Over 3,000 people from Stoke-on-Trent have benefited from free courses aimed at tackling numeracy confidence.
Stoke By Numbers, is part of the government-funded Multiply programme, which since 2022, has provided free and flexible training to over 3000 adults across Stoke-on-Trent.
The programme has been led by Stoke-on-Trent City Council with Stoke on Trent College managing the marketing campaign. Delivery partners have included – Potteries Money Wise, Acacia Training, Landau, Acorn Training, the City Council Adult Community Learning team and Stoke on Trent College.
Courses were tailored to raise awareness of numbers in everyday life, providing learners with ways to manage money plus improve their career prospects by being more number confident, help children with homework or budget for special occasions like holidays and Christmas.
Stoke By Numbers has also seen 27 National Numeracy Champions complete training to be numeracy ambassadors and encourage people to get confident with numbers, ensuring the legacy of the programme will continue for years to come.
Other highlights of the campaign include the Stoke By Numbers Roadshow whereby the fully branded Stoke by Numbers bus toured the city – offering local residents the opportunity to find out more about numeracy courses on offer and complete some on-site learning.
Someone who has benefited from Stoke By Numbers is Jamee Ann Fisher, who felt her struggles with numeracy were holding her back from pursuing a career in Accounting plus helping her children with school work.
Since completing numeracy courses on offer, Jamee has since been accepted onto a further pathway to further enhance her skills, she said:
“My number confidence has grown dramatically. I learnt so much on how I can now support my children with their homework, as the numeracy approach has changed so much since I was at school.”
Hassan Rizvi, Principal and CEO at Stoke on Trent College said:
“Stoke on Trent College is proud to have led the marketing campaign for Stoke By Numbers and also be a delivery partner. Throughout the project, ourselves and the other delivery partners have provided people from Stoke-on-Trent with a platform to improve their numeracy skills, which will benefit them in all walks of life.
“We’ve shown that a lack of confidence with numbers is nothing to be ashamed of, and with the courses offered we can improve outcomes for adults in the city.
“According to participant feedback, over a third will progress now to a formal accredited maths course to continue to develop their skills.”
Councillor Sarah Jane Colclough, cabinet member for education and anti-poverty at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said:
“It’s pleasing to see so many residents benefitting from Stoke by Numbers and getting on the path to increasing their confidence in numeracy.
“These skills are vital when completing daily tasks – whether it’s DIY, cooking, shopping or budgeting, maths is used in so many aspects of everyday life.
“To hear that so many people have been overcoming these barriers and becoming more confident with their numeracy is a resounding success that will only improve outcomes across Stoke-on-Trent.”
To find out more about Stoke By Numbers, please visit www.stokebynumbers.co.uk.
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Notes to Editors
Picture caption – All partners from Stoke By Numbers attend a celebration event for the program at Middleport Pottery.
Stoke by Numbers, part of the government’s new £560 million national programme, Multiply, which aims to transform the lives of hundreds of thousands of adults across the UK.
The programme is a partnership across the city by Stoke on Trent College and Stoke-on-Trent City Council, with training courses being delivered by six learning providers across the city.
Partners include: Stoke on Trent College, Acacia Training, Acorn Training, Pathway Group, Potteries Moneywise and Adult Community Learning (ACL) at Stoke-on-Trent City Council.
Stoke on Trent College serves up to 9000 students a year including young people, adults and apprentices. Working with a wide range of employers in key growth areas of the economy such as Digital, Construction, Engineering, STEM and Health and Social Care and more.
For more information, contact Paul Downey, PR & Communications Officer at Stoke on Trent College on pdown1sc@stokecoll.ac.uk.
