Pre-Covid employment in our country was at an all-time high. This was good because it meant that many people were able to live in a way that was more self-sufficient and less economically-fraught. But our individual and collective commitments to staying home, while essential and necessary, have meant that unemployment has sky-rocketed. Businesses have been brutally affected and redundancies have soared. It means that where we were at pre-pandemic is very far from where we are now
It’s been estimated that unemployment is set to reach 2.6million by the middle of 2021. This is startling when we look back to 2019 when unemployment was only at 3.85%. This doesn’t mean that we weren’t focused on closing the employment gap while it was small, because supporting people into employment is a focus for us during any climate, regardless of the statistics. But it shows us that our role of getting more people into work is at its most important right now.
Acknowledging social mobility
We want everyone in the communities we work with to be able to have choice. To have the tools and resources to change things for themselves if they want to. But a lack of social mobility, coupled with economic exclusion, means it’s not always possible. This feeds into equal opportunity and the barriers that still exist that stop it becoming a reality.
We’re a housing provider, which means we have a part to play in helping people reach their full potential. It also means we can work collaboratively to create opportunities that are truly open to everyone.
Getting it right is about more than enabling people to be more financially stable. When employment support and training work is successful, we see people who:
- Have confidence in themselves and their ability
- Feel more secure and self-sufficient
- Are less vulnerable to change and financial risk
- Have a positive outlook
- Have improved health, wellbeing and happiness
In many ways housing providers exist to try and facilitate social mobility for those who aren’t already able to access opportunities themselves. Because we have resources at our disposal and networks with organisations at local levels, we can lend a helping hand to help change individual and collective situations by connecting people to employers, increasing access to services and in turn creating a brighter outlook for those affected.
This isn’t about taking control or steering people in any particular direction, rather using our research and insight to guide us towards the communities who are struggling. And then letting them know how we can help, particularly when it comes to training and employment.
But it’s not something we can do alone. So we work with councils, charities, service providers and customers to find sustainable ways for people to thrive in their community. We deliver bespoke training and mentoring to help people fulfil their potential and find secure work.
The future can be bright
Successful employment support and training is about more than helping someone write a CV or find a specific job. These are still incredibly valuable but, on their own, are only a quick fix if successful.
Our goal is to provide people with the skills, knowledge and opportunities that mean they can adapt to changes in their life, be independent and continue to learn and develop without support.
With a customer base of 80,000 people we know that within that lies a lot of talented individuals with big ideas. So we don’t just offer training and support for traditional employment, but we also offer Create, with is a self-employment course. This helps people turn their business ideas into a reality, from which we’ve seen great success. We offer variety: the key is providing someone with an opportunity that resonates with and inspires them.
Often, great things come from those who have choice. So that’s why we exist: to help empower communities and provide more choices.
