Programme owner
AI Edge Skills
Career growth pathway, portal, evidence model and employer-led progression.
Proof of concept with Newcastle College
A career growth pathway for the AI economy
AI Edge Skills helps learners, apprentices, employees and career changers build the confidence, judgement, softer skills and evidence they need to use AI safely and practically in work.
Starting with Newcastle College, the PoC tests how educators, employers and partners can turn AI learning into real capability, employer evidence and routes into future work.
Initial Foundation and Bronze PoC7 October to 9 December 2026
Onboarding, four Foundation sessions and five Bronze weeks.Education partner
Built with education, employers and regional partners
The first PoC is rooted in the North East and developed with Newcastle College as an education partner. Employers and sponsors can help shape live briefs, learner evidence, funded routes and progression opportunities.
Education partner
Newcastle College
Education partner supporting learner delivery, tutor engagement and the first Foundation and Bronze PoC.
Open invitation
Employers and sponsors
Live briefs, mentoring, evidence review, social value, skills insight and progression routes.
7 October to 9 December 2026
The first PoC programme
The first PoC runs from 7 October to 9 December 2026. Following onboarding, learners complete four Foundation sessions to build safe, responsible AI habits. A tutor gateway review is included on 4 November, before five Bronze weeks apply those habits to an employer-informed brief and a final showcase on 9 December.
Foundation
14 October to 4 November
Four practical sessions build AI literacy, trust, data awareness, workplace judgement and accountability. Learners gather evidence throughout, with the Foundation gateway included in the final session.
Bronze
11 November to 9 December
Five weeks turn the Foundation baseline into applied work through prompting, drafting, research, checking, task planning and quality review. The final week includes the showcase.
Evidence
Built throughout the programme
Learners record what they did, what AI helped with, what they checked and how they exercised human judgement. Tutors review the evidence before progression; employer feedback adds workplace context where arranged.
Onboarding 7 October · Foundation gateway 4 November · Bronze starts 11 November · Showcase 9 December
Regional growth
AI capability as a growth agenda
The North East does not just need more AI content. It needs a practical route that helps people grow into the future of work and helps organisations adopt AI with confidence.
AI Edge Skills connects learning to productivity, employability, apprenticeships, employer evidence, social value and regional growth.
For learners
Confidence, practical skills, evidence and hope in a changing labour market.
For employers
Better signals of work-readiness, safer AI adoption and a future talent pipeline.
For sponsors
Measurable social value, brand alignment and practical regional contribution.
For education partners
Structure, evidence and employer relevance that can strengthen existing delivery.
Softer skills
The human edge matters
AI skills are not only technical. The real advantage comes from better questions, clearer communication, critical thinking, collaboration, adaptability, ethical reasoning and the confidence to check before trusting an output.
- Confidence
- Judgement
- Communication
- Curiosity
- Collaboration
- Critical thinking
- Adaptability
- Ethical reasoning
- Service mindset
- Evidence and reflection
A guided progression
Not a catalogue. A pathway to capability.
National platforms help people find AI learning. AI Edge Skills helps turn that learning into confidence, evidence and practical value in work.
The pathway gives learners a clearer route, tutors a structure for delivery and employers a way to see applied capability rather than only course completion.
Reflection and feedback run through every stage, helping learners recognise what they can do now and where to develop next.
An open invitation
Help shape the first PoC
We are inviting employers, sponsors, education partners and regional organisations to help shape the Foundation and Bronze PoC, support learner places, create live briefs and review the evidence that shows what practical AI capability looks like.