Sixteen to 24-year-olds supported by new Warwickshire Brighter Futures programme
Young people aged 16 to 24 will be equipped with the employability skills needed to embark upon productive careers by a new project - Warwickshire Brighter Futures - from Warwickshire County Council.
Warwickshire Brighter Futures, funded by the Community Renewal Fund (CRF), will run from January to December 2022 with the aim of supporting over 1,000 16-24 year olds across the county.
The Community Renewal Fund has been created by Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Warwickshire County Council were awarded £1million pounds at the end of last year to run the new project from the start of 2022.
Warwickshire Brighter Futures has five strands, each designed to focus on enhancing the employability skills of young people in Warwickshire, thereby helping them get closer to the job market whether that be through obtaining employment, moving to self employment, education or training.
To be eligible, participants must be: 16-24 years old; unemployed or economically inactive and a resident in Warwickshire. *Please note they can be in education*
The five strands are:
Break Away Camps
The Outward Bound Trust team will delivering the first three days of this camp at their Aberdovey site in Wales. Participants will be split into groups of 12 with an adult volunteer and an instructor from the Outward Bound Trust team. We will take two groups of 100 young people from Mon-Wed and Wed-Fri on a journey of self discovery through the outdoors, focusing onbbuilding confidence, team building and most importantly challenging themselves in a safe environment.
There will be a small gap to allow the young people to reflect on their experience of the breakaway camps in their home environment. Then we will run a fourth day for them to share their journey, build on the experience and learning from the camp and look at how this may help them in the world of work and in everyday life.
We will also ask those young people to present their experiences to employers to help them build confidence.
Future Sports
University of Warwick’s esports futures programme will work to re-engage young carers and NEETs in learning and skills development using esports as a catalyst to excite and entertain.
Over a two-day experience, the participants will form teams to create a sandbox tournament to explore all aspects of running and playing in an event. They will learn how to use recording software, format a tournament and plan the event, as well as gaining knowledge and experience in marketing, creating content and assets to promote it. These are essential skills in play and tactics, team building, communication, live-streaming, marketing and social media.
At the end of day two, the participants will meet with industry experts to share their experience, discuss the skills they’ve learned and explore the broad range of roles in industries such as computer games, esports, marketing agencies, events and hospitality.
Extra Ability Jobs Programme
This strand aims to support young people to navigate their way into work by inspiring and educating them and creating tailored support to remove the barriers that have prevented them from entering employment.
Support will be tailored to the young persons needs and will remove barriers that have prevented them from moving towards work. Young people will have access to both one to one and group sessions which may include the following:
• Use zoom and take part in online interviews
• Build confidence
• Support to complete CV & job applications
• Understanding work and benefits
• Develop basic skills & attend short training courses
There will also be a salary support scheme (still being shaped).
Let’s Go Rural
Let’s Go Rural invites young people on a tour of rural Warwickshire opportunities, stopping at a variety of businesses to explore what each business has to offer:
Career pathways
Progression
Individual job roles
Over lunchtime there will be a breakaway lunch activity with employability-focused activities, exploring what personal skills and attributes the businesses they have visited may look for and what they as individuals have to offer.
The afternoon will involve campus tours of local colleges and training providers to explore the routes into accessing the required knowledge and skills (Apprenticeships, Full time provision, industry placements).
Warwickshire Community Skills Hubs
We will create local Warwickshire Skills Hubs across the county, to be delivered in libraries in Atherstone, Bedworth, Rugby, Nuneaton & Leamington).
The Warwickshire Community Skills Hub’s will offer a safe space for young people to improve their employability skills through workshops to promote nearby, accessible job opportunities and employability skills support.
There will be regular employability focussed activities at fixed location with the opportunity for strategic partners to utilise the space to deliver pop up activities.
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If you are a referral partner who would like to sign upa young person for any of the strands, please register their interest here.
Young people can sign up for their chosen strand here:
Break Away Camps
Esports Futures
Extra Ability Jobs Programme
Let’s Go Rural
Warwickshire Community Skills Hubs
If you are not sure which strand the participant would like to attend please register your interest across the five strands.
If you have any questions around the strands please feel free to contact Nikita Takhar, Brighter Futures – Careers & Employability Programme Manager on nikitatakhar@warwickshire.gov.uk
The Warwickshire Brighter Futures project has received £1.1 million pound from the UK Government through the UK Community Renewal Fund. The UK Community Renewal Fund is a UK Government programme for 2021/22. This aims to support people and communities most in need across the UK to pilot programmes and new approaches to prepare for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. It invests in skills, community and place, local business, and supporting people into employment. For more information, visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-community-renewal-fundprospectus