Young unemployed people in Oldham given a jobs boost

Councillor Mohon Ali

Oldham Council has agreed to support a national scheme that will aim to get more than 1,500 young people aged 16-24 into work in Oldham over the next 12 months.

The council has agreed to both provide 50 new job placements within its own organization and also to help other Oldham businesses provide hundreds of similar job placements as part of The Government’s £2billion Kickstart scheme.

The job creation scheme provides funding to create new job placements for 16 to 24 year olds on Universal Credit who are at risk of long term unemployment. Employers of all sizes can apply for funding which covers 100% of the National Minimum Wage for 25 hours per week for a total of 6 months.

Latest unemployment figures show The UK's unemployment rate rose to 5% in the three months to November, up from 4.9%, as coronavirus continued to hit the jobs market. Oldham’s jobless figures have also risen.

Oldham Council has pledged to find 50 six-month new job placements for young people in Oldham. They will also act as a ‘gateway provider’, or intermediary, between Government who are providing the funding, and local small/medium businesses who don’t reach the Government threshold of providing 30 jobs and who want to provide jobs for young people.

Young people aged 16-24 years on Universal Credit will be referred to the scheme by their Job Centre Plus work coach. The scheme will initially be open until December 2021.

Councillor Mohon Ali, who is leading the project for Oldham Council, said: “This is a great opportunity for Oldham Council and local businesses to give a helping hand to many young people currently out of work.

“As of September 2020, there were 3,100 young people aged 18-24 in Oldham unemployed. This represents a youth unemployment rate of 15.6%, the highest rate across Greater Manchester and more than 6% higher than the national rate.

“We must all work together in Oldham to tackle this problem. The Council is playing its part by providing 50 jobs but I am calling on all Oldham business, however large or small, to find out more about this scheme and to get involved.

“We also believe it will attract and retain a new generation of staff through innovative recruitment strategies and, in turn, support local communities to get stronger economically.”

For more information on the scheme please email employability@oldham.gov.uk

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