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Action
team to help unemployed in New Brighton get back to work
Specially
trained local advisers from the Government's highly successful 'Action
for Jobs' initiative have established a new outreach post at the
recently refurbished Community Centre in New Brighton. Initially
set up as a one year 'pilot' scheme, Wirral's Action for Jobs Team
have already helped nearly 1000 unemployed residents in seven of
the Borough's wards overcome a range of financial and other difficulties
and get back to work.
The
Action Team work with individuals on a one to one basis in the community
to help them find suitable employment. Where appropriate, they will
provide help with training, funding for child care, travel and other
necessary expenses, such as the purchase of tools, that make the
difference between being willing to work and being able to work.
Project
Manager Viv Courtney said: "Many of the people we have helped
were not actively seeking work for a range of reasons. Some had
been on incapacity benefit for long periods and simply did not know
who to turn to for help, while others, particularly lone parents,
faced with problems such as finding suitable child care, felt they
were trapped in a hopeless cycle they could not break out of.
"By
understanding their specific needs, and working with them in their
own communities, we are able to help them resolve the problems that
were stopping them from getting back to work. It's a very different
approach to the more formal procedures that operate in job centres,
which some people find difficult to deal with."
A
typical example of this new approach is Elaine who, having lost
her job due to ill health, found it difficult to pick up the pieces
and get back to work. She had been to her local job centre but her
personal circumstances made it difficult to get to interviews. The
Action Team set about finding her a job closer to where she lived.
Having found one, they also provided her with a Work Grant to tide
her over until she collected her first monthly wage packet.
George,
aged 53, is another example. George had been on sickness benefit
for 10 years and believed no one would employ him again. The Action
Team worked with him for several weeks, encouraging him to find
the confidence to train as a bus driver, which they paid for. George
is now in full time employment and his life is very different.
"We
know there are lots of people in the community who long to work
but can't find way back into employment," said Viv. "We
can help them, regardless of any problems they may have had in the
past. All they have to do is contact us by ringing the freephone
number 0800 032 0031. We will make an appointment to see them and
take it from there. The one thing we can promise them from the outset
is that there is no pressure on them - we will work with them for
as long as it takes to help them find a suitable job."
For
more information, contact Action For Jobs on freephone 0800 032
0031, or pop in to the New Brighton Community Centre, 1A Hope Street,
New Brighton, and ask for a leaflet.
