We were delighted to learn recently that our application to secure funding to deliver a project in Leeds had been approved. The funding, provided through the ESF Community Grants programme, will see us delivering a six-month project, targeting the hardest to reach ex-offenders.
ESF Community Grants, administered by community charity, Groundwork, provides grants to small organisations in the voluntary and community sector to provide support to unemployed and inactive individuals to engage them and move them towards employment through packages of training and support.
“Second Chances” will take the hardest to reach ex-offenders living in Leeds and provide tailored, one to one support to empower participants to make positive changes in their lives. The programme will target people who do not feel employment is a realistic prospect and provide a framework to work towards training and employment opportunities.
The project will see Offploy’s newly created tailored support offering available to candidates, designed by our recently appointed Education and Quality Lead, Emily McCormick. Based on an initial meeting, an Offploy Social Employment Advisor can decide on the interventions required to best support the candidate, from a suite of 32 interventions.
Commenting on this news, Richard Strauss, Offploy’s Strategic Development Lead said;
“We’re thrilled to have been awarded this contract to deliver a project in Leeds which follows hot on the heels of our DWP contract in the city. The funding will allow us to provide hope and opportunity to those hardest to reach ex-offenders and provide them with the support necessary to bring about positive change for them and their families.”
You can read more about our candidate support here.
