The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Foundation (HIWCF) has awarded grants totalling £695,000 via the Solent Supporting Employment (SSE) Programme, providing a boost to local employment projects run by organisations across South Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
The programme was created by the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership and part-funded by the European Social Fund (ESF), with generous match funding provided by HIWCF donors, Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council and Southampton City Council.
Grants have been awarded to 11 local organisations working in the Solent LEP area who are able to reach and work with individuals with complex barriers to employment, enabling them to move closer or into employment including BAME communities, people with disabilities, long-term unemployed and those who are economically inactive, particularly in areas where deprivation is high.
| Grant Applicant | Local Authority |
| Citizens Advice Bureau Gosport | Gosport |
| Enable Ability | Portsmouth |
| Footprints Project | Gosport |
| Minstead Training Trust | Portsmouth |
| Pompey in the Community | Portsmouth |
| Romsey Community School | New Forest |
| Romsey Community School | Isle of Wight |
| Safe New Futures | Eastleigh, Havant, Gosport, New Forest, Isle of Wight |
| Saints Foundation | Southampton |
| Sovereign | Isle of Wight |
| Abri (was Swaythling Housing Society Ltd) | Gosport / Portsmouth |
| Abri (was Swaythling Housing Society Ltd) | Southampton |
| WSX Enterprise Limited | Portsmouth |
A Solent Supporting Employment grant has been awarded to Sovereign for the Skills 4 Work Programme, supporting residents in deprived communities on the Isle of Wight. Participants will receive tailored, individualised advice and guidance services as well as a series of workshop and group based sessions to help them overcome the barriers they are facing when accessing the labour market.
Grant Cornwell MBE, Chief Executive of HIWCF said:
“We are delighted to be working with the European Social Fund, together with our local authorities in Hampshire, providing this vital opportunity to help and encourage local people to find their way into work. Our communities have been massively impacted by Covid-19 this year and this funding will increase the prospects of vulnerable people in our region making a lasting difference to their lives. I would like to thank our funding partners and our HIWCF donors for supporting the Solent Supporting Employment Programme as our work would not be possible without their goodwill and generosity.”
The second round of Solent Supporting Employment funding worth £791,000 will open early 2021, and all eligible groups in the Solent LEP will be able to apply for a grant of between £30,000 to £60,000 via the HIWCF website www.hiwcf.com/grants/.
I wish them the best of luck and hope they secure employment soon. Being unemployed is no fun despite what many bigoted people say on the Island.
and i thought the job centre or whatever it is called were supposed to help people find jobs.
Mind you, how can you find jobs when there are very few jobs for so many people.
This council are also allowing yet more houses to be built when there are not enough jobs jobs NOW.
Does not make sense.
Good luck to those looking for a job.
The job centre do not help one bit to get a job, you need to look for work 35 hours a week, but like you said no jobs, then they call you in to look at your CV even though they looked at it before, just to pi** you of because they can.