16 January 2012
The Advance Plus work placement scheme is doubling in size as part of the States of Jersey initiative to get Islanders into work.
Advance Plus will be recruiting four new mentors and will be able to help up to 200 more people over the next 12 months with a targeted programme of training and work placements in a variety of roles across administration, construction, retail, care and hospitality.
The scheme caters for job-seekers aged 20 or over and offers work placements, personal mentoring and training in areas where it is known that job vacancies exist. Advance Plus runs alongside the successful Advance to Work scheme which caters for job-seekers aged between 16 and 19.
Advance Plus team leader Rebecca Cook said that the aim of the scheme was to prepare people for work by building confidence and skills and offering job-seekers the chance to find out more about chosen areas of work through placements and training.
“We are keen to extend the success that we have had with Advance Plus. Of the 174 people who have enrolled in our previous schemes, some 63 per cent have moved into employment. Many of those had been unemployed for over a year before joining the scheme so we believe that, with the resources in place to extend the scheme, we can help reduce the number of people who have become long-term unemployed.” she said.
The extension of the scheme is 1 of a number of measures being implemented by the cross-departmental team behind the Back to Work Programme which has been tasked by the Council of Ministers to address Jersey’s unprecedented level of unemployment. The Back to Work Programme is being led by the Social Security Department.
Chief Minister Senator Ian Gorst said “Advance Plus and Advance to Work have a proven track record of getting people into work and extending the Advance Plus scheme will be a vital part of our efforts to reduce long-term unemployment in Jersey. Over the coming months the Back to Work team will be developing a number of initiatives to offer people the skills they need to fill Island job vacancies.”
The next Advance Plus Scheme will begin in mid-February focusing on work in the care sector.
gov.je