CV Writing Workshops

July 21 2023

Bev Walmsley, CWU North East Regional Learning Lead, explains how CV workshops can assist ULRs to support members looking to find a new job.

The CWU North East Region held a ULR, learning event early July 2023. As well as the standard agenda items and issues for discussion, we also benefitted from a CV writing workshop, organised by Phill Day TUC Project Worker for Skills West Yorkshire and delivered by the National Careers Service (NCS). Prior to the event, I met with the NCS to agree the theme of the workshop, and to ensure it would be tailored to the CWU and ULRs needs.

Joan Tulley (NCS) covered applicable CV elements, leading to a discussion around whether and which qualifications were applicable, appropriate to particular jobs and how applications were checked, assessed and scored by potential employers. There was also guidance regarding the various approaches to applying and searching for jobs, depending on what sort of job has been applied for. The workshop ended with a questions and answers session where Joan explained that the NCS were happy to hold one to ones with anyone the CWU might signpost to them.

Attendees completed learning goals and set a deadline to work to on their own personal development, this included resources to achieve these. The ULRs found the workshop very useful, when discussing training and education needs with members, this will help provide some useful insights into the CV and job search market, as we have an ageing workforce which, in some cases, they may not have applied for jobs for quite some time. And how and where to search and apply have changed in the past decade and if, at some point in the future they decide to move to another job, either within their current employer or another job altogether then this information is invaluable.

If you are a ULR wishing to organise something similar you might want to discuss it with your Regional Learning Lead. You should be able to find your local NCS contact through your local authority or their website.