Partner Article

New scheme calls on youngsters

A NEW programme has been launched to encourage young people into a career in the contact centre industry.

City of Sunderland College is set to launch a new pilot programme called ‘Get into Contact Centres’, to help more young people secure jobs within the region’s contact centre industry specifically within the area of sales.

The new course is aimed at 16 to 25 year-olds who have completed its specially designed entry level industry programme or who are currently unemployed and interested in working in the sector.

The course is the result of an innovative training partnership between City of Sunderland College’s Contact Centre Academy and the Prince’s Trust.

The free, four-week training course will run on a full-time basis and is set to start in March 2011, with learners building their sales skills and gaining experience at the College’s training site within the Cobalt Business Exchange, in North Tyneside.

Further programmes are planned for roll-out at the Academy’s training centres in Sunderland and North Tyneside later in the year.

Graduates of the course leave with a City and Guilds Level 2 Certificate in Sales and receive six months’ support after the programme to help them find a job.

Susan Walker, the college’s contact centre academy operations manager, said: “We have developed this Level 2 qualification to meet the needs of both the North East’s contact centre industry and its call for more talented sales people, and local young people who are looking for new exciting career opportunities.

“The programme is aimed at building learner confidence and the vital skills they need to secure employment and develop a career in a rewarding sector. At present, we are in discussions with potential employers who may look to offer roles to our learners once they have completed the course.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .