Agenda item

    (i)        Joint Report of the Assistant Chief Executive and the Corporate Director of Regeneration and Economic Development

  (ii)        Presentation by the Employment and Skills Manager, Regeneration and Economic Development

The Chairman thanked the Employment and Skills Manager, RED, Julie West who was in attendance to speak to Members in relation to Durham Employment and Skills (DES) and pre-employment training (for copy see file of minutes).

The Employment and Skills Manager gave Members a brief background to DES, reminding Members that the origins were with Derwentside Training, which was set up after the closure of British Steel in Consett in 1980.  Councillors noted that in 2009, as Derwentside District Council became part of the unitary Durham County Council, Derwentside Training was incorporated into the Regeneration and Economic Development service and in 2013 changed its name to Durham Employment and Skills (DES).

The Committee noted that DES was: fully funded from external contracts; has 22 full-time equivalent members of staff; has an annual turnover of approximately £850,000; and is a Matrix accredited team.

Members noted that the current external contracts that DES operated, as sub-contractor, were:

• Work Programme, for Avanta
• Adult Skills, for Durham County Council
• Skills Support for the Unemployed, for New College Durham
• Skills Support for the Workplace, for Ingeus
• Skills Support for Work Programme Participants, for Ixion

The Committee learned that other sub-contractors in the supply chain for the Work Programme for County Durham included Groundwork North East and Acumen and that the current 5 year contract with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) was in Year 4.  It was added that the support packages operated were for 2 years, utilised a “black box” approach and had pre and post-employment support built-in.  Members noted the numbers of people supported and the funding streams that were available for the Work Programme.  Councillors learned that Pre-Employment Training (PET) was mostly funded through Skills Support for the Unemployed and PET programmes were delivered via three routes: employer led PET; sector specific PET; and general employability PET.

The Chairman thanked the Employment and Skills Manager and asked Members for their questions on the report and presentation.

Councillors asked questions in relation to: a breakdown of the sectors people move into; how the 293 customers moving into employment compared to target; matching skills training to employer needs; how customers were targeted; the “black box” approach; who approached who in employer led PET; and what work was being undertaken in terms of “pre-pre-employment” training.

The Employment and Skills Manager noted a breakdown by sector could be supplied to Members and that the 293 customers moving into employment meant that targets were being met.  The Economic Development Manager added that in terms of matching skills to employers and demand, the relevant pre-employment training was looked at, matching to those planning applications that showed which employers were going to be creating jobs.  It was noted that figures were affected by a slow-down in the number of planning applications, lower levels of recruitment by employers, and where employers carried out their own training programmes.  The Economic Development Manager explained that there were currently around 1,100 customers on the various DES programmes.  The Chairman noted that targets and figures relating to this could be included within the next performance update to be provided to the Committee.

The Employment and Skills Manager explained that customers were not targeted, rather they were referred via JobCentre Plus (JCP), with DES helping to support customers, moving them closer to the job market.  It was added that the “black box” approach was recognition by Government that different regions/geographies/sectors may require different approaches to delivery.  The Employment and Skills Manager added that in respect of employer-led PET, some employers approached JCP/DES and DES proactively seeks out employers, from information provided by colleagues in RED.

The Employment and Skills Manager noted that there were a number of customers requiring “pre-pre-employment” training and this was delivered via the other contracts mentioned, Adult Learning for example, including looking at basic skills and useful experience in writing CVs, completing application forms and interview skills.  The Economic Development Manager added that initially the majority of the referrals from JCP were those in receipt of Job Seekers’ Allowance (JSA) and in the age range 18-24, though year on year this cohort has fallen by around 30%.  It was explained that there had been a shift to customers that were in receipt of Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and these clients were more challenging in that they often have several barriers in being able to move into work.  The Economic Development Manager added that there were discussions with Mental Health North East as regards being able to offer additional support for these customers, and the issues would be raised at the regional Work Programme Advisory Board.  Members noted and welcomed the offer from Officers to visit to see first-hand the work of DES.

Resolved:

(i)          That the Economy and Enterprise Overview and Scrutiny Committee note the

        information within the report and presentation.

(ii)         That a visit is organised for the Economy and Enterprise Overview and Scrutiny

        Committee visit DES to see their work first-hand.