Through the gate support
Offenders may have a range of issues they need to overcome before they can focus on employment. These may include:
- finding accommodation
- seeking debt advice
- seeking health advice.
Helping to resolve these issues enables trust to be established, making the participant more likely to engage with the provision available, which in turn supports the successful transition to employability and employment.
Enhancing provision and communication
ESF-funded activity enhances the mainstream provision available, possibly instilling confidence and motivation in participants, who can then be signposted to mainstream support. Eligibility criteria for ESF projects ensures that support is focused on offenders and ex-offenders who need it, such as those with multiple, complex issues who are often far away from the labour market.
Communication and harmonious working between custodial teams and those in the community provides steady and coherent support to those moving from custody into the community, which is a time when participants are most vulnerable and likely to re-offend.
By operating with the NOMS case management model, ESF-funded activity is able to offer a support package tailored to the needs of each participant. Close working relationships with offender managers and the Probation Service offer expertise and experience to give a better chance of providing the optimum level of support to participants.
The REACH (Regional Employ-Ability Challenge) project in the East Midlands targets those offenders who are furthest away from the job market and those with complex barriers to employment. This includes those serving less than twelve months in custody, who are often without support, and subject to very limited alternative through-care as they move from prison into the community. The project emphasises how consistent support is only available when strong links between custodial and community teams exist.
The probation-led partnership, Achieve North West, in Merseyside and the north west of England, subcontracts to a number of organisations who offer a range of services including mentoring, training courses, volunteering opportunities, work placements and employment brokerage. By ensuring that a range of support is available, the partnership helps offenders by empowering them with the motivation, opportunity and support to enable them to improve their employment prospects.
The innovative OnTrak initiative in the West Midlands with the Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG), delivers accredited training to offenders while in custody which guarantees an interview upon release. It has successfully recruited 37 offenders so far.
The work of Pertemps People Development Group based in the north east of England includes working with employers to design pre-employment routeways to ensure that at the end of their programme applicants are as job-ready as possible and provided with real employment opportunities.
