LEVER aims at “Modelling informal learning and transversal competences in the voluntary service experience to increase employment and mobility of citizens”, fostering volunteers’ competence/transversal skills certifications, according to common transnational schemes and reference frameworks. In fact, the voluntary service can be seen as a relevant learning set/experience for the world of work and can even facilitate worker (and students) mobility at local and transnational level. Under this purpose, LEVER will survey a) the different informal learning models within the voluntary service world, already experimented and deployed in the LEVER partners’ countries. A special focus will be on the possible paths integrating work/voluntary work as alternative training; b) the main common typologies of voluntary activities beyond the specific work sectors (e.g., planning, coordinating, training and coaching, networking, etc.); c) the related possible skills and competences required (e.g. communication skills, budgeting, digital skills, project management, team building and team working, etc.) referring to the 8 key competences for lifelong learning in the European certification procedures; d) the most required transversal competences in the profit world, also referring to already existing frameworks on this topic at local and transnational level; e) best practices of key competences/transversal skills informal learning and the related recognition and certification approaches. From the result of the survey, the LEVER e-book will be implemented to provide a guidance for non-formal learning/training programmes in the voluntary service and the related assessment of transversal competences. It will include: - A Correspondent Table of the current assessment and certification procedures in the LEVER partners’ countries, such as in Italy, in The Netherlands and in the Denmark; - A Reference Framework of the Transversal Skills identified; - A Set of possible non-formal learning paths as guidance - Criteria to assign credits and EQF levels - A set of possible assessment methods and tools to be used to recognize and certify competences (based on learning outcomes and EQF levels) - Recommendations for local and EU policy makers to embed the LEVER results in the labour policies. In the testing phase, according to the LEVER guidelines, each partner will identify at least, twelve volunteers interested in certifying their competences/transversal skills developed or reinforced during their voluntary experience; one company whose employees are also involved in the voluntary service, interested in supporting the recognition of their transversal competences; the required assessors for the competence evaluation and recognition, to be trained according to the LEVER model. On the whole, about 70 certification processes will be activated and at least the 50% certified by the reference local certification bodies which will share the common scheme. The LEVER web tool will be an interactive web device for users to allow them to get information on the certification process, make comparisons between local frameworks and schemes with the support of the correspondence table; upload the pieces of evidence provides during the certification process, building their e-portfolio and recording their certifications according to EUROPASS. The main target groups will be: - Volunteers engaged in voluntary service - Voluntary service associations and their operators - Employer associations - Enterprises - Training centers - Certification bodies - Labour Policy makers - Young people, students and families - Teachers Two local workshops and two local focus groups with stakeholders will guarantee to meet the market's needs and the LEVER quality as well as to identify and reach volunteers interested in the certification process. A continuing monitoring of the interim results impacts within the target groups involved in the testing phase will also feed the final recommendations to policy makers. Facebook and twitter web communities will be opened to foster conversations and sharing views; the Wikipedia.org platform will be used to publish interim and final results. A dissemination dashboard will help partners monitoring the level of the project diffusion whose the LEVER widget published on the web will be the smart indicator. The general expected LEVER effect is a mutual recognition of the competence/transversal skills frameworks and certification schemes within the partnership and the local/EU policy makers, so to enhance mutual trust for mobility and be compliant with the new EU directives on non- regulated professions (e.g. 2013/55/UE); the stakeholders' increased awareness of the voluntary service relevance for the world of work in terms of learning; a consequent implementation of internal services offered to volunteers by the voluntary service to facilitate them undertake the certification process.
LEVER aims at “Modelling informal learning and transversal competences in the voluntary service experience to increase employment and mobility of citizens”. The voluntary service may provide a relevant learning set where people develop and practice transversal skills in the field. The chance to value such skills and to have them recognized according to a common reference framework is significant for the world of work, the voluntary organisations and the volunteers themselves. In fact, it facilitates the mutual recognition and the mobility at local, national and international level. It provides profit and no profit organisations with a very effective way to nurture and improve the transversal competences that may influence on both personal and business performance. It allows volunteers to get a better grip on their personal-key competences and to focus on specific life opportunities in work and social life for own personal and professional development. For that, the project pursued three main objectives: •The development of a mutual trust area, where the partnership and the stakeholders at local and European level can share a common framework when dealing with significant transversal competences and their validation. •The raise of awareness on volunteering as a non-formal /informal learning set for the benefit of the world of work, the voluntary context and the person •The implementation of internal services for volunteers, by voluntary organizations, to foster the enhancement and the formal recognition of acquired skills After a first context analysis, LEVER designed the model, trained the operators, tutors and assessors, and finally carried out the testing in each project country. The results and outcome concern: -A cross-national survey, a report of the state-of-art in each country (Italy,Poland, Spain, The Netherland, Denmark) in terms of: existing informal/non-formal validation systems; emerging transversal competences of interest for both labor market and voluntary sector; good practices in deploying Validation of Prior Learning and valuing volunteering experiences as competence learning set. -The LEVER Model, made up of a Competence Standard and a Validation Process. The former defines a first catalogue of 13 transversal competences that volunteering can develop and labor market appreciates. The standard provides: general competence descriptions; information related to the voluntary and the labor market perspectives, to the EU key competences, to the EQF levels; examples of proofing documentation; indicators and criteria to assess them in a transparent and objective way. The latter defines the 5 steps process to carry out the competence validation, in full compliancy with the European guidelines for the Formal, informal and non formal learning validation (CEDEFOP, 2015) as well as with the local and national already existing systems. A full report explains the model, the underpinning approach, the tools and the final guidelines and recommendation for local and EU policy makers. A synthetic web version is also provided on the project website. -The LEVER toolkits, the tools at use of volunteers, tutors and assessors. Each partner developed the local language version. -The LEVER webtool, a free multilanguage web application to support the validation process and the assessment at use of volunteers, tutors, assessors and validation centres. -Five national pilots involved about 80 volunteers, interested in certification, and 143 operators, from voluntary and profit organisations, to be trained as assessors and tutors. The validation released 63 LEVER certifications, 12 more paths were just completed and only 5 candidates withdrew. -The AT Training program, a 5-module based program, describing the learning outcome, the potential resources, the references, the suggested activities and methods. Designed to be flexibly used according to the local context needs, it refers to three main objectives: VPL introduction and sensitization; specific training for VPL practitioners; opening debates on quality and integration with employment policies. The main target groups addressed by the project are: •Volunteers •Voluntary service associations and their operators •Employer associations and enterprises •Training centers/ teachers •Certification bodies •Labour Policy makers •Young people,students and families Two multiplier events per country with local stakeholders and the continuing monitoring with the participant target groups guaranteed to meet the market's needs and the LEVER quality. The final recommendation and the sustainability plan also benefitted from the outcome emerged. Dissemination exploited the LEVER facebook community, EPALE platform and sectorial online magazines. Three web videos introduce the project, the achieved outcome and report the stakeholders perspectives and further purposes as emerged in the interviews during the Final International Conference (Sondrio, December 2016).