News

Government launches £2 billion ‘Kickstart Scheme’ to create new jobs for young people

It will provide a range of fully subsidised six-month placements to those aged 16-24 who are at risk of long-term unemployment.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 2nd September 2020
Pixabay

The government has today announced the launch of a new £2 billion pound Kickstart Scheme aimed at creating “hundreds of thousands of new jobs for young people” across the UK.

The Kickstart Scheme is part of Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak’s #PlanForJobs.

Under the new scheme, a number of fully subsidised six-month placements will be open to those aged 16-24 who are currently claiming Universal Credit and are thus at risk of long-term unemployment.

These placements will be available across a range of different sectors in England, Scotland and Wales, and the first placements are likely to be available from November.

According to a statement released today on the gov.uk website, employers will be able to receive funding for 100% of the relevant National Minimum Wage for 25-hours a week, plus associated employer National Insurance contributions and employer minimum auto-enrolment pension contributions. There will also be extra funding available to support young people in building up their experience and helping them move into sustained employment after they have completed their Kickstart-funded job.

ADVERTISEMENT

Whilst the Kickstart Scheme is not to be misinterpreted as an apprenticeship, participants may move on to an apprenticeship at any time during, or after their job placement.

___

ADVERTISEMENT

How does the Kickstart Scheme work?

Employers in can use the Kickstart Scheme to create new six-month job placements for young people age 16-24, and they should support the participants to develop the skills and experience that they need to find work after completing the scheme.

Funding is available for 100% of the relevant National Minimum Wage for 25-hours a week, plus associated employer National Insurance contributions and employer minimum automatic enrolment contributions, and can be accessed following a successful application process.

There is also £1,500 per job placement available for setup costs, support and training.

ADVERTISEMENT

Applications must be for a minimum of 30 job placements, and if an employer is unable to offer this many job placements, they then have the opportunity to partner with other organisations to reach the minimum number.

Those applying on behalf of a group of employers can also get an additional £300 of funding to support with the associated administrative costs of bringing together these employers.

___

Who can apply for funding?

According to the gov.uk criteria, any organisation can apply for funding, but the job placements created with Kickstart Scheme funding must be new jobs and They must not replace existing or planned vacancies, or cause existing employees or contractors to lose or reduce their employment.

The roles that employers apply for Kickstart Scheme funding for must be:

ADVERTISEMENT
  • A minimum of 25 hours per week for six months.
  • Paid at least the National Minimum Wage for their age group.
  • Should not require people to undertake extensive training before they begin the job placement.

Each application should include how employers will help the participants to develop their skills and experience, including support to look for long-term work, including career advice and setting goals, support with CV and interview preparations, and supporting the participant with basic skills, such as attendance, timekeeping and teamwork.

Once a job placement is created, it can be taken up by a second person once the first successful applicant has completed their six-month term.

___

How to apply?

Applications for the Kickstart Scheme are being accepted now from employers, or groups of employers.

If your organisation is creating more than 30 job placements as part of the Kickstart Scheme, you can submit your application directly here, but if your organisation is creating fewer than 30 job placements, you cannot apply directly and you must partner with other organisations in order to create a minimum of 30 job placements before applying.

ADVERTISEMENT

You can find out more about becoming or finding a representative for a group of employers here.

More information about the Kickstart Scheme is available via the gov.uk website here.

News

Greater Manchester public urged to help get people ‘off the streets and on their feet’ before Christmas

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Locals are being urged to help get hundreds of people “off the streets and back on their feet” this festive season.

As the temperatures told colder by the day, and Christmas creeps closer and closer, Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity is bringing back ‘1000 Beds for Christmas’, and the massively-important initiative is aiming to provide 1,000 nights of accommodation to people at risk of homelessness before the big day arrives.

Forming part of the ongoing ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme, this festive fundraising mission is designed to provide food, shelter, warmth, and dedicated vital wrap-around support for those who need it most.

The charity says it wants to build on the “incredible success of 2023”, which raised more than £55,000 and provided 1,800 nights of accommodation.

Stockport-based property finance specialists, Together – which has supported the campaign for the last two years – has, once again, generously pledged to match every public donation for the first £20,000 raised.  

Unfamiliar with the ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme? Since 2017, when rough sleeping peaked, the initiative has helped ensure a significantly-higher rate of reduction in the numbers of people facing a night on streets in Greater Manchester than seen nationally.

The landmark scheme has given people the chance to rebuild their lives, while also giving them access to key services and opportunities that allows them to stay off the streets for good.

Despite the scheme’s recent success, organisations across Greater Manchester are under “a huge amount of pressure” to meet the demand for their services this winter, and given the current economic outlook, household budgets will continue to be squeezed – leaving people on the sharp end of inequality and poverty.

Read more:

“Help us be a lifeline to organisations on the frontline,” Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity urged in it’s public appeal for donations.

You can help make sure ‘A Bed Every Night’ is a reality for all by donating here.

Featured Image – EthelRedThePetrolHead (via Flickr)

News

Former Manchester police officer jailed after sexually assaulting a child while on duty

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

A former Manchester police officer has been jailed after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting a child while he was on duty.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that, on 29 December 2023, Dean Dempster was one of three officers responding to a domestic incident involving an adult and children, and it was while he was taking an account from a six-year-old girl, away from his colleagues, that he sexually abused her when he should have been there to protect her.

After GMP investigated a complaint received later that evening in relation to the incident, Dempster was immediately confronted by his supervisor when he returned to duty the next morning. 

The 35-year-old was arrested that day by officers in Oldham, and then “relentlessly pursued” by GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate to “explore any further evidence of offending” in an investigation directed by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

A review of Dempster’s electronic devices revealed “further serious offending”, GMP revealed, including the making of indecent images of children.

Sadly, the police investigation also found images on Dempster’s mobile phone taken from his body-worn video camera at the incident in December 2023 of a second clothed child, and of another clothed child at a separate incident dating back to 2022 – with the victims of both families having been made aware, and kept updated throughout the investigation

Dempster was convicted and sacked “at the earliest legal opportunity” by the Chief Constable at an accelerated misconduct hearing in May this year, and he has since admitted six counts of making indecent images, and two counts of Misconduct in Public Office.

After pleading guilty, the former officer has now been jailed for nine years, and has also been ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.

Read more:

Deputy Chief Constable, Terry Woods, said Dempster “represents the very worst of society”.

“He is not a police officer, he is a child sex offender, a criminal, and he has no right to be near police uniform or serve the public,” DCC added. “Dempster was rightfully arrested and charged before he could ever work in our communities again.”

Featured Image – GMP

More News

City Centre

Manchester’s libraries will become ‘warm spaces’ with free hot drinks and Wi-Fi again this winter

The Manchester 24 Hour Charity Run Against Homelessness 2024

City Centre

Manchester’s 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness returns with its biggest venue host yet for 2024

Business

Viral bakery Half Dozen Other set to open new site this December

Audio

Clint Boon takes us around Manchester's iconic Deaf Institute

Eats

We go meatballs deep with Mira's traditional Neapolitan sandwiches