Employment ILM

About the Project

This project was a two-stranded programme incorporating job placements, delivery of training in the area of fuel poverty and efficiency, and delivery of fuel efficiency improvements to houses in the North Belfast area.  It aimed to increase the number of long term unemployed and economically inactive into employment through increasing skills levels, attaining accredited qualifications and gaining work experience.  It targeted those currently not availing of any existing employment schemes and the approach to delivery was:

1. paid work placement experience for all of the participant cohort split between the home energy and general environmental improvements themes to enable them to put into practice their classroom training/learning with the aim of increasing their future chances of gaining permanent employment; and 
2. participants availed of structured training to gain certified industry recognised qualifications in energy efficiency, construction, environmental improvements etc. to increase their future employability.

The project also offered the opportunity to improve the physical environment.  Participants of this project enhanced private gardens in the North Belfast area and developed two community gardens, with social areas providing an intergenerational space and greenery in an otherwise heavily populated site, for both Marrowbone Community Association and Mount Vernon Community Group.

Progress to date

This project has been completed delivery. A number of key outcomes were achieved which included: provision of increased skills within the North Belfast labour market boosting chances of employment on a longer term basis and allowing 81% of participants to become employed 6 months after project completion; acquisition of valuable work experience whereby participants experienced a work routine and managed paid employment which will positively prepare them for future employment; provision of improvements to the physical environment with work experience involving environmental enhancement of communities in North Belfast and contribution to the reduction in prevalence of issues associated with fuel poverty. The collaborative approach to project delivery has also resulted in positive relationship building among key employability stakeholders in North Belfast which can be maintained and developed further as a vehicle to oversee employability project development in the longer term.

Impacts

Monitoring and evaluation of all Social Investment Fund projects is carried out using “Outcomes Based Accountability” (OBA). The infographic below details some of the key impacts of the Employment ILM project.

Final Revenue Infographic