Belfast South Employment Programme
SIF provided funding of over £2.1m for the provision of a wage based employment and training programme to assist long term unemployed in South Belfast developing pathways to employment through training and paid work placements at national minimum wage.
Project Name: | Employment Programme (GVRT) |
|---|---|
Zone: | Belfast South |
Category: | Revenue |
Social Investment Fund Outcome: | Pathways to Employment |
Status: | Delivery Complete |
Funding awarded: | £2,180,552 |
About the Project
This was a strategic training and employment project aimed at improving employability and creating meaningful pathways to the labour market through a range of support mechanisms. The project targeted individuals aged 16+ years old, who had been either unemployed or under-employed and who experienced complex and multi-faceted barriers to the labour market with a view to improving their employability and employment opportunities.
This project represented the first occasion in which a co-ordinated approach had been taken to the delivery of employment and employability initiatives across the South Belfast area through a Central Hub. This ensured that eligible participants were signposted to the service that was most suitable to their identified needs. It was delivered on a zone-wide basis through a series of community-based Satellite Training Centres, in the areas of most disadvantage/highest need in the SIF Belfast South zone.
The programme concentrated on key industrial employment pathways including:
- Caring (taking in Childcare and Social Care);
- Sports, Leisure & Youth;
- Retail, Catering, Hospitality & Tourism;
- Construction, Warehousing and Working in the Community; and
- Business Services (taking in Administration, Call Centres and IT Support).
Progress to date
This project has completed delivery. Provision of work placements, training courses, accredited qualifications, essential skills and aptitudes has enabled 60% of participants secure a job at the end of their placement and will enable participants to better compete for jobs in the future. The benefits have also have a positive effect on their families, businesses and the wider community due to the valuable skills and experiences gained. Improved working relationships as well as increased capacity of the organisations involved has also been a positive outcome of the project and will support sustained cooperation in the future.
Impacts
Monitoring and evaluation of all Social Investment Fund projects is carried out using “Outcomes Based Accountability” (OBA). The infographic below highlights some of the key impacts of the Employment Project to date.
