If you, or a member of your family, have been thinking about making a career change or trying something different in the new year, the team at Skills Launchpad Plymouth are here to help.
Jo Lacy, Skills Launchpad Manager said: “We help adults and young people in Plymouth to connect with opportunities for skills, training, education, careers and jobs. By working with employers, training providers and support organisations across the city we are seeing some great results. If you want access to free support, it's simple, just visit our website to sign up as a member, and one of our Coordinators will be in touch to find out how we can support you. Alternatively, visit the website and look at the free resources and our news and events pages - they are available for everyone to use and our ‘January Opportunities’ have recently been uploaded.”
Led by Plymouth City Council, in alignment with Department for Work and Pensions, Skills Launchpad Plymouth signposts those who are seeking work, facing redundancy or changing careers through the Adult Hub aged 25 years+, and offers targeted support for young people aged 16 to 24 years, including those with additional needs, through the Youth Hub.
Skills Launchpad Plymouth is supported by Barclays bank in Plymouth (140-146 Armada Way in the city centre) which provides the base for both the Youth Hub and Adult Hub, providing bookable appointments for face-to-face support. A range of free activities are delivered each week including drop-in Job Shops for anyone looking to join the construction industry or health and social care sector, and ‘Military Tuesdays’ to provide tailored support for service leavers, veterans and their families.
Kelley’s journey
Kelley, aged 41, approached Skills Launchpad Plymouth at a time when she was lacking in confidence. With previous work experience within the community health and wellbeing sector, she wanted to see what her options were.
Completing her skills action plan with our Coordinator, James, highlighted that Kelley had plenty of potential and that there were lots of opportunities available to her, including a free short training course with On Course South West.
Since working with Skills Launchpad Plymouth, Kelley has been working in a Customer Advisor role within a bank and has now secured a permanent role with Sentinel Healthcare.
Kelley said: “It's helped reassure me, like having a bit of hand holding if that's the right phrase. It's been good to know there is somebody there to help if I need it. It's like a full-time job in itself looking for work, and it's quite hard, so having Skills Launchpad Plymouth has made me feel like I'm not completely alone. I am very excited about what's next!”
How could Skills Launchpad Plymouth help you?
Skills Launchpad Plymouth offers a huge amount of support for free, such as:
- access to impartial careers information, advice and guidance
- a personalised skills assessment to identify your transferrable skills to help you more confidently apply for jobs or change careers
- help to job search, update your CV and prepare for interview
- the opportunity to gain skills to build confidence
- support for mental health and wellbeing to get you in a better headspace
- advice to help you overcome barriers to starting work including access to financial support for work clothing, initial travel to work costs as well as guidance on benefits calculations
- access to ongoing training and skills development once you get started to continue up-skilling and developing your career.
To become better informed about local opportunities, you can sign up as a member for free at www.skillslaunchpadplym.co.uk, or for the latest news and events follow Skills Launchpad Plymouth on Facebook, X, Instagram or LinkedIn.