Future Jobs Fund offers a route back into work
Winchester City Council’s participation in the Future Jobs Fund (FJF) has got off to a successful start after a Future Jobs Funded worker secured a full-time position with Tate Britain in London.
The FJF is a Government initiative to provide jobs for those who have been out of work for six months or more.
The City Council’s first FJF recruit was Saskia Clifford-Mobley. She joined the Council as a Rural Grants Publicity Assistant having struggled for months in a difficult employment market. After gaining experience and developing her skills at the City Council, she has now secured the job of her dreams at Tate Britain.
While helping the Council’s Economic Development team to publicise rural grants schemes, Saskia has been able to try her hand at writing press releases, organising photo-shoots, editing websites, and researching case studies. As well as developing her skills in her part-time role, she was also able to gain valuable experience volunteering with the Council’s Museums Service.
Saskia is grateful for the opportunities created by the Future Jobs Fund and her experience working for the City Council. She said: “It has been really interesting to learn about the huge range of work the Council is involved in. I have been able to hone my marketing skills, and bring my research background to help the team publicise their work in the most effective ways. The advice from colleagues has been invaluable, and I have enjoyed being part of the team.”
Kate Crawford, Economic Development Manager at Winchester City Council, is pleased to have helped out one of the many young people in need of a boost to get into work. She said: “As we climb out of recession, we still have an increasing unemployment rate in the District, especially amongst young people. To have been able to support Saskia whilst she has been looking for long-term work has been really satisfying. I hope our other Future Jobs Funded colleagues manage to follow in Saskia’s footsteps and gain full-time employment as quickly as possible.”
The Future Jobs Fund is administered in this area by Hampshire County Council, and funded by the Department for Work and Pensions. The posts are funded by central government; post-holders are aged between 18 and 24 years and referred by Job Centre Plus. Winchester City Council has identified 15 posts that would benefit from Future Jobs Funding. To find out more, go to www.hants.gov.uk/futurejobsfund
To find out more about Winchester City Council’s economic development work, visit www.winchester.gov.uk/business or contact Kate Crawford on 01962 848 563 or kcrawford@winchester.gov.uk