| Date -08 Feb 2010 | Return to previous page |
The Moray Community Planning Partnership’s Fairer Scotland Fund has commissioned a new service in Moray for the delivery of employability support to help a wide range of vulnerable individuals to access employment and training.
The contract, which will also provide support to up to 60 unemployed people over an 18-month period, was awarded to the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations.
An open day for all partners and other key stakeholders to launch this new and exciting service will be held at the SCVO premises at 14-16 Commerce Street, Elgin on Tuesday, February 23 at 10am.
The new service will be managed by the SCVO, which is the umbrella body for the voluntary sector in Scotland, and will receive guidance and support from a steering group consisting of partners from a wide range of organisations including the voluntary sector, social work, housing, education, Skills Development Scotland, Jobcentre Plus and NHS Grampian.
The service, which will retain the respected name Moray New Futures, is funded until March 2011 and will be based at the SCVO premises in Elgin, although there will be outreach provision throughout Moray.
It will be open to working age people living in Moray who face multiple and complex barriers. These include substance misuse, offending behaviour, mental health issues, disability and lack of qualifications or work experience.
Fairer Scotland Fund manager Jacqui Taylor said: “There will be some concentration of activity on supporting individuals from areas identified as requiring additional support due to high instances of unemployment, low income, poorer than average educational attainment and identified health issues.
“Following support from this service we hope that at least 30 of the most vulnerable individuals will successfully access and sustain employment, training or go on to further education.”
The Fairer Scotland Fund is a three-year fund awarded to the Moray Community Planning Partnership in 2008 with the aim of identifying and tackling the root causes of poverty and disadvantage in Moray.
Mrs Taylor said: “Apart from this new employability service, a range of projects has been funded to tackle issues such as youth anti-social behaviour, domestic abuse, health information and advice and early years communication.
“Extensive work is under way in tackling financial exclusion – one of the key causes of poverty – including the development of a financial inclusion strategy and network.
“We are currently working on the development of a two-year apprenticeship scheme aimed at people aged 16 to 24 who traditionally find it difficult to access good quality sustainable employment. If external fund is secured, this project will be launched on May 1 and run for two years.”
More information about the work of the Fairer Scotland Fund can be found on the Your Moray website at www.yourmoray.org.uk