19 October 2006

Northern Way leads the way on tackling worklessness

A £1 million Northern Way project is being showcased as an example of best practice at a national conference focusing on the issue of worklessness this week.

The Knowsley Works pilot, which was set up to help 3,000 people move from Incapacity Benefit and into employment, will take centre stage at the event which is to be hosted by Knowsley Borough Council on Thursday, October 19.

The authority has been selected to host the conference of over approximately 100 delegates in recognition of its innovative approach to tackling worklessness.

Knowsley Works will be the focus of two of the workshops to be run on the day at the authority's Kirby Suite, with one providing an overview to the theory of the project and another explaining how it is delivered on the ground.

Tracy Fishwick, Knowsley Council's Head of Employment, Skills and Inclusion, said: "We recognise that worklessness is an enormously complex issue and we are acknowledged nationally as a leading authority in our approach to tackling the problem.

"The Northern Way funded project is proving incredibly successful because it provides crucial flexibility for those delivering it who need time to engage properly with the community to earn their trust and demonstrate they can help change their lives for the better."

Knowsley Works was launched in March and is currently in its 'engagement' phase, with a team of eight taking their message of the initiative into the community - speaking to hundreds of people in shopping centres, at the school gates, in pubs and even betting shops.

An outreach centre has also been established to provide a resource for local people to receive support and mentoring to enable them to return to work, with particular emphasis on long-term claimants of Incapacity Benefit. With customised support and advice, the Knowsley Works team is beginning to identify the skills, mental health and lifestyle needs of individuals, and is getting them back on the road to work.

Steven Broomhead, Chief Executive of the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), said: "Improving employment rates in areas with high levels of incapacity benefit claimants is absolutely crucial to the economic growth of the Northwest and the North as a whole. Through providing relevant and targeted support, Knowsley Works is an innovative approach to tackling this issue. By engaging and encouraging individuals in Knowsley who want to return to work, this project will increase economic activity as people take up real job opportunities, employers fill job places, and 'graduates' of the project provide other people in the area with a positive example of what can be achieved."

Charlotte Carpenter, Interim Director of The Northern Way, said: "The proportion of working age people in the North on Incapacity Benefit is much higher than the rest of the UK and a significant proportion have been claimants for a sustained period of time.

"For the North to prosper we need more people in employment and Knowsley Works is a great example of an innovative, targeted and customised approach to tackling this issue. The fact that it is already being cited as an example of best practice is testament to its early success."

Two Northern Way worklessness pilots have been launched in Knowsley and Easington and a further eight are to be funded. By March 2007, 1,000 Incapacity Benefit claimants will be receiving support to help them back into work.

Ends

Notes to editors:

The Northern Way is a unique collaboration led by the three Northern Regional Development Agencies (One NorthEast, Northwest Regional Development Agency and Yorkshire Forward) working with partners to close the £30 billion output gap between the North and the average for England over a 25 year period.

With a population of 14.5 million the North is equivalent to a medium-sized country (such as Sweden) with a large internal market. Its economy is worth in excess of £200 billion.

The North has undergone a period of revival over the last nine years. Its economy is now stronger than at any time in the last 40 years and employment is at a post war high. Local authorities and RDAs have led the revitalisation of our regions, cities, towns and local communities.

For further information contact Gardiner Richardson:
Sarah Banks or Laura White on 0191 261 4250 or sarahb@gardiner-richardson.com / lauraw@gardiner-richardson.com