Fourteen young unemployed people from the borough have been given the chance to gain real skills and work experience thanks to a partnership between Reigate & Banstead, Surrey County Council and Job Centre Plus.
The new recruits who started six month work placements at the end of July will be gaining a range of experience helping to keep our parks, open spaces and town centres clean, tidy and attractive. Twelve will be working with our parks team and supporting our litter crews and two will be supporting our commercial waste service and helping out at the Harlequin Theatre.
The Borough Council secured government funding for the placements through the Surrey Future Jobs Fund. The scheme is designed to help offset the impact of the recession by supporting 18 to 24 year olds who are not in education or training and have been unemployed and claiming Job Seekers Allowance for six months or more by helping them into work.
Cllr Roger Newstead, Executive Member for Personnel and Organisational Change, said:
“This is a great example of partnership working. Many of these young people have struggled to find employment for a considerable time. By signing up to this scheme they have shown that they are willing and ready to work and they will gain valuable skills and work experience that will really improve their prospects when looking for a permanent job. Not only that, they will also be helping the Council to deliver important local services to the community at no cost to the council taxpayer.”
The vacancies were advertised through Job Centre Plus and following a successful recruitment day at the Harlequin Theatre, 14 job seekers signed up. The new recruits had the opportunity to do a work trial day before starting and they are currently undergoing their induction training. They each have to work a minimum of 25 hours a week, or more.
Mary Angell, Surrey County Council’s Cabinet Member for Children and Families, said:
“Reigate and Banstead have been quick off the mark in taking up and implementing the Surrey Future Jobs Fund initiative, ensuring their local unemployed young people didn’t miss out on this time-limited opportunity. They have also taken on more recruits than any other Surrey authority so far.”
The Surrey Future Jobs Fund aims to fund the creation of 350 entry level jobs in the county by March 2011. The fund will pay basic wages, some overhead costs and for training and support. Jobs must make a positive contribution to the community and must be additional to the employer’s current staffing structure.
Since the scheme started in March over 80 jobs have been created, varying from Community Support Assistants for the Youth Development service, landscaping and Grounds Maintenance staff in schools, Curatorial Assistants in Museums and Art Galleries to recycling and waste management operatives.
Cllr Julian Ellacott added:
“I’d like to commend our Head of Neighbourhood Services, Nic Martlew, and his team for their enthusiasm in agreeing to take on and support 13 out of the 14 recruits as well as our personnel team for ensuring a successful start to the scheme in Reigate and Banstead, where we have taken on more recruits than any of the other councils in Surrey.”
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My son has struggled to find work locally as he cant afford to live away. He applied for the apprenticeship scheme, but didnt hear a thing, despite phoning several times.He would love to train to be a librarian but just needs a chance to gain experience and train at the same time. The news report looks good, but what about all these others who havent even heard from you.
Loretta – I am sorry to hear that. The Borough Council was not responsible for dealing with the applications so I can’t really comment on that – we are just providing a number of roles for successful applicants. If you would like me to follow up on your comment with whichever organisation your son didn’t hear back from then please click on my name above and email me with more details.