15 April 2015
A community-based employment project which was launched in September 2013 by Back to Work has seen its hundredth jobseeker start work.
The Community Jobs Fund creates community-based jobs for long-term unemployed jobseekers. It also enables charities and organisations to kick-start projects that might not otherwise happen due to a lack of resources.
As well as enabling 56 organisations to carry out a variety of community-based projects, the fund has paved the way for 60% of the jobseekers who found work through the fund to go on to secure unsubsidised employment.
Success for jobseekers and the community
Social Security Minister, Deputy Susie Pinel, said the hundredth job marked a real success for both jobseekers and the communities which have benefited from the work carried out.
“The Community Jobs Fund was launched to help bridge the gap between jobseekers who need the opportunity to develop their skills, and for charities and organisations looking for the chance to create new positions with an additional community benefit," she said.
“This hundredth job is testament to the success of the project. We have seen first-hand the difference these jobs have made to both the lives and employability of those jobseekers participating, and to the charities and organisations that have been able to start a number of community-based projects that they might otherwise not have been able to undertake without this initiative.”
Success at Jersey Archive
One former jobseeker who has benefited from the Community Jobs Fund is Martin Le Pennec. He started a role at Jersey Archive last year as a scanning assistant, with the aim of allowing public access to thousands of historical occupation records for those looking to research family members online. On completion of his Community Jobs Fund contract he was offered a fixed term full-time role as a cataloguing assistant with the organisation.
Archives and Collections Director at Jersey Heritage, Linda Romeril, said “The Community Jobs Fund has been a wonderful opportunity for Jersey Heritage to assist jobseekers and to provide a benefit to the wider community. Through the hard work of Martin and his colleagues we have been able to open up access to some of the unique collections of documents we have at the Archive and to place images of those living in the Island during the German Occupation online for the local and international community to access.
“We were delighted to see Martin’s skills and confidence develop through his placement and were able to offer him a further fixed term role assisting with the transfer and preservation of important historic material from public institutions.”
Other examples of roles created to date include support workers, assistant caretakers, events coordinators, admin assistants and cleaning operatives.
Fund still open
Organisations can still apply to the fund by providing details of the role they would like to create and how the community would benefit as a result.
Through the fund, up to six months’ wages and Social Security contributions are paid when long-term unemployed jobseekers are employed by a charity or organisation in a role which offers an additional benefit to the community.
Employers who want to find out more can contact the Community Jobs Fund.
gov.je