK with 10 of these in Northern Ireland. All the support groups are run by trained Sands Befrienders who are bereaved parents themselves and have been supported through their grief by Sands and are now giving that support back to other parents. Steven Guy, SandsNI Network Co-ordinator saysSandsNI provides support to bereaved parents through our monthly support evenings where parents can chat informally over a cup of tea or coffee about how they are coping with their loss. We also provide every maternity & neonatal unit in Northern Ireland with Sands leaflet packs and Memory Boxes. The Memory Boxes include a hand-knit blanket, 2(Identical) teddy bears, one for baby, one for the parents and an inkless hand & footprint kit. The boxes encourage parents to create as many memories of their baby as possible in the short time they have with them. Training, accredited by the Royal College of Midwives, is also provided to health professionals and is delivered by the SandsUK team of facilitators. We also support research into the causes of baby deaths and in 2014 £50,000 was donated by SandsNI to fund several SandsUK projects. We have a NI Helpline 07740993450 which is available during office hours for parents to speak to someone about their loss. We have a dedicated Baby Garden in Portadown where parents can lay a simple stone with their baby’s name hand-painted on it among the flowers and plants in the garden and next to the other babies stones. We also have 2 Christmas carol services, Portadown and Derry, where parents are invited to buy a toy or gift for the age their child would be each Christmas. These toys & gifts are donated to the St Vincent De Paul/ Salvation Army toy appeal. Everything we do is funded by the fundraising efforts of the parents we support and we are extremely grateful to everyone who fundraises for us because without their efforts we could not continue to support the parents who are bereaved every year in Northern Ireland.

  • Training Tailored to Suit Your NeedsAdvice NI’s Bespoke Training FlourishesAdvice NI’s bespoke training service has become an increasingly popular option for organisations over the last few years. In parallel with increased numbers on our scheduled training and despite pressures on training budgets, we continue to be regarded as best practice and best value. In the past 4 months alone we have developed 11 bespoke training courses, delivered through 22 training sessions, at various locations throughout Northern Ireland. These courses include: Lone Working, State Pension & Pension Reform, Welfare Reform and Challenging Client Scenarios. Our satisfied customers include voluntary, statutory and private organisations including Mercer Hamilton, Council for the Homeless, The Older Persons Commissioner for Northern Ireland, Carecall, Fermanagh District Council, Extern, Disability Action and Fold Housing Association.  Why are more and more organisations choosing bespoke? 

    • Save Time and Money Bringing a bespoke course in-house can not only reduce the cost per delegate but can also save on travel expenses and time away from the office.

     

    • Tailored Content You can work directly with the trainer enabling us to develop a customised training course/package that meets your organisation’s requirements and needs. Training can be developed to suit the preferred learning style of delegates as well as specific content and activities. We will keep you involved every step of the way to ensure your organisation is entirely happy with the content. We can even offer practical exercises drawing on your case studies.

     

    • Flexible The course can be delivered at a location and dates convenient to you.  You'll receive the most relevant up to date training content with minimal disruption to your organisation. In addition, you can also choose whether you have the training delivered over a series of shorter intensive courses or longer sessions.

     

    • Confidential The content of the materials and sessions can remain confidential. The in-house nature of bespoke training means your staff can talk freely & openly about specific sensitive issues your organisation may face.

      Why are organisations choosing Advice NI as their training provider?

    • Proven track record of experience and success, having delivered training to the advice sector for over 16 years.
    • Portfolio of over 70 courses in our scheduled programme as well as additional ‘off-the-shelf’ courses which we can amend to suit organisational requirements.
    • Dedicated training team with highly skilled tutors, assessors, verifiers and Subject Matter Experts in multiple disciplines.
    • An Approved Assessment Centre, audited for quality and able to develop and deliver accredited training packages with a choice of awarding bodies such as City and Guilds, ProQual and Open College Network Northern Ireland.
    • Multimedia approaches offering training through face-to-face, on-line learning and blended approaches, and can develop courses using our Moodle on-line learning platform.
    • Quality second to none: We have achieved the Money Advice Service Quality Standard for training for initial contact and support through to court representation and are working towards and the Skillsmark Quality Mark. We are leading the development and implementation of the NIASC Quality Mark for the Advice Sector.
    • Award winning: We have won several prestigious training awards reflecting the quality of our training, including a Regional Training Award in 2011, an AONTAS Star Award won in 2011 and 2015 and shortlisting in 2014.
    • Vocational: We have decades of experience in mapping training to National Occupational Standards (NOS) for Legal Advisers, Business Administrators and those involved in Customer Care, and to the Qualifications and Credits Framework.
    • Added Value: We can offer additional services such as researching your training needs and learning styles, which can be a useful foundation for organisational development.

     Straight from the horse’s mouth:We know that our bespoke training has been of immense value to individuals and organisations because they tell us:

    • Satisfaction rates for our bespoke training are consistently high. 100% of participants have been more than satisfied with our bespoke training over the past 12 months.
    • Testimonials include:

    “Very well explained and applied to real casework…a confident and knowledgeable presenter”– Overview of Welfare Reform (CHNI Derry) “An excellent course. I was really impressed by the way the Trainer picked up on something from the introductory comments and commented on each case” – Safer Lone Working for Frontline Staff (Rural Support NI)  Talk to one of our consultants:Whether you are looking for a one off workshop/course or to roll out a training programme Advice NI’s Training Team can develop and deliver an excellent learning experience tailored to suit your specific needs.For further information or to send an enquiry please contact our Training Team at Advice NI by email on training@adviceni.net or by telephone 028 90 645919.