A ground-breaking jobs hub aimed at helping people find work and employers to fill vacancies has opened in Plymouth city centre.
Skills Launchpad Plymouth is a centre for skills, training, education, careers and jobs, and has been opened inside the large Barclays bank building in Armada Way.
Led by Plymouth City Council (PCC), in alignment with Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), which is funding the project, and working in a city wide partnership alongside careers and training organisations such as CSW, National Careers Service and On Course South West, it is aimed at helping the unemployed and young people into work, and those who already have jobs but may be facing redundancy, perhaps on furlough, or changing careers.
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It is also addressing a recruitment problem for businesses, for instance in the care, construction, security and, increasingly, logistics and transport sectors.
Richard Stevens, chair of the Plymouth Growth Board, said: “By joining everything up to support young people and adults, and putting individuals at the heart of delivery is leading innovation and transforming how we do skills in Plymouth.
“This also offers a fantastic new service for employers to actively engage in this space, to run targeted job shops, host recruitment and career events which will really help us fill our urgent skills gaps and skills shortages.”
Cllr Dave Downie, PCC cabinet member for education, skills, and children and young people, said: “We recognise that the ongoing economic impact of the global pandemic has created much uncertainty surrounding exam grades, job security, and employment prospects, as well as impacting on our mental health and well-being.
“We also identify a significant volume of jobs available in and around the city, with many local employers and sectors struggling to recruit the right skills they need.
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“That’s why the skills agenda is so crucial – and through Skills Launchpad Plymouth we are helping people, both claimants and non-claimants, to gain the skills they will need through training, up-skilling, access to impartial careers advice and to become work ready, in order to help them transition into meaningful employment, ensuring no one gets left behind.”
The Skills Launchpad offers an Adult Hub for those aged 25 and older, on Mondays and Tuesdays each week, and a Youth Hub, for 16- to 24-year-olds, including those with additional needs, on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
The bank is also providing a space for Building Plymouth, the organisation working to fill the skills gap in the construction industry, to have its Job Shop drop-in every Wednesday from noon to 2pm. There is also a similarly styled drop-in Job Shop for the health and social care sector every Thursday also from noon to 2pm.
The idea of the Skills Launchpad is to focus on individuals, to find out what each person needs in terms of training and support so they can find a job.
It offers advice on skills needed to fill jobs now and in the future and can refer people to organisations that can train, build confidence, offer mental health and well-being support, and advice on housing, debt and benefits.
It can match people with jobs, apprenticeships, training, schemes such as Kickstart for young people on Universal Credit, and find work experience and even help to start a company.
At its base at the Barclays bank, the Skills Launchpad has access to meeting and training rooms. It is also organising events around the city, such as an End of Furlough advice event at the Place de Brest, in the city centre, on September 25, from 10am to 2pm.
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Since launching as a virtual servicer in 2020, Skills Launchpad has attracted 15,000 users, aged from 16 to 65, with more than 230 young people signing up for one-to-one help, and 150 youngsters now having action plans. Meanwhile, more than 100 adults are receiving one-to-one help, with 80 having action plans to find them work.
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Allison Cooper, integrated delivery operations manager at the DWP, said: “DWP are delighted to be working in conjunction with Plymouth City Council on this exciting Skills Launchpad Plymouth opportunity. By working together, we are supporting the community with their transition into tailored educational and vocational opportunities - helping individuals to achieve their full potential.
“Being located right in the heart of the city centre means that the Launchpad services will be fully accessible to all, and the DWP would like to express their gratitude to Barclays for making this a reality. Having this fantastic space made available to us means that the city’s resources can come together in a truly focused way - with the aspirations of our citizens at the heart of all that we will do.”
David Podd, Barclays Plymouth city leader, said: “The programme developed within Skills Launchpad Plymouth closely aligns with Barclays Life Skills which aims to develop individual’s employability skills to succeed in the workplace and move forward with their careers. As such, we are delighted to be hosting Plymouth City Council in this exciting initiative, as we continue our focus on helping young people in the city with their finances and money matters.”