Forth Valley College campuses in Alloa and Falkirk will be hosting a Youth Hub based on partnership working to support young people aged between18-24.
Work Coaches, employed by the Department of Work and Pensions will be based, full-time in the campuses and is currently up and running delivering an online service, but it is hoped that they will deliver their support to young people who will be invited for meetings when pandemic restrictions allow.
Young people who use the service will also be able to take advantage of the range of advice and guidance available from Forth Valley College’s Learner Advisors, Developing the Young Workforce Forth Valley and Skills Development Scotland.
Despite the current Covid restrictions the Youth Hub partnership – involving staff from FVC, DYW, SDS and the Jobcentre - have begun to collaborate to support young people to find a positive destination that is best for them.
Following a return to campus, it is hoped that the new surroundings and set-up will help to engage the targeted age-group, who often struggle to engage with the services on offer from Jobcentres. A collaborative approach is expected to have benefits for all stakeholders, who will gain knowledge of support, guidance and services available and build meaningful professional relationships with colleagues in other partner organisations.
The Youth Hub is part of the UK Government’s £30bn Plan for Jobs. Jobseekers can now get extra help to find work, reskill for alternative careers and access training opportunities.
Mims Davies MP, Minister for Employment, said: “By rolling out Youth Hubs across local communities like these at the campuses in Alloa and Falkirk, young people will be able to access vital, suitable support from our Work Coaches in a range of settings helping to match them with local opportunities, whether it’s more training or to help them move into employment.
“This is a challenging time and we are serious about investing in young people as we get Britain back working again and moving further into recovery. That’s why, as part of our Youth Offer, we are also injecting £2 billion into the DWP Kickstart scheme, creating new, subsidised, high-quality roles for under 25s as we continue our work to protect, support and create jobs.”
Anna Vogt, Head of Equalities, Inclusion and Learning Services said: “We are delighted to be working closely with our partners in the Department of Work and Pensions, and feel this new initiative will prove to be an excellent way to engage and energise young people looking to find new work, training and educational opportunities in the Forth Valley area. We know that young people have been negatively impacted by the COVID pandemic and the Youth Hub will hopefully be able to mitigate some of that impact on young people in the Forth Valley area.
“As well as the brilliant advice on offer from the Work Coaches, sitting right next to them will be our Learning Advisers, and colleagues from Skills Development Scotland and Developing the Young Workforce who can offer the best advice Job Centre customers would need to think about applying for a course at the college and another positive destination option.”