The Regional Membership team have been working hard to deliver on the nine key themes that make up the Realigning the Partnership initiative. We reported last month that two themes remain ongoing – Theme Four: CPD and Theme Five: Corporate Engagement.
Theme Four: CPD remains ongoing and will carry over into 2025. The regional membership team have now met with the CIIs Content and Capabilities Director several times to discuss how institutes can be supported further to build upon the current excellent CPD programmes that are rolled out by each of 52 local institutes, and to ensure the volunteer network is considered, and has a voice, in future CPD plans developed by the CII. The team have also run several thematic group meetings for CPD officers and education secretaries, to ensure their views are heard and good practice is shared. The regional membership team are also currently reviewing one of our key CPD tools – the CPD database of technical speakers that sits on Network Know How – ensuring it remains relevant and fit for purpose, this tool is due to relaunch in early 2025.
The regional membership team have recently engaged with the CIIs corporate development team to move Theme Five: Corporate Engagement forward, which will develop relationships between our Local Institutes and the CIIs Corporate Development team.
Each regional membership manager will now be meeting up on a regular basis with the Corporate Development team responsible for their region to discuss how institutes can support the corporate team and vice versa. Key local institute contacts will be shared with the corporate development team on a regular basis and the regional membership team have highlighted the corporate development teams contact details on Network Know How – these can be accessed here.
The regional membership team will also highlight key relationships / successes obtained by the corporate development team on a regular basis via Network News as well as broker relationships where there is a mutual interest - ie: corporate team wanting local knowledge / Local Institute wants to develop relationship locally.
The corporate development team will also be visible at key local institute engagement activities such as Network Conference, Digital Town Halls, Local Institute National Forum, and thematic group meetings.
We are happy to announce that the other seven themes have been actioned and completed:
Theme One: Networking events – THEME NOW COMPLETE
What you said: Local institutes viewed networking activities for members as their key priority – what does good look like?
This theme has now been ACTIONED and COMPLETED. The regional membership team have now created a good practice guide which focuses on how to run positive networking events that benefit members locally.
Theme Two: Exam Training – THEME NOW COMPLETE
What you said: Local institutes need more support to arrange exam training for members.
This theme has now been ACTIONED and COMPLETED. The regional membership team have worked with the Learning Propositions team to ensure local institutes are considered in the ongoing development of a national exam training programme proposition (including the choice to offer financial support for their members). A programme was rolled out by the central team but take up was modest, with course costs a key factor. The central team are reviewing the model, whilst LIs continue to develop local support.
Theme Three: Career support and engagement – THEME NOW COMPLETE
What you said: Local institutes are keen to do more cannot progress without further support from CII.
This theme is ongoing but now being managed by the CIIs Career Partner Manager. The regional membership team have worked with the CIIs Career Partner Manager to create a plan for delivering more consistent and structured support for LIs who want to provide career support engagement with local schools & colleges. A toolkit is being developed to support these activities – due to launch in early 2025 and an established Careers thematic group will give volunteers an engagement platform.
Theme Six: Thematic groups – THEME NOW COMPLETE
What you said: Local institutes need additional support for key council roles.
The regional membership team have developed thematic groups to engage, support and develop relationships with key council roles to offer further support. The team also continues to host bi-annual Digital Town Halls providing an opportunity for local institutes to meet the CIIs CEO. Each one of these events will be replicated across 2025 effectively becoming the teams volunteer engagement program.
Theme Seven: Annual network conference – THEME NOW COMPLETE
What you said: Local institutes want to further support the development and hosting of Network Conference.
This theme has now been ACTIONED and COMPLETED. The regional membership team have worked in conjunction with the CIIs events team to deliver a successful network conference in 2024 and have developed a five-year plan for future events. The CIIs Vice President for Local Institutes has been heavily involved in the development of future conference content.
Theme Eight: Grants – THEME NOW COMPLETE
What you said: Local institutes would like to see more financial support for smaller institutes to stop potential cash flow issues.
This theme has now been ACTIONED and COMPLETED. Smaller local institutes will now receive 80% of their annual ordinary grant in January to ensure that there are no cash flow issues going forward.
Theme Nine: Non-financial resourcing – THEME NOW COMPLETE
What you said: Local institutes need more central staffing support.
This theme has now been ACTIONED and COMPLETED. The CII recruited two new members into the regional membership team in May / June of 2024, a Regional Membership Administrator, and an additional Regional Membership Manager, with responsibility for the North-West and North-East regions.