Work Local: Evidence of success

 Babergh and Mid Suffolk work with Suffolk County Council to support the efforts happening in their region to meet the skills agenda, funding initiatives such as The Mix, which helps young people to develop life skills, and Careeriosity inspiring young people about new career opportunities in an area traditionally characterised by low skilled and low wage jobs. 

DurhamWorks partnership is aimed to support 10,000 16-24 young people not in education employment or training (NEET) from 2016-2021 through an integrated employability and wider support offer. 2018 interim analysis showed that for every £1 of investment, £2.69 of social and economic value has been generated (based on an investment of £12.3 million). 

Leeds, Wakefield and Bradford councils used devolved underspend from the national Youth Contract to bridge existing services and providers together, rather than create new provision. This helped three in five young people (57 per cent) into education, training or employment, while nationally contracted provision supported 27 per cent. Funding was time limited, so the scheme ended. Since then, West Yorkshire Combined Authority’s Employment Hub supports 6,000 young people. The Hub is locally delivered and branded, and offers integrated support bespoke to individual council areas. 

Used its £12 million allocation to increase participation by nearly 10 per cent (2020/21), targeting low-skilled residents in deprived areas (Fenland and Peterborough), introduced a £1,200 bursary for Care Leavers aged 19 to 22, fully funded English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), the first level 2 and 3, as well as the second level 3 for priority sectors and unemployed people.

Using devolved AEB to address progression route gaps towards Level 3. It is supporting WEA with a Test and Learn pilot to help residents gain a bespoke Level 2 Maternity Nurse qualification with the aim of progressing towards the industry required standard of Level 3. Some MCAs found that sections of their foundation economy would not benefit from the national list of economically viable approved free Level 3 qualifications, so used their devolved AEB to widen access to supplementary qualifications, supporting more people to upskill.  

Stewarded a 33 per cent increase in provision aligned to regional priority sectors (such as construction, manufacturing, digital and business and professional services), introduced new ways to support people in low-paid, low-skilled work. For instance, providing ‘Access to HE’ for ambulance contact centre staff to progress to paramedics, Level 4 care management for BAME workers, and construction management for women.   

During the pandemic, local government was quick to spot soaring local demand for HGV drivers and the logistics sector. Councils with no devolution had to wait for DfE procured HGV bootcamps, while MCAs used devolved functions to quickly establish new HGV programmes. Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority procured The System Group and Peterborough College, working with the Road Haulage Association to provide HGV driver training, mobilised JCP and the local media to promote the offer and delivered outside of the academic year cycle to meet need and respond to redundancy. A second cohort had already started courses before national contracts went live. Devolution was pivotal to procuring quickly and innovatively and work together as a ‘system’ in equal partnership.  

By 2030 Harlow may need between 6,000 and 14,000 battery electric vehicles (EVs). The Essex County Council-led pilot is supporting the transition from fuel-based to EVs including a new Electric Vehicle Centre at Harlow College, opening in September 2022. The project will fund 50 free places over a 24-month period for Automotive Technicians to develop the skills and knowledge to maintain and repair EVs, futureproofing local employers. Community learning workshops will raise local awareness about the benefits of EVs and provide EV owners opportunities to understand more about their vehicle including safety awareness. With more funding, they would extend this to include training courses to upskill electricians to install or maintain council-owned charging points.

They are developing the Teesworks site, the UK’s largest industrial zone, into a hub for future job creation centred around advanced manufacturing, innovation and clean growth that would generate 20,000 jobs. As it is an area with low skills and high unemployment, the CA is working hard to ensure employers recruit local people with the right skills. In 2020, it launched ‘Teesworks Skills Academy’, a consortium of colleges and training providers. Within six months, more than 1,000 local people registered their CVs and more than 200 took up training. It is accessed via the local employment hub, run by Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council.

Redcar resident Jordan Taylor, 30, was one of the first to progress through the Teesworks Skills Academy. He registered in April 2021 and completed a ‘Routeway to scaffolding’ course with provider Neta Training Group. He achieved six qualifications and now works for a Middlesbrough scaffolding firm. Redcar & Cleveland Council’s training and employment hub helped him access a bike and a train pass so he could get to work. Jordan said: 

I’ve worked all my life, so when I found myself unemployed, I wanted to get straight back into a job. It only took a few weeks from me signing up to the Skills Academy to being placed on a training course so I could gain some new qualifications and get another job. The whole process was spot-on – it was easy, friendly and fast.” 

Rapidly moved from dealing with the Flybe closure to dealing with the impact of the pandemic. Having economic regeneration, employment and skills, and business support in one directorate allowed it to provide business advice, redundancy support, digital signposting, and a new curriculum offer to meet demand in digital, literacy and numeracy skills and employability qualifications. The offer was tailored to support people needing to transition to new jobs or sectors, including the over 50s that worked in lower skilled, lower paid sectors; sole traders, and furloughed or redundant hospitality workers.

Hampshire’s skills strategy and action plan works across two Local Education Partnerships and three unitary areas. This requires them to develop strong partnerships with providers and employers, with good skills programme networks to meet their region’s diverse needs

‘No Wrong Door’ aims to coordinate and integrate the system so no matter which service someone accesses first, they will be connected to the right support to help them on their journey to good work. 

Bristol’s ‘One Front Door’, delivers a job matching service to help employers, individuals and support agencies match vacancies with jobseekers from Bristol’s most deprived communities.  

Provides support, coordination and partnership working across councils in central London. It’s £51 million devolved ‘Work and Health’ programme, ‘Central London Works’, aims to support 21,000 residents with health conditions and disabilities and the long-term unemployed into work. Not only do Cental London Forward and Ingeus, the provider, work closely to assess referral numbers, job starts, and the quality of jobs and support, they work with the boroughs to integrate borough-led and JCP provision including through ‘super centres’ in Hackney, Lambeth and Islington, which also helps to support employers’ recruitment needs.

Aims to create an integrated education, skills and work system to help people progress in life and in work and enable businesses and the city to thrive. Its ‘Working Well’ suite of devolved and test and learn employment and health related programmes, take a whole population approach to health, skills and employment. To date, these programmes have supported more than 60,000 people, helping more than 15,500 into work - a success rate of 26 per cent. Crucially provision also supports inactive groups. GMCA recognised from the start that to turn Greater Manchester into a ‘northern powerhouse’, it had to tackle the very high level of economic inactivity, and particularly health-related economic inactivity. It was also a key element of the health and social care devolution deal.   

‘North East mental health trailblazer’ on behalf of seven councils piloted integrated employment support and talking therapies to unemployed people with anxiety and/or depression, to improve their mental wellbeing and help them find work. Over 1,450 people were supported, with more than 270 moving into work, showing these services could work together, but funding ended, so the work discontinued. Read more about the council’s ambition is to deliver an ‘Inclusive Economy’. 

‘Routes to Work’ pilot with the DWP helped 4,000 people furthest from jobs prepare for, and access work through its local employment hubs and secured work for 800 across the region. Despite its success, it ended in March 2022, making way for ‘Restart’ delivered by a new provider.  

Bristol’s employment, skills and learning service works proactively to ensure it adds value to the skills and employment system, including through its ‘Bristol One City’ partnership. 

Lincolnshire is faced with the challenge of working across a large and dispersed county. By creating strategic alliances, they have developed provision that enables them to meet their skills and employment challenges.