Month: July 2025

We’re delighted to welcome Whitehead-Ross as members of ALPS & Alphi. Here’s some information on their activities in Hampshire…

Whitehead-Ross Education: Delivering Skills Bootcamps Across Hampshire

Whitehead-Ross Education, a trusted provider of adult education and social welfare programmes since 2012, is actively delivering Skills Bootcamps across Hampshire, including areas like Fareham, Gosport, and surrounding regions.

These fully funded programmes support local adults in gaining sector-specific qualifications in areas such as Leadership & Management and Teaching Support and have a strong focus on employment outcomes and community impact.

Learn more: Skills Bootcamps – Hampshire, https://www.whiteheadrosseducation.com/

We welcome the newly merged SDN Mesma Group as a member of ALPS & Alphi. Read more about the merger here…

We recently announced that Mesma and SDN were officially joining forces as one merged organisation.

We wanted to officially share this information with you as a trusted partner and because it may be of interest to your members who are SDN and Mesma’s customers and partners. 

The merger combines the expertise of two of the most respected names in the sector, growing their portfolio of work with central government, regional authorities, sector partners, employers, and post-16 providers to design and deliver high-quality technical education, support services, and employability provision.

The newly formed group is positioned as a leading force to drive greater impact and innovation during a time of significant policy change. This merger marks a major milestone, coinciding with the launch of powerful new features on the Mesma software platform. These enhancements harness the latest advances in artificial intelligence to streamline internal performance diagnostics and quality improvement processes, delivering even greater value to customers.

The group will continue to operate under our existing trading names, Strategic Development Network (SDN) and Mesma, providing continuity for our longstanding respective clients while enabling deeper collaboration and innovation. The group will maintain bases in both the North and South of England, working across all regions of the four UK nations, alongside a growing international client base.

Existing leaders from both businesses will oversee five-year growth plans, with a 12-month integration period already underway. In addition to safeguarding existing permanent roles, the merger allows further capacity to create apprenticeships and T Level industry placements.  

For existing clients and partners, there are no changes to existing relationships and contracts. If you have any queries, please contact the team at hello@mesma.co.uk or hello@strategicdevelopmentnetwork.co.uk. 

We’re looking forward to exploring what this next chapter means for you and our continued work together as the SDN Mesma Group.  

You can find out more details about the merger here.

We are pleased to share below the latest information on Skills Bootcamps from Surrey County Council

Dear all,

I’m delighted to say we’re going live with applications to Wave 6 of the Skills Bootcamp and I wanted to share accompanying comms with you directly as key local partners. Please do contact the team if you have any questions on this fantastic opportunity.

Skills Bootcamps are returning to Surrey for 2025/26, and we are looking for innovative organisations to design and deliver courses to equip our residents with the skills to grow our future economy. 

As local providers who have an interest in skills development in Surrey, this could be a great opportunity for your organisations whilst also helping support residents on their employment pathway and filling much needed skills gaps in the local economy. 

Skills Bootcamps are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks for anyone aged 19+ to enter employment, upskill or change career. The Department for Education has awarded Surrey County Council £3.1 million of funding to deliver the programme in 2025/26, in collaboration with providers and employers. 

Who can apply 

We are looking for organisations with proven experience of skills training and strong local networks to design and deliver innovative courses shaped around the needs of jobseekers and employers. 

This can include: 

• independent training providers 
• further education (FE) colleges 
• employers 

Previous experience of delivering Skills Bootcamp provision is not a requirement. The main thing is that you are committed to training Surrey residents in skills that local employers are actively looking for and that you have relevant intelligence to support a robust proposal that demonstrates creative design and an understanding of local employers’ needs. 

How to apply 

We are now accepting applications under a competitive grant award process for delivery in 2025/2026 (Wave 6) from interested organisations that can deliver Skills Bootcamps courses by the end of March 2026. 

You will need to evidence demand, strategic fit and innovation, setting out: 

• access to employment post training (preference will be given to bids written in partnership with employers that show clear progression into job roles) 
• how you will meet demand in the local economy, using evidence such as Surrey Economic Growth Strategy and Labour Market Information 
• who your target learners are 
• your previous experience delivering employer-led training 
• previous collaboration with local employers 
• how you will deliver the programme 

Joint applications from training providers and employers are actively encouraged and will need to clearly evidence how the course will be used to fill open vacancies. 

To make your application, please complete the application form that can be found on the Business Surrey website: 

Skills Bootcamps Application – Business Surrey  

If you have any queries about your application, please contact skillsbootcamps@surreycc.gov.uk 

Best wishes

Dawn

www.surreycc.gov.uk

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