Gloucestershire County Council to invest £2m to help jobseekers

Gloucestershire County Council is to invest more than £2 million to help over 4,000 adults to develop new skills, find a job, or gain an apprenticeship.

The council has set up a funding agreement with the Skills Funding Agency for the service, which will provide a number of opportunities for adults with low skill levels.

Educational

The funding will go towards providing courses to help adults achieve qualifications, focusing on maths, English, and vocational skills.

The scheme, which will begin in the next academic year, will concentrate on adults that have the greatest educational needs.

Past research has highlighted the benefits of learning new skills, with one survey from 2014 showing that over 80 per cent of people who took part in community learning courses felt that they had improved their chances of securing a job.

The survey also showed that learning can help to boost confidence and wellbeing, with over 60 per cent of people stating that their self-confidence had improved and over 50 per cent feeling as though it had a positive impact on their health.

Skills

Commenting on the grant provided by the Funding Skills Agency, Head of Extended Learning Peter Holmes said that it “enables the council to provide learning opportunities and skills for those wanting greater independence, those seeking work and those wanting to improve their basic skills in work.”

He added that the grant also helps the council to provide the skills infrastructure that is needed to help the economy thrive in Gloucestershire.