On 21 April, the European Alliance for Apprenticeships (EAfA) organised the webinar ‘Inter-company training centres and Centres of Vocational Excellence’. The webinar falls under priority 2 of the renewed EAfA Action Plan 2020−2021 ‘Incentivising support to SMEs for providing a stable supply of quality and effective apprenticeships’ and corresponds to the action ‘Promoting cooperation in joint training centres’.

The webinar included the following speakers: 

• Andrew McCoshan, Senior Expert in VET and Director of Plexus Research & Consulting, UK; 
• Agustín F. Sigüenza, Director General of Vocational Education and Training and Educational Equity at the Education Department of the Regional Government of Castilla y León, Spain; 
• Cyriel Mentink, Chief Operating Officer at Chemelot Innovation and Learning Labs (CHILL), the Netherlands. 
• João Santos, Senior Expert at the Unit of Vocational Education and Training (VET); Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission; 
• Jörg Markowitsch, Senior Partner and Policy Adviser at 3s Research & Consultancy, Austria. 

One of the topics covered by the webinar was how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) could be pro-active partners in Centres of Vocational Excellence (CoVEs). The webinar presented examples of different types of CoVEs from across Europe − from designated entities which act as an ‘addition’ to the main vocational education and training (VET) system, to individual VET providers functioning as regional CoVEs. No matter the type of CoVE, it was emphasised that partnerships with SMEs are crucial in tuning VET to better meet the demand for skills in the labour market and boost competitiveness and innovation in local businesses. 

Webinar participants also learnt about the role and benefits of inter-company training centres (ITCs) – instances of cooperation of individual companies who complement each other’s capacity and resources to provide VET content. Participants were shown different examples of ITCs from across Europe and were also invited to share good practice examples in their own countries. The webinar illustrated the benefits of ITCs, which include: 

• supporting companies’ competitiveness and participation in apprenticeships; 
• raising VET quality; 
• creating incentives for apprentices; 
• providing a variety of learning venues. 

The webinar also looked into the future (funding) plans for ITCs and CoVEs at the EU level. The European Commission presented its plan for a digital platform which will provide CoVEs with three types of services: 

• knowledge sharing (evidence, research, information, tools, and methodologies); 
• networking and collaboration (stakeholder engagement in collaborative sharing of knowledge, know-how, and competence); 
• information and support (expert support and general guidance to VET organisations and authorities). 

During the webinar, the Commission also announced that it has allocated €400 million for 100 platforms of CoVEs under the Erasmus+ programme for 2021−2027. Other EU-level plans include a matchmaking tool for linking CoVE project partners, a new community of practice on Vocational Excellence. An information session on the 2021 Erasmus+ call for proposals on CoVEs will be organised on 30 April. More details on how to participate in this event can be found here. 

The webinar attracted more than 200 registrations from 47 countries across four continents. Participants included education and training providers, company and business organisations, non-profit organisations, and social partners. 

You can watch the webinar recording online, and download the presentation from the ‘Related documents’ section below.