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Lack of skills is keeping people jobless
ONE in two Wiganers attending a flagship back-to-work programme have insufficient literacy and numeracy skills to gain a job, and 21 per cent have three or more major barriers to employment.
These shocking figures were revealed in a report compiled by the Work Programme, a government-backed scheme designed to help the long-term unemployed find sustainable work.
Of those attending the scheme in Wigan, one in five are suffering mental health issues, while 19 per cent have debt issues.
Another 15 per cent of those on the programme are unable to find work due to unsuitable housing or childcare arrangements.
Only 23 per cent of those attending the work programme do not have any barriers to finding sustained employment. More than 44 per cent have two or more barriers in their way to finding a job.
In a report to Wigan Council, head of service Carol Halford said: “It is evident that being unemployed can be a symptom of many other deep-rooted issues that face individuals and families in these very trying times.
“A high percentage of our clients have mental health issues, but the biggest problem by far is a lack of literacy and numeracy skills.
“We are running Skills for Life courses to give people confidence in these areas.”
The Work Programme has adopted a ‘traffic light’ system to ensure people receive appropriate support, with unemployed clients being graded red, amber or green on a scale of readiness for work.
The programme is also working with outside partnerships, including health trainers and the Credit Union, to tackle problems preventing people finding work.
Employability courses are also in place to help people get to grips with skills such as CV writing and job searching techniques.
A self-management programme, prepared in partnership with the Primary Care Trust, will be launched later this year, in a bid to help more people to get into work.
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Comments
There are 16 comments to this article
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jamesjoseph
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 10:56 AM.I agree with most of what has been said on this site,it is a sad fact that educational standards have fallen dramatically over the last 15 years.The last labour government put in place a targets system and watered down the exams to make it look like the teachers were brilliant and the government also for overseeing this teaching revolution.Sadly we are now seeing the results of the labour years in government,they have managed to do in 13 years of mismanagement what the germans couldn't do in two world wars.The latest clown to lead labour is at present conducting a campaign against the chap who is running the rbs bank.What milliband is conveniently forgetting is the fact that gordon brown drew up the contract enabling mr hester to get these massive bonuses and i believe that milliband was one of browns advisers.You cant get more two faced than that.
MonsterMash
Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 11:28 PMJemmyH, I totally agree. It seems nowadays you have to have 5 A levels and a degree in diversity or some other crap just to sweep the streets. Truth Advocate, quite right, it is a disgrace what has happened over the last few years by political stealth. Up the revolution.
peckynebber
Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 05:45 PMTruth Advocate, I couldn't have put it any better myself. There are large gangs of shyster's masquerading as "providers" making a lot of money off the backs of peoples illness and disability. Especially the disability denial pimps at ATOS. The sickening irony about ATOS, is that on one hand they persecute the genuinely sick and disabled with their underhand tests, and in some cases downright lies, and on the other hand they are sponsoring the disabled Olympics at London 2012. Sadly, ordinary people are now looked upon as mere financial commodities nowadays, something has to change, and it will sooner rather than later.
Truth Advocate
Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 05:16 PMAs to “partnership with the primary care trust” last paragraph - the PCT fatcat staff are now looking for a new gravy train as it’s being disbanded in 2013; so after a decade of letting the Department of Works and Pensions (DWP) abuse very sick patient groups under so called welfare it now going to ‘help’ people ! ----------- basically this is same old, same old - subjecting very sick and vulnerable people to ‘cognitive behavioural therapy’ which is a non-science and internationally controversial ! ------------ Comment, No 5, peckynebber is the tip of the iceberg to what actually goes on ! DWP has even summoned heart by-pass patients to attendance, five days after being out of hospital from major surgery or lose money for non-compliance, nor are these DWP ‘decision-makers’ qualified to make such decisions or demands, it really is arbitrary, bent rules to suit a set of bullies that our MPs think should be inflicted on very sick people ! Likewise the IT ‘tick-box’ French firm ATOS and it’s ilk (the US courts kicked out of various states etc.). DWP is nothing more than evil manipulation and totally unfit for purpose; likewise the department of health and ministry of justice have been set up to empire build a vast amount of pen-pushers with crony profiteering agencies – as to people’s general health and wellbeing this has greatly reduced and most harmed by the very agencies that are suppose to protect it. What has happened to this country by stealth over the last couple of decades is a disgrace !
Truth Advocate
Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 05:11 PMThe “traffic light” system alternatively should be used to grade the parasitical quangos and non-jobs involved eg. profiteering (RED); corny and plagiarising (YELLOW); and finally patronising (GREEN) - talk about treating people as mindless commodities with supermarket labels (in other words, hey just work for free or starve, there are no jobs, but instead, at least you’ll be assigned a colour to indicate how useless you would be in the workplace ! that’s of course while we make lots of money out of running you down and pretending to do something about it – but don’t worry too much, Tescos will put up with having you work for FREE, as they save money in not needing to pay for regular staff minimum wage to stack shelves - ‘every little helps’ so they say. Perhaps now Tescos underpaid boss can have a DESERVED pay rise, (he’s only paid £6,000,000 – that’s only six million and he’s worth so much more) ! ------------------- So regarding the article, under FOI , exactly how much does ‘head of Services’ get paid - guessing it’ll be around £145,000 and they come up with this utter tripe !
JemmyH
Saturday, January 28, 2012 at 07:54 PMThe education system and learning has nothing to do with it. When I worked for Tarmac Contract Housing there were men who couldn't read, or write, but they could lay kerbstones like there was no tomorrow and picked up four figure weekly pay packets for doing so. ....... Not every job needs academic qualifications and not every school leaver can be an astronaut or a pilot, although, when you tell them that, they don't believe you.
Mistress Ploppy
Saturday, January 28, 2012 at 04:30 PMI'm not sure what this has got to do with either overseas students or the (albeit accurate observation) that GCSE is dumbed down from O-Level. We are talking here of people at the bottom of society being sent on initiatives for which they are entirely unsuitable, being unhelpful for both the course and the individuals. I would get that most of those highlighted would be doing neither GCSE nor O-LevelCSE in their day. They require specialised skills learning or culling, depending on your viewpoint.
Traindriver
Saturday, January 28, 2012 at 04:17 PMThis has nothing to do with if students wanting to learn or not becuase most of them do. The GCSE has always been the problem. the gap between it and the A level was far too great (although even A levels are now watered down compared to the good old JMB days) and in subjects such as Science, the GCSE removed the learning of theories from first principles and replaced it with learning why you need your loft insulating and which wires go where in a plug etc. Overall, the academic demands of the GCSE are not half as what they were at O level and today, exam boards are in competition with each hence the dumbing down of standards so that the boards make themselves look attractive. The education system has badly let down our young people of today
Workerbee
Saturday, January 28, 2012 at 03:43 PMAt post 6 why is it wrong to have overseas students at Wigan, I can speak from 1st hand knowledge that they are not the problem, the problem is the attitude of the students who simply don't wish to learn. So don't blame overseas students who pay a hell of a lot of money to study over here, and Wigan have had overseas colleges for at least 15 years. At post 7 the GCSE is not the problem, if we still had CSE and O levels we would still have this issue. At the end of the day if a student wants to learn they will do, if they don't they won't.
Traindriver
Saturday, January 28, 2012 at 03:29 PMWhat a sad state of affairs we're in when so many adults can't read or write properly. The education system has been broken ever since the introduction of the GCSE and the commercialisation of it under the last incompetent Labour government.
JemmyH
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 07:57 PMWigan and Leigh College is advertising for students in foreign countries. They are being invited to enrol in our colleges. Some may pay, some may not, but it's wrong. Some I know of have gained immediate employment on the successful completion of their education. ..... How on Earth can they hope to reduce unemployment in Britain when they continue to import foreign students with offers of lifetime careers in front of them? They even brag about their 'multiculturism' as if it's something to be proud of. ...... They're even opening Wigan and Leigh Colleges in Asia. No wonder they're having cutbacks here.
peckynebber
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 03:40 PMThey sent a friend of mine on the "Back to Work Programme" , 6 weeks after having emergency major brain surgery in Hope Hospital. When he got to there, he was made to sit in front of a computer for 2 hours, triggering a severe migraine and a trip back to hospital. When he informed the people of why he had been in hospital, the people running the course went mad at Job Centre Plus, and said he should never have been sent there in the first place as he is clearly unwell, The lovely Job Centre hadn't even bothered to tell them anything about his illness and why he was on ESA. It's about manipulating figures and achieving targets, nothing more.
Mistress Ploppy
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 03:09 PMOne has to raise the question; who on earth is sending these people to this scheme? If it is the job centre doing it purely to achieve target statistics, then the issue needs to be raised with Jobcentre Plus, as they should be referred to literacy courses instead. The problem is that with everybody being target driven theses days, it is more imported to get a paper result than to do the right thing. The next step is to look at why so many people are illiterate in the first place and do something about it.
Baron Von Thunderclap
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 02:15 PMWisewiganer: As Aria says, there are plenty of free courses at Wigan and Leigh College with regards to literacy.
aria
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 12:41 PMplenty free courses at wigan and leigh college and exams to take which help you get a job or at least chance of an interview.
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