Stoke-on-Trent organisations to benefit from £3.06 million to upskill residents

Eight Stoke-on-Trent organisations will benefit from a total of £3.06 million from Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s allocation of UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF).

Stoke-on-Trent City Council has been awarded £9,477,820 from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) to deliver projects which support local businesses, improve local spaces and assist residents with employment and skills.

The eight beneficiaries from the private, voluntary and public sectors fall under the People and Skills category; one of the three investment priorities identified for the funding. Through the people and skills investment priority, funding will be used to help reduce the barriers some people face to employment and support them to move towards employment and education. 

Successful organisations for UKSPF funding for People and Skills include:

• Jobs Enterprise and Training Service (JET part of Stoke-on-Trent City Council) – £ 666,346 to create an Inclusive Employability Hub, a consortium of employability professionals who will come together to provide a joined-up and holistic package of support for economically inactive and unemployed residents of Stoke-on-Trent.
• Wavemaker Stoke – £552,417 to deliver DigitALL, a project with partners aimed to provide essential digital skills for life, employment, health and wellbeing to individuals.
• YMCA – £491,704 to create the YES (Youth Employment and Skills) Consortium, a project aimed at 16 – 24-year olds which uses creative ways to break down barriers to learning and employment so that individuals are positively engaged and positively contributing to society.
• Acacia Training – £482,528to deliver a scheme to support people whose vocation may be in care or the hospitality industries.
• Staffordshire University – £257,008 to create Stoke-on-Trent Higher Skills Accelerator, which will provide flexible bitesize work-based learning options for Stoke-on-Trent residents, to upskill or reskill residents in areas of leadership and management, digital, marketing or Net Zero.
• Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce – £251,600 to create a Skills and Apprenticeship Hub to promote apprenticeships to businesses in Stoke-on-Trent.
• Stoke-on-Trent College – £244,882 to deliver Skills Ready Work Ready (I Am), a project which will identify and engage young people aged 16-24 not in education or training and provide the tailored wraparound support needed to progress them towards work or further training.
• Disability Solutions West Midlands – £120,280 to create a project focussed on working-age adults who have disabilities or long-term ill-health in need of intensive and personalised support to move closer to employment.

Councillor Jane Ashworth, leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said: “The UK Shared Prosperity Fund is an opportunity for us to work together to support our local residents, communities and businesses. Through these eight projects which are forecasted to commence in January 2024, we are investing in more tailored support for residents, boosting core skills and supporting young people and adults to progress into work.”