Having helped support its 150th customer, the Elmbridge and Runnymede Youth Hub in partnership with Brooklands College has secured new funding to continue helping young people get into work or training.
With £70,000 secured from the Department for Work and Pensions the Youth Hub will continue to provide expert advice, helping with CVs, placements, mentoring and much more to connect you to a new job or the right training to kickstart your career.
Since its launch the youth hub has helped over 70% of customers find a new job, training or apprenticeship - with the remaining customers on their way to employment, work experience, a placement or working through a tailored action plan to help them achieve their goals.
Cllr Chris Sadler, Leader of Elmbridge Borough Council said: “The Youth Hub has been a great success and we’re pleased to confirm it will help more young people over the next 12 months. The numbers of young people claiming job seekers allowance have halved since the pandemic peak but there is more work to be done to help our young people get back into work or training.”
A Runnymede Borough Council spokesperson said: "The Youth Hub locations in Egham, Addlestone and Weybridge mean the team are within easy reach for residents in person or if needed online. We work with a range of employers with available jobs and opportunities now so please do get in touch to see how the youth hub can help."
Christine Ricketts, Principal of Brooklands College said "We’re proud to have helped over 150 young people get on with their career. The College is uniquely placed to support young people. Whether you need to try out a new skill, access training or connect to a job the youth hub team have the right advice and links to help you."
Gemma Newar, Partnership Manager at Weybridge Job Centre said "We’re pleased to be able to support the Elmbridge and Runnymede Youth Hub with funding for a further 12 months. The Youth Hub is a key part of our youth offer and we’ve set an ambitious target for the hub to help as many young people as possible. We look forward to working with Elmbridge, Runnymede and Brooklands College on delivering for our young people."
The 150th customer journey:
A young man from the area, 21 was connected to the Youth Hub having been claiming Universal Credit for 18 months after leaving a specialist educational needs college in London before the end of his course.
After meeting the young man and his family, talking about his interests and ambitions it was clear to see he had a passion for creative media, having joined a movie club in the local area aimed at those with additional needs.
To help meet his ambition to explore the creative world, the hub connected him with the media team at the college to talk more about the creative courses, the opportunities in the sector and how the college could support him through his course.
The hub team worked with the customer and his family to provide the extra support to make the move back into learning as seamless as possible.
Whether it was taking the time to listen to his story and interests, setting up the one-to-one meeting with the media team or understanding his additional needs the hub's bespoke expert advice ensured the customer felt secure and supported to move back into education.
The young man successfully enrolled onto the creative media course at Brooklands College where he will receive support from the additional learning support team which will help him settle into the college and give him everything he needs to successfully complete his course.
The help and advice is free to 16-24 year olds in the borough.