Post-16 citizenship centre-based training

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The Post-16 Citizenship Support Programme is pleased to offer, for the first time, free centre-based (in house) training which responds directly to the needs of organisations requiring bespoke support to set up, or make improvements to, citizenship provision.

Centre-based training is designed to improve the quality and range of your citizenship provision. Our focus will be to equip your staff, at all levels, with the knowledge and skills to organise and deliver effective active citizenship learning.

A definition of citizenship

Citizenship enables young people to learn about their rights and responsibilities, and how society works.  It also develops knowledge and understanding of topical, often controversial, social, political, environmental and economic issues.  It encourages learners to express their views and participate in decision-making: to ‘have a voice’ in democratic processes. Citizenship learning is active, reflective, learner-led and community-focused.  It prompts and enables learners to take action on issues of concern to themselves and others, and to make a difference in their local and wider communities.

Training themes

Select from six of flexible training themes which can be tailored to meet your requirements:

1. Taking stock of citizenship provision: training needs analysis

This session will help organisations identify and evaluate any existing citizenship activity they may already offer to students – whether or not it is labelled as such. It will help you to clarify possible opportunities for citizenship learning within your organisation, and associated training needs. The session will involve interviews with a range of staff and students to gather views on citizenship and build up a picture of the support and development staff will need in order to take citizenship provision forward in an effective way.

2. Getting started with post-16 citizenship

Through this training session you will get to grips with the above definition and key principles of post-16 citizenship, consider its benefits for all groups of learners and their organisations, and discover a variety of possible models and approaches to setting up and organising your own citizenship activities and programmes. It will also examine the relevance of citizenship for other institutional priorities and government initiatives, including the Learner involvement strategy, Community cohesion and Personal, learning and thinking skills.

In common with the other five themes offered here, this session will: model an active learning approach that is central to effective citizenship provision; offer an opportunity to find out about best practice examples from other organisations; and allow you to access, free, additional staff development and teaching and learning resources.

3. Citizenship and controversial issues

Controversial issues are those about which individuals and groups disagree and hold strong opinions, issues that can divide society and arouse strong feelings and/or deal with fundamental questions of value and belief – for example, war, immigration, abortion, gay rights. While some teachers may feel anxious about introducing them, such social and political issues are central to citizenship and learning to manage differences of opinion in an acceptable way in a democratic society is one main aim of citizenship education. This session offers the opportunity to consider further the nature of ‘controversial issues’ in the context of your own organisation and to work on strategies and techniques for managing controversy among groups of learners.    

4. Citizenship and learner voice

The importance of hearing and actively listening to the learner voice has become a central part of post-16 education and training where it has a strong alignment with citizenship education. Learner voice and representation supports the promotion of wider citizenship learning objectives for an ethos of democratic participation while, in turn, good active citizenship learning can greatly enhance the effectiveness of learner voice within an organisation. This session will allow you to explore current understandings of 'the learner voice', and its development in the context of the LSC’s requirement that all FE providers put in place a learner involvement strategy. It will also allow you to consider progress with a learner involvement strategy in your own organisation, and the part that citizenship provision can play in developing this successfully.  

5. Diversity community cohesion and citizenship

Community cohesion is important within learning organisations, in the local areas they serve, in our society as a whole and globally. The promotion of community cohesion, which has become an increasingly significant government priority in recent years, can be linked closely with citizenship education. This session will enable you to explore some of the issues surrounding community cohesion in the current social and political climate – and very much in the context of the circumstances and priorities of your own organisation. There will be a particular focus on the role that citizenship provision can have in the development of effective strategies for cohesion, both for your organisation as a whole, and in relation to work with specific groups of learners.  

6. Citizenship learning through Diplomas

The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) makes it clear that Diploma learning should contribute to the overall curriculum aim for young people to become ‘responsible citizens who make a positive contribution to society’. This session will help you to plan for the inclusion of citizenship activity in the line(s) of learning offered in your organisation. The main focus will be on opportunities for citizenship within principal learning, although GCSE, AS and A level Citizenship qualifications can form part of Additional and Specialist Learning.  Within Personal, learning and thinking skills, the ‘effective participator’ category involves the same skills as active citizenship, while the Extended project can be chosen to develop citizenship skills with the opportunities it provides for the development of ideas, products and services that benefit the local community over time.

What does centre based training involve?

You will have the opportunity to receive dedicated training and support for staff in-house which will be delivered by experienced consultants with extensive knowledge of post-16 citizenship education. Organisations may, in the first instance, request up to three training sessions (in the period to 31 March 2009) - inclusive of a ‘Taking stock’ consultancy meeting if required.

These can be tailored to the needs of your own organisation. Whether or not you choose option 1 above (full training needs analysis) we will always arrange a full discussion with you in good time prior to the training to ensure the session meets your objectives as fully as possible. The training sessions will be structured and delivered through a range of activities and discussions on days and at times which are suitable for you.

How to apply for training

To apply for a free centre-based training, please download the application form and send the completed form to citizenshiptraining@LSNeducation.org.uk. Please note we will normally need a minimum of four weeks notice to process an application. The information on this webpage is also downloadable as a flyer.

Contact us

For further information or enquiries relating to citizenship centre-based training please email citizenshiptraining@LSNeducation.org.uk or telephone 020 7492 5252.


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