A £10.8mllion (€13M) project, funded in part by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), has supported over 1,000 people in England and France into employment or further education and 650 new businesses.
The project is co-funded by the Interreg France (Channel) England programme with a European Regional Development Fund contribution of £7.5 million
The project, called Increase Valorisation Sociale (Increase VS), has been praised by Caroline Dinenage MP, Minister of State for Digital and Culture at a recent conference.
Participants and partners from both England and France came together at a virtual conference on Friday 15 October, to discuss how the pandemic has resulted in an increase in people wanting to start their own business and celebrate the project’s success.
Caroline Dinenage MP, opened the conference, sharing her own business experience and praising the work of the project. She said:
“In the UK, self-employment has nearly doubled since 1975, and since 2014 self-employment jobs have contributed around one third to employment growth. So, the impacts of being self-employed really are far reaching.
“This shows that projects such as Increase VS, by providing free self-employment training, can inspire the confidence to take that next exciting step and improve the chances of success and bring wider benefits to the community. Becoming an ambassador for this project puts that power in your hands. You have the chance to change lives.”
The project is co-funded by the Interreg France (Channel) England programme with a European Regional Development Fund contribution of £8.3 million. It is led by Optivo, one of the UK’s largest housing providers. Abri, one of the south of England’s largest housing providers, has provided it’s Create self-employment course training and follow-on support to the project. To date, Abri has helped over 500 people with business start-up and employment courses.
Key findings from the conference include:
- Virtual mentor support to businesses was key during the pandemic.
- Virtual delivery allowed the project to continue to support people in groups, reducing social isolation and supporting mental health too.
- Ongoing support post training is vitally important because setting up a business takes time.
“Abri’s employment service gives people the confidence and skills to find a job, start up their own business or take the next step on the career ladder. As a result of the pandemic all of our services were changed to online. This resulted in a 20% higher retention rate on our digital courses and greater value for money. But access to technology isn’t fair for all. So, as part of our commitment to creating thriving communities and empowering lives with our £15m five-year community investment, we will work with our communities to make sure they can access the learning and support they need,” says Chris Adams, Employment and Training Manager at Abri.
Talking about her experience of self-employment, Caroline Dinenage MP added:
“I started my first business at the age of 19 and I was in business for nearly 20 years before I got elected. Now, looking back, it didn’t feel daunting or scary for me because I was so young and my mum had her own business, I had nothing to lose. It felt like a very natural thing to do. However, I know the older you get, the more personal responsibilities you have in your life, the more you have to invest in making the dream a reality, the more daunting that step can be. That’s why some people decide not to take the leap into self-business but it’s also why finding the right support, advice, and people who can mentor and encourage you through the tough times are so important. And the good news is that help is out there these days.
“My 20 years as an entrepreneur certainly has influenced my time as an MP, it’s impacted the things I’ve campaigned on. But also, how I’ve approached all my six different ministerial roles, I’ve always looked at things from that small business perspective, that thinking outside of the box, creativity that’s inherent in self-enterprise, that attention to detail and the need to question, to push back, to stive, to be better. Not only does self-employment benefit you, but it benefits our whole community too.”
The Increase VS programme began in October 2017, offering training to those further away from the job market giving them the tools to launch their own businesses. It aims to tackle unemployment by supporting a sustainable pipeline of small businesses in 38 neighbourhoods that will benefit local economies and households. Over a six-year period, 5,300 unemployed people will pass through the training. And it will create up to 1,200 new businesses and help a further 2,000 into work.