Reach out is a project that we are delivering in partnership with the DWP and VT Careers Management in Fareham, Hampshire, starting in June 2008 and lasting until 2010 as part of the DWP's co-financing of part of ESF Priority 1. This focuses on economically inactive people in the South East who are not fully supported by existing employment programmes.

The project will provide, through flexible and personalised packages of support, enhance engagement and work readiness activity, as well as help to ensure sustained employment outcomes for disadvantaged people facing multiple barriers to work.

Activities

Within the project, Edutainment will provide, support or partner in activities that are designed to help unemployed and economically inactive people with disabilities or health conditions to enter and remain in work, and providing support to retain in employment people who become disabled or develop health conditions. This includes;

• helping lone parents, economically inactive recipients with children and other disadvantaged parents enter and make progress in the workplace, including access to childcare;
• tailored and personalised packages of support by providing pathways to employment such as mentoring and advocacy support, pre-vocational, access and practical soft skills training, job-related customised training (including qualifications for employability), labour market orientation and work experience, work trials and post employment support;
  
• active and preventative measures which ensure early identification of the needs of disadvantaged people, including individual action plans and personalised support, work search activities, information, advice and guidance including financial management advice, and access to childcare and care for dependent people where caring responsibilities are a barrier to labour market participation;
  
• activities to extend working lives by re-engaging inactive older workers, including those who become disabled or develop health conditions;
  improving access of women to employment and increasing sustainable participation and progress of women in employment and to help men and women access occupations or sectors where they are underrepresented;
  
• activities to support Local Employment Partnerships (LEPs), including brokering work trials and delivering pre-employment training programmes;
  helping disadvantaged people who persistently return to Jobseekers' Allowance, and addressing barriers to their retention in sustainable employment;
  increasing the participation by people from ethnic minorities in employment including, where appropriate, training to meet basic English language skills needs;
  
• developing the skills and employability of offenders and ex-offenders to help them enter the labour market;
  activities to tackle specific barriers to work faced by unemployed inactive people in rural areas including community-based activities and outreach.

The Service

To accomplish these activities the Centre has generated and built upon our own experience ideas/innovation and by working together with partners with proven track records have design a means to implement of the initiative in the context of the objectives set out above, it is envisaged that the service will encompass one-to-one mentoring centred on:-

• Identifying and addressing particular barriers to work, including childcare;
  
• Understanding and influencing motivation and attitudes;
  
• Identifying transferable skills;
  
• Considering and exploring employment options;
  
• Finding and keeping work;
  
• Referral to DWP provision, community learning, Skills for Life including literacy and numeracy, vocational and workplace skills training and educational establishments;
  
• Discussing and promoting work experience (tasters/trials) and training options;
  
• Discussing opportunities for self-employment and referral to enterprise start-up programmes;
  
• Identifying what practical support may be available to help these workless customers secure and retain a job;
  
• Where appropriate, accompanying the customer when accessing other services;
  
• Contributing to their personal development including reducing any sense of isolation and stress, assisting them in becoming more independent;
  
• Structured volunteering linked to progression and sustained employment;
  
• Ongoing 'aftercare' to customers who secure work to assist them to remain in employment and plan for progression.

As such, specifically we will be delivering as required, additional support in the form of individual or group sessions on:

• Motivation and confidence building;
  
• Jobsearch skills, including electronic channels;
  
• Money and debt management;
  
• Work skills specific to, and in partnership with, local employers

Target groups/Eligibility

The target beneficiary group for this project include;

• The unemployed
  
• The economically inactive
  
• Adults with disabilities or health issues
  
• Lone parents
  
• Adults who are 50 or over
  
• Adults from ethnic minorities
  
• Adult female/returnees

Geographical Coverage

The Edutainment Centre will be responsible for delivery across the Island at these locations; Ryde (all); St Johns East & West; Newport Pan; Newport North; Osborne,

Participation

if you are interested in particpating in this project or you would like further information, you can contact the Projects Manager (Adrian Smith) or the keyworker (Amanda Taylor) directly through the Edutainment Centre switchboard on 01983 810333, or email directly on Edutainment Centre