New service launched for Worcesteshire jobless
28th April 2008
Sharon Withe, Remploy’s district manager for Pathways to WorkThe Pathways to Work programme will be operated across the county by Remploy, the UK's leading provider of specialist employment services to people who experience complex barriers to work.
Pathways to Work provides a range of services and advice to support people off incapacity benefit and into employment.
In addition to providing support to people with disabilities and health conditions, Remploy will offer employment services to ex-offenders, recovering addicts and lone parents with health conditions.
Those on the programme will be eligible for financial assistance with childcare, transport and, dependent on their earnings, they may qualify for £40 a week in Return to Work Credits during their first year in work.
Remploy’s target is to find jobs for more than 2,600 people in Worcestershire during the initial three years of the programme.
Sharon Withe, Remploy’s district manager of the Pathways to Work programme, said: “There are powerful reasons for moving off benefit and getting a job. We have long experience of finding jobs for people with disabilities and health conditions and we know that working helps a person to raise their self-esteem and regain their pride.
“You feel valued for the contribution you make at work and the job satisfaction it brings. Working means you get out more and meet new people and you will be better off financially when you get a job.”
She said Pathways to Work offered job seekers more choice because the programme will be tailored for individual needs. “This initiative is successful and has already helped more than 80,000 people to find a job.”
Remploy has opened town centre branches and offices in Worcester, Redditch, Kidderminster and Evesham providing a wide range of advice and development services for Pathways to Work customers.
Its tried and tested services are designed to help people look for and prepare for work and include job tasters, CV preparation, interview practice, vocational skills programmes, confidence building & in-work benefit advice.
The branches will also offer advice and support on drug rehabilitation, language difficulties, debt management and expert medical advice to help people manage their symptoms.
Local employers can also benefit from Remploy’s specialist services, with access to an untapped pool of skilled and motivated people. Remploy can design and develop training specific to employers’ skill requirements, help access funding for workplace adaptations where required, and offer expert advice on disability issues in the workplace for both new and existing employees.
Jobseekers or employers interested in Remploy’s services should call 0845 155 2819.
