Support for Young People
The Government has announced a range of support to help the career prospects of young people affected by Covid-19.
APPRENTICESHIPS - Employers are being offered £2,000 for each new apprentice they hire under 25 and £1,500 for each newly recruited apprentice aged 25 and over. This includes taking on an apprentice who has been made redundant. The new incentives are on top of the existing £1,000 payment businesses receive for taking on new apprentices aged 16 to 18 (or aged 19 to 25 with an Education, Health and Care Plan). This week I have linked up with The Focus Training Group in Heathfield, Bovey Tracey to encourage employers to take advantage of these extra incentives and help young people embark on a successful career by offering them an apprenticeship. Businesses can find more information at www.apprenticeships.gov.uk. The government is also providing a new online and telephone support service for apprentices who have lost their jobs during the pandemic. The Redundancy Support Service for Apprentices (0800 015 0400) will provide free advice, will help apprentices find new opportunities and will direct apprentices to local and national support services.
TRAINEESHIPS – The Government has committed more than £110 million to triple the number of traineeships available across England (the largest ever expansion of traineeships) with businesses receiving a £1,000 bonus payment from the government for every trainee work placement they offer. A further £17million will be invested in sector-based work academies, which will upskill job seekers to fill locally identified vacancies.
KICK-START SCHEME - Through a new £2billion Kick-start Scheme, businesses can offer young people work placements subsidised by Universal Credit payments and the Government will give employers £1,500 to provide training and support for new employees that are part of the scheme. The Government will also pay all of an employee's National Minimum Wage (dependent on age), National Insurance and pension contributions for 25 hours a week.
FURTHER EDUCATION: £110 million will support school and college leavers at risk of becoming unemployed to undertake a fully funded optional extra year of study. This will help more young people gain valuable extra qualifications as well as reducing the pool of people potentially applying for the same jobs.
Covid-19: Staying Responsible
At the time of writing, we have just seen the number of Covid-19 cases in England jump from 13.9 per 100,000 in the week to 31st August to 21.3 cases per 100,000 in the week to 7th September. Infections in Devon are much lower than the national average (just 4.2 per 100,000 in the week to 7th September), but the national figures are a reminder that we need to remain vigilant. This means continuing to socially distance, washing our hands regularly and self-isolating if we develop any symptoms.
Photo: Mel during a previous visit to The Focus Training Group.
