Onwards &UPWARDS
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Onwards &UPWARDS The ‘Up for Work’ Story This project is part financed by the European Social Fund and the Department for Employment and Learning Getting down to Business: ‘Up for work’… ‘Up for Work’ … What it is and what it does ‘Up for Work’ supports and The ‘Up for Work’ Template supporting and assisting assists people who are out of work ... but who want to be people who are out of work … in work. Up for work but who want to be in work. Focused largely (but not exclusively) on the Cookstown and Magherafelt Business Skills & Tailored Subsidised Districts, it targets people who have Qualifications Start Ups Training Job Search Employment been through other programmes and Shoulder to the Wheel … initiatives but who have not yet found The Workspace Way long-term employment. ‘Up for Work’ l Opportunities to undertake qualifications … almost always now the started in September 2011 and will non-negotiable key to a job “ The Workspace Group is immensely proud of having accessed run until March 2015. l Temporary subsidised employment … the little extra that will persuade an E.S.F. and DEL monies for the ‘Up for Work’ programme. Our employer to take someone on organisation and our programme partners have likewise made Because people don’t all have the l Business start-up assistance … vital in a community where the self- a substantial financial contribution to this initiative. same, single type of work needs or employment ethos/culture is so strong aspirations and, equally, because l Comprehensive one-to-one support including skills analysis, CV there’s no one, single type of work on building, application form completion and interview preparation … We don’t just talk about ‘self-help’… we ‘do it’, and we can Brian Murray offer, ‘Up for Work’ delivers a huge more vital steps where a helping hand can make all the difference to people do things like this because our group works hard at being Chief Executive, Workspace Group choice and variety of supports. l A variety of approaches to IT/ICT … skills and knowledge here are now a commercially successful. When you mix all these elements Among them are: fundamental building block for modern living together you get a very powerful package.” Getting to Know Us: some of what’s on Offer Network Personnel’s delivery of ‘Up for Work’ is practical, focused on real needs and Workspace and Network Personnel … opportunities and laced with opportunities to access industry-leading training and Who We Are, What We Do and Why We Do It! qualifications. Among them are: CSR Card VRQ Horticulture Emergency First Aid at Work Network Personnel is part of to provide property/workspace and skills and employment needs of local Level 2 in Fitness Instruction GOALS Motivational Training Essential Skill: Literacy the Workspace Group which support services for business and, people and local businesses. through seven subsidiary companies Child Protection Training Essential Skill: Numeracy in turn is one of Ireland’s is also involved in recruitment; training Since then it has won and successfully Manual Lifting and Handling Essential Skill: ICT leading social enterprises. and employment; energy efficiency delivered several major training Food Safety Award, Level 2 SIA Licence: CCTV Monitoring and insulation; heat recovery; childcare programmes including ACE and Youth Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults British Horse Society: Horse Care and Management Workspace emerged in the early and recreation/leisure. Opportunities in the 1980s, New Deal European Computer Driving Licence British Theatre Dance Association: Modern Jazz 1980s as a result of local people and Worktrack in the 1990s and Go SAGE Book-keeping V.R.Q. Environmental Conservation coming together to ‘shout stop’ Working across Ireland and the UK For It, Steps to Work, LEMIS and Up Text Processing Design, Build and Maintenance of outdoor recreation trails to what appeared to be almost and with an international portfolio, for Work in the 2000s. Level 3 Stone Masonry (Part qualification) permanent local decline, disadvantage, all profits generated are reinvested unemployment, underemployment by Workspace for local community With a staff team of 32, Participation in ‘Up for work’ is free of charge as its costs are met by the European Social Fund and Department for and limited local opportunities. It was, benefit. Employment and Learning and a range of other local organisations including Network Personnel; Sperrins Gateway and still is, about local people coming it is now a major employer Landscape Partnership through the Heritage Lottery Fund; Workspace; Magherafelt District Council through Score together to address local problems. Network Personnel itself was put in in its own right. Environmental; MindWise; Lissan House Trust via a Biffa Award and Cookstown Enterprise Centre. The Group has since grown hugely place in the late 1980s to address the 2 Onwards & Upwards The ‘Up for Work’ Story 3 Programme match-funded by Lissan House Trust Network Personnel and Workspace are in, Programme strands … of and for their local communities. This understanding of local nuances led to the creation of the ‘two-birds with- one-stone’ Environmental Programme. The Programme’s motivation is simple – Programme Partners to marry two things, (a) the need to foster and re-energise traditional local heritage skills with (b) the pool of labour created by the construction collapse. ‘Up for Work’ celebrates variety. Network Personnel has always recognised the range of wants, needs and The reality that those former construction workers all hankered after outside work simply added to the Programme’s vigour. Working in partnership, the Sperrins aspirations within the local labour market. It was therefore Gateway Landscape Partnership, Lissan House Trust and Network Personnel very obvious that those same wants, needs and aspirations created a work based programme which provided participants with training and work experience opportunities whilst at the same time delivering the objectives of would be reflected in the roll-out of ‘Up for Work’. local heritage regeneration projects, such as at Lissan House. The Temporary work Placement gives them the opportunity to obtain Skills training delivered in partnership has included: - design and build of outdoor Programme targets people who further relevant qualifications. The work recreation trails; horticulture; stone masonry and competency in machine/plant use. have finished the ‘Steps to Work’ experience and qualifications obtained programme but who haven’t secured leaves participants significantly better long term employment. placed in the jobmarket. In Their own words … what it Means to Others “The Work of the ‘Up for Work’ team and the high quality of the training It places those people with local Programme match-funded by they are receiving is of immense value not only to the participants but also companies for 26 weeks, pays their Network Personnel to Lissan House. wages for 16 hours per week and This will open up the estate through the creation of inspiring river walks and through access to our 100 year-old turbine house and traditional ice house. One key result will be year-round increases in our visitor numbers. How People Have Turned ‘Up The experience the teams are getting has already helped several members find long term employment.” Tony McMinn for work’ to Their Advantage Chairman Lissan House Trust A long daily commute and a change in his family The Mindwise element of circumstances led to Darren Clements wanting to the programme is tailored Hopefully everyone that change his career path. to the specific needs of takes part in the future people experiencing or will benefit as much as Realising that he would have to retrain and get relevant work recovering from mental I have. I believe it is an experience if he were to branch out into a new area he had excellent programme and health issues. been thinking about, Darren joined Network Personnel’s helped to change my life Steps to Work Programme and secured an eight-week work Dean Shannon placement with SMART Property Marketing as an Energy MindWise, a leading mental health Assessor. charity, were already based in Magherafelt where they had been This ‘taster’ confirmed what he had thought about his doing furniture restoration. Getting career change so Darren then stepped into the Up for Work involved in ‘Up for Work’ gave Programme. This enabled him to stay with Smart Property them the opening to diversify into Marketing for a further 26 weeks on a paid employment horticulture and to offer directed contract and supported him in obtaining the Energy training in confidence-building and Assessor Qualification. job search skills. Programme match-funded Darren Clements: SMART Property Marketing by MindWise Dean Shannon, MindWise participant with Barry McCabe, MindWise horticulture tutor 4 Onwards & Upwards The ‘Up for Work’ Story 5 The recent construction industry collapse and the harsh daily realities of sporadic building-site work led 24 year- old Joseph duffin to re-appraise his career options. A keen sportsman, Joseph self-financed his way to an accredited Gym and Fitness qualification but then found himself with no experience in his new work area. a culture of self-employment move off benefits and on into fully- fledged self-employment. A simple word-of-mouth recommendation and entrepreneurialism brought him to Network Personnel where runs right through the The Programme delivers a number he rapidly secured a placement as a gym wider Mid-Ulster area. It of practical supports to people, from instructor in Cookstown Leisure Centre. ‘Up was therefore clear that market research through business for Work’ helped Joseph undertake further ‘Up for work’ required a planning and financial management qualifications and as a Council Leisure Centre employee he is now established and very robust but tailored self- and on into operational areas such Joseph Duffin:Fitness Instructor as on-line marketing (eg how to trade fulfilled in his new career.