More than £1m in funding has been secured to help almost 300 unemployed young people get into work and improve their skills.
Durham County Council and Groundwork North East have been successful in winning a £1.2m bid awarded by the Youth Futures Foundation.
The funding has enabled the council and Groundwork to establish the DurhamWorks Futures team, as part of DurhamWorks.
DurhamWorks is a dedicated programme for young people aged 16 to 24 living in County Durham who are not in education, employment or training.
The Futures team aims to support 290 unemployed young people between now and 2023. It will help them move into employment and training while also giving them relevant job skills and access to employers.
The Youth Futures Foundation is an independent, not-for-profit organisation established in December 2019.
The organisation has been given a £90m endowment from the government’s Reclaim Fund to improve employment outcomes for young people from marginalised backgrounds.
The foundation’s aim is to narrow employment gaps by identifying what works and why, investing in innovation and igniting a movement for change so all young people have fair access to good quality jobs.
The DurhamWorks Futures project will be evaluated by King’s College London, identifying what works best to help young people move into employment.
The DurhamWorks Futures team works county wide with 10 employment coaches. It is able to offer paid work experience opportunities, careers advice and employer grants as well as a range of courses, from construction to Maths and English.
Cllr Ted Henderson, the council’s cabinet member for children and young people’s services, said: “It is fantastic that this funding has been secured to assist young people in our county who are currently out of work and in need of support.
“We know how important it is that this type of support is offered so that the younger generation of jobseekers can achieve their full potential.
“Our hope is that this programme provides a significant boost to the employment prospects of those it will work with.”
• Pictured above: DurhamWorks staff, service users and Cllr Ted Henderson, Durham County Council’s cabinet member for children and young people’s services (back row, centre) celebrate £1.2m being awarded from the Youth Futures Foundation to establish the DurhamWorks Futures team.
