An exciting new initiative is launched in April to deliver Learndirect courses to minority ethnic businesses with up to 249 employees.

The Asian Business Federation and MBW training will be working together to drive the SmartSkills project.

This initiative will allow small companies to develop their skills at a time that suits them.

Learndirect is flexible - using the Internet to access high quality materials - learning at a time and place at a pace to suit the individual learner.

Khalid Saifullah, Chief Executive of ABF says "The ABF network is increasing day by day, acting as a One Stop Shop for our members by ensuring that they receive the necessary support to grow and succeed.

"The SmartSkills for Business project is the first in series of initiatives the ABF will be introducing this year to help businesses reach their full potential."

Christine Worthington the Operations Manager for the contract at Learndirect, North and West Lancashire Hub Ltd says "We are pleased to be able to support businesses in the training and development of their workforce through the Learndirect medium, particularly around basic IT skills, customer service, literacy, numeracy and English language."

The SmartSkills for Business project makes provision to take Learndirect into the community, including business premises by making use of laptop computers and a learning bus.

SmartSkills for Business is a pilot project and therefore for a short period of time members of the ABF will be eligible for limited FREE courses.

For further information on how to take part in this FREE initiative, contact the ABF Ltd on 0845 607 0786.