New Routes to Employment: Kickstart

As part of the government’s Plan for Jobs, Kickstart aims to created fully-funded jobs for young people at risk of long-term unemployment by providing funding to employers to create new placements.

This is a rare opportunity for employers to diversify their workforce and bring new ideas and perspectives into their teams. We are interested in supporting organisations to access this scheme, by making a joint application with a group of employers for the minimum 30 placements required.

If you think you may be able to provide one or more 6-month placement, or might consider offering a part-placement, we want to hear from you!

Kickstart is a £2 billion fund to create high–quality 6-month work placements for young people aged 16-24, supported by their Jobcentre. The job placements created with Kickstart funding must be new jobs. They must not:

• replace existing or planned vacancies
• cause existing employees or contractors to lose or reduce their employment.

The roles you are applying for must be:

• a minimum of 25 hours per week, for 6 months
  paid at least the National Minimum Wage for their age group
• should not require people to undertake extensive training before they begin the job placement.

Once a job placement is created, it can be taken up by a second person once the first successful applicant has completed their 6-month term.

More information is available on the Government’s Kickstart site, here.