This week, City College Plymouth, Plymouth City Council in partnership with the YMCA Plymouth, and Real Ideas Organisation officially launched together their three local skills projects funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, showcasing the new support available designed to help local people access the right training, skills and wrap-around support to get into work.
Hosting the launch event at Market Hall, Councillor Sally Cresswell, Cabinet Member for Education, Skills and Apprenticeships said: “When it comes to encouraging people to get skilled up, we mean business as a Council. We have set out our intention to supercharge the skill sets of our residents – whatever their age or their situation – to help them gain confidence and skills so that they can make the most of the thousands of job opportunities that are already here and on the horizon. These three funded projects further evidences how we are making sure our residents can play a part in Plymouth’s economic success story and help their families thrive and prosper. We want this investment to leave a lasting legacy for our communities and I encourage local people seeking work to sign up for the new support on offer.”
Representatives from City College Plymouth, Plymouth City Council in partnership with the YMCA Plymouth, and Real Ideas Organisation at the joint project launch event on 22 July 2024.
Marking the beginning of a new venture as part of a wider strategy to meet the needs of economically inactive individuals in the community, the Plymouth Skills Builder project is City College Plymouth’s latest effort to provide essential skills and opportunities to adults, aligning with the government's agenda to bring people ‘Back to Work’. With 9.4 million individuals now being reported as economically inactive, and 2.8 million of those out of work due to long-term sickness, the project aims to address these challenges head-on.
Pauline Hands, Executive of Health, Leisure & Public Services at City College Plymouth commented on the project: “The Plymouth Skills Builder project marks a pivotal step in our approach to education and training, focusing on inclusivity and accessibility. By working closely with our partners Plymouth Argyle Community Trust, Plymouth Active, and Livewell Southwest, we are addressing critical skills gaps and laying the foundation for a healthier, more skilled workforce.”
The Skills team at Plymouth City Council in partnership with YMCA Plymouth are delivering the Skilling Up Plymouth project which focuses on supporting those furthest from the labour market, including socially excluded people, and people looking for new careers. Emma Hewitt, Skills Lead at Plymouth City Council said: “We are excited to be connecting more individuals with employers, education and training providers to improve employability and progression into employment particularly in our key sectors including the green economy. Our project will also be focused on retaining and attracting new talent by piloting a new skills service specifically for higher education students and graduates, as well as the Armed Forces community.”
Tom Lavis, CEO of YMCA Plymouth said: “Our project is about supporting local people of all ages to gain confidence and skills so that they can make the most of the thousands of job opportunities that are available here in Plymouth. As a charity that supports young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, and with Discovery College’s post-16 provision being a big part of our offer to the local community, we are excited to be working with the Skills team at Plymouth City Council to upscale our existing mentoring programme so that it can benefit more young people aged 16 to 24-years-old in the city and build stronger links with the Youth Hub.”
“Likewise, through the capital investment committed through this fund, we are delighted to be improving the facilities at our Honicknowle site which will make a real difference to our learners and service users now, as well as leaving a lasting legacy to benefit the wider community for many years after the completion of this project.”
The Devonport Futures project is being delivered by the Real Ideas Organisation CIC, Lindsey Hall, CEO explained: “Devonport Futures is an innovative collaboration between a diverse set of partners; Real Ideas, a creative social enterprise, specialising in digital, immersive tech based in Devonport; Plymouth Community Homes, a major social housing provider in Devonport and across Plymouth; the National Trust, heritage and environmental specialists; and the Devon and Plymouth Chamber of Commerce, supporting businesses to thrive. Together, we have developed a tailor-made programme to reach individuals, bridge gaps, develop skills and enable people to connect with new, higher value jobs.
The programme is timely – 2024 is the 200th anniversary of the founding of Devonport – and through links with the Devonport 200 programme, Devonport Futures offers practical work experience, volunteering and commissioning opportunities, giving people a chance to put new skills into practice and gain much needed work-related experience.
Devonport Futures supports people who are economically inactive, unemployed or employed, with a focus on immersive/technical and blue/green (marine and environmental), key growth areas in Devonport and across Plymouth. Our city is rich in opportunity, and we are delighted to be working closely with all the partners in the three, UK Shared Prosperity Fund skill’s projects. All three are innovative and together, we are implementing new approaches to overcome longstanding challenges.”
For anyone looking to find out more, or access support through Plymouth’s UK Shared Prosperity skills projects contact:
Plymouth Skills Builder - Jodie White at skillsbuilder@cityplym.ac.uk
Skilling up Plymouth - Jo Lacy at skillslaunchpad@plymouth.gov.uk
Devonport Futures - Madeline Hall at immersive@realideas.org
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