Developing entrepreneurial competence is a key EU policy objective, which features in many recent policy documents including the Entrepreneurship Action Plan 2020 (EC, 2013), the New Skills Agenda for Europe (EC, 2016) and the Council Recommendation on Key Competences (EC, 2018),with continuing reference to the importance of “promoting entrepreneurial mindsets” and “nurturing entrepreneurship competence, creativity and the sense of initiative especially among young people”. Despite this, there is still no consensus on what entrepreneurship competence is, with the final report of the Expert Working Group on Education for Entrepreneurship (EC, 2014) reminding us that the benefits of entrepreneurship education are not limited to boosting start-ups and new jobs, confirming wider potential for the development of creativity and self-confidence amongst all learners. Recognising that VET teachers have been slow to embrace the change required to embed entrepreneurship training across the curriculum and targeting increased competence and confidence among VET teachers and trainers with a view to securing improved entrepreneurship teaching in the future, partners from 4 European countries (UK, FI, ES, NL), each having confirmed low levels of early stage entrepreneurial activity will come together to identify, adapt, develop and test a series of tools and approaches able to assist VET teachers/trainers in the modernisation of teaching approaches. Building on a Targeted Analysis Report (TAR), confirming existing tools, programmes and materials within and beyond the participating countries and regions, an Outline Training Programme (OTP); multi-language Toolkit for Teachers and Trainers (TTT) and a series of Regional Development Plans (RDPs) will be developed and delivered, each having a confirmed ambition for confidence and capacity-building, among VET teachers and trainers. Project delivery relies on 7 work phases (initiation and ratification; identification and analysis; development and adaptation; user validation; design and testing; discussion and agreement; dissemination and exploitation) and will result in a series of 4 intellectual outputs (TAR, OTP, TTT and RDP) each having confirmed ambitions for development and modernisation in VET. Whilst VET teachers and trainers are the primary beneficiary audience for Entrepreneurship Anonymous, VET learners and graduates are an important, secondary audience, increasing understanding of entrepreneurship, in all its guises (viz. business development; creativity; innovation et al). In all steps of the project, VET teachers/trainers, and their institutions, will be involved in consultation, reflection, testing and feedback actions with a single short-term joint staff training event targeted (participation target: 32 teacher/trainer/educator professionals from 4 European countries) and with a series of national multiplier events also planned with a view to marketing the use and take-up of the core projects outputs (participation target: 130 individuals, representing VET policy and practice, in 4 European countries). Additional dissemination efforts will promote take-up among wider user audiences, including those beyond the participating countries. Targets for impact at individual level, centred clearly on increasing confidence and competence among teaching and training professionals, working in the field of VET, with a view to embedding entrepreneurship education more fully in new and existing programme provision, ultimately building capacity in future VET learner and graduate cohorts. At institutional and regional levels, we are targeting the delivery of Regional Development Plans (O4) in which recommendations for change and improvement expect to be confirmed for those regulating and delivering (initial and continuing) education for teachers and trainers. The findings of the Targeted Analysis Report (O1) will also provide a useful extension to existing data sets relating to entrepreneurship education provision across participating and wider countries (ES-FI-NL-UK plus FR-EE-PT-LU) and the Toolkit for Teachers and Trainers ()2) and the Outline Training Programme (O3) each have significant legacy potential in terms of continuing to aid training and capacity-building in the sector.
Developing entrepreneurial competence is a key EU policy objective, which features in many recent policy documents including the Entrepreneurship Action Plan 2020 (EC, 2013), the New Skills Agenda for Europe (EC, 2016) and the Council Recommendation on Key Competences (EC, 2018),with continuing reference to the importance of “promoting entrepreneurial mindsets” and “nurturing entrepreneurship competence, creativity and the sense of initiative especially among young people”. Despite this, there is still no consensus on what entrepreneurship competence is, with the final report of the Expert Working Group on Education for Entrepreneurship (EC, 2014) reminding us that the benefits of entrepreneurship education are not limited to boosting start-ups and new jobs, confirming wider potential for the development of creativity and self-confidence amongst all learners. Recognising that VET teachers have been slow to embrace the change required to embed entrepreneurship training across the curriculum and targeting increased competence and confidence among VET teachers and trainers with a view to securing improved entrepreneurship teaching in the future, partners from 4 European countries (UK, FI, ES, NL), each having confirmed low levels of early stage entrepreneurial activity came together to identify, adapt, develop and test a series of tools and approaches that would be able to assist VET teachers/trainers in the modernisation of teaching approaches. The project sought to produce four intellectual outputs - a Targeted Analysis Report (TAR), exploring the free availability of existing tools, programmes and materials within and beyond the participating countries and regions, an Outline Training Programme (OTP); multi-language Toolkit for Teachers and Trainers (TTT) and a series of Regional Development Plans (RDPs). Each of these tools was intended to foster confidence and capacity-building, among VET teachers and trainers.However, the project suffered from two significant problems. The first of these was a retardation in achieving the anticipated schedule of project activities and the second - and most crucial - was the winding-up of the coordinating institution. The principal factor from which the first problem emerged was the delayed production of the first intellectual output - the Targeted Analysis Report (TAR). However, this was eventually achieved and a copy of it is attached to this report. The second problem, which effectively terminated the project prior to its completion was the decision taken by the Board of the West of Scotland Colleges' Partnership to wind-up the company. Having made this decision, the Board implemented it rapidly. Nonetheless, the project partners had commenced working on developing the second and third intellectual outputs, by defining the elements that would be essential components of both. In the application, delivery of the project is outlined in terms of seven work phases (initiation and ratification; identification and analysis; development and adaptation; user validation; design and testing; discussion and agreement; dissemination and exploitation) leading to the production of the four intellectual outputs (TAR, OTP, TTT and RDP). However, the premature termination of the project meant that only the first two phases were completed and the third was commenced. Whilst VET teachers and trainers were the intended primary beneficiary audience for Entrepreneurship Anonymous, and VET learners and graduates were an important, secondary audience, the output which has been produced is likely to be of less interest to either and more useful for either teacher training institutions or staff development professionals who are concerned with developing resources for delivering entrepreneurial education to students or in building the competence of teachers from all disciplines to do so.