QUEEN partners advance cooperation on work-based learning

07/10/2026

On 6 October 2026, the QUEEN-Quality apprenticeships for evolving labour needs partnership, an Interreg Europe project, came together for its fourth virtual meeting, marking the end of the project’s third semester. With one and a half years of cooperation behind them, partners took stock of the progress achieved so far and looked ahead to the next phase of peer learning, regional cooperation and policy improvement.

The meeting provided an opportunity to reflect on the work carried out during the first part of the project and, importantly, to discuss how the knowledge and experiences generated through QUEEN can increasingly be translated into action within the participating regions.

Continuing the exchange of Good Practices

One of the central elements of the QUEEN project is the exchange of Good Practices between regions. During the meeting, partners reviewed the Good Practices identified so far and discussed the themes that have emerged across the partnership.

The practices identified by the partners cover a broad range of issues linked to work-based learning, skills and apprenticeships, including the effectiveness of regional systems

The next phase of the project will place particular emphasis on identifying and exploring practices that can help address areas where further learning is needed. These include topics such as skills mismatches and skills foresight, digitalisation, adult learning and inclusion, as well as other issues relevant to the development of effective work-based learning systems.

Partners will have the opportunity to explore these practices through a combination of online exchanges and study visits. The aim is not simply to identify successful approaches elsewhere, but to understand the context in which they have developed and consider how the lessons learned could be relevant to other regions.

This peer-learning process is closely connected to the project’s wider objective of policy improvement. Learning from other regions can provide new perspectives for partners as they work on strengthening their own policy instruments and approaches.

From peer learning to policy improvement

A further focus of the meeting was the next stage of the partners’ policy improvement work. Partners discussed a practical checklist and guidance designed to help regions structure this process and connect the different strands of learning taking place within QUEEN.

The partnership also looked at the experience of Tuscany as an example of how learning from the project can be connected to regional policy development. The example demonstrated how the policy improvement process can start from a specific challenge or opportunity and develop through engagement with relevant stakeholders, research and learning from experiences in other regions.

This is an important step as the project moves forward: the value of transnational cooperation ultimately lies in how the knowledge gained can support improvements in regional policies and practices.

Building capacity within regions

The meeting also provided an opportunity for partners to exchange experiences on the use of the QUEEN Capacity Building modules.

While the detailed experiences and outcomes of this work will be explored separately, the discussion highlighted the different ways in which partners are using the resources within their organisations and with regional stakeholders. Across the partnership, the activities are helping to create opportunities for reflection and discussion around topics such as work-based learning, stakeholder cooperation, mentoring, skills and the role of different actors within regional ecosystems.

The experiences also demonstrate the importance of adapting transnational project resources to the specific needs and priorities of each region. Rather than applying a single approach, partners are using the materials as a basis for discussion and further engagement with colleagues and stakeholders.

Looking ahead to Cork

The partners also continued preparations for the fourth QUEEN project meeting, which will take place in Cork on 4-5 November 2026.

The meeting will offer another opportunity for partners to learn from the host region, exchange experiences and further explore the development of work-based learning and apprenticeship systems. Study visits and discussions with regional stakeholders will contribute to the project’s ongoing peer-learning process.

The Cork meeting will also provide an important moment for partners to take stock of the work carried out during the first half of the project and consider how the different strands of cooperation can come together during the remaining project period.

Strengthening the European dimension of regional learning

As QUEEN enters its next semester, the partnership is moving from identifying and exploring experiences towards deepening the transfer of knowledge and translating learning into policy development.

The Good Practice exchanges, stakeholder engagement, Capacity Building activities and policy improvement work are interconnected elements of this process. Together, they provide regions with opportunities to learn from one another, test new ideas, strengthen their networks and consider how approaches developed elsewhere could respond to their own challenges.