West Briton (Truro and Mid Cornwall)
£12.5m skills programme set to ‘provide opportunities for all’
AN ambitious initiative on a mission to provide “opportunities for all” has been awarded £12.5 million to help transform lives.
The Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Good Growth Programme has announced the new funding stream, complete with £2.5m of support to help more than 1,200 disadvantaged young people aged between 16 and 24 progress in the workplace.
The £137m local investment programme, which is managed by Cornwall Council and funded by the Government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund, is investing in a range of activities to boost employability and skills and create an inclusive workforce across the county.
In addition to support for younger people, £4m is also being earmarked for specific growth areas of Cornwall’s economy and £2m will help to upskill people for the future green economy, including domestic and commercial renewable energy systems, electric vehicles, and the floating offshore wind industry.
Another £2m is being invested in providing digital skills in areas including artificial intelligence, immersive technology, software and data.
To help people navigate the range of support available with employment, training and qualifications, a further £6m is being invested in the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly People Hub.
Cornwall Opportunities, a searchable database of jobs, apprenticeships and courses, has also been launched following a £257,000 grant from the Government’s G7 Legacy Fund, which aims to make it easier for residents to access information and work opportunities.
Cllr Barbara Ellenbroek, Cornwall Council portfolio holder for children and families, said: “People and skills are a cornerstone of our Good Growth Programme which is why we are investing £12.5m to create opportunities for all.
“The People Hub is there as a one-stop resource for everyone, and we are funding specific projects to work with young people to give them the life skills and support they need » THE UK Shared Prosperity Fund is a central pillar of the UK Government’s Levelling Up agenda and provides £2.6 billion of funding for local investment by March 2025. The fund aims to improve pride in place and increase life chances across the UK by investing in communities and place, supporting local business, and people and skills. For more information, visit UK Shared Prosperity Fund: prospectus - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
to progress. We’re also investing in meeting the fast-growing needs of the green and digital economies. Taken together this package of investment will boost skills, jobs and the economy.”
The investment complements another Good Growthfunded project called Multiply.
Launched last year, the £2.5m scheme offers free numeracy » Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly have been allocated £137m for local investment through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. With a focus on green and inclusive growth, we’ll use our portion to achieve Good Growth for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, providing opportunities for communities and businesses and giving residents access to new jobs and training. For more information, visit ciosgoodgrowth.com
courses to anyone aged 19 and over across the county.
Research by Cornwall Council shows that there are 22,300 households in Cornwall where no-one has a job.
That is 13.8% of the total and above both the South West (12%) and England averages (13.4%).
Meanwhile, there are an estimated 10,600 people who are economically inactive but want a job. Good Growth investment aims to remove some of the barriers to people finding work.
Cornwall’s workforce is also getting older. The average age of people in Cornwall is 47, whereas in England and Wales it is 40. Helping older people reskill, and younger people to train for jobs and careers, are therefore important to the future economy.
To find out more about the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Good Growth programme and the projects it is supporting, visit the Good Growth website.