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Three new clients for SignedUp Skills in Worcestershire, the Midlands and Essex

News Published on 22 April 2021

More residents across the UK can now benefit from an online portal to find local employment, apprenticeship and training opportunities with the launch of three new SignedUp Skills portals.  

PDMS has launched the new portals in the Midlands (covering Black Country, Coventry, Warwickshire, Greater Birmingham and Solihull), Worcestershire and Essex.

The SignedUp Skills platform will make it easier for people in these regions, who have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, to better understand their local labour market and find new employment and training opportunities.

Fresh evidence of the impact of Covid-19 lockdown restrictions on young people has been highlighted by official figures showing the sharpest quarterly rise in almost a decade of 16 to 24-year-olds not in education, employment or training.  Data from the ONS shows that the number of those not in education, employment or training rose by 39,000 to 797,000 in the final three months of 2020.  There are also growing concerns that the national UK unemployment rate, currently at 5%, will increase when the Government’s furlough scheme comes to an end.  

The SignedUp Skills Midlands portal (Midland Opportunities) is also helping people aged 50+, through the Government backed Mid-Life MOT programme, providing support and guidance for those dealing with unemployment through redundancy or those looking to reskill.  Resources include online skills assessments and information on health and financial planning support.

More than just a traditional online jobs board, SignedUp Skills provides users with unique insights into their region’s growing industries and identifies the employability skills that are most in demand in their local communities.

The portals are also proving to be an invaluable resource for those who help people in their local community looking for work. As a result of the pandemic, Work Coaches are dealing with an ever-increasing number of clients and the portal supports their client’s job search efforts by providing an easy to use one stop shop tailored to their local region.

The three new portals follow the recent launch of portals across the North of England in partnership with the NP11 (including Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield), Hertfordshire, Thurrock and Thames Valley Berkshire. Currently across the UK, SignedUp Skills is now available to over 23.7 million people to help them discover employment and training opportunities.  

The Midland’s portal has been commissioned by the three Local Enterprise Partnerships, Essex County Council have supported their implementation and the Worcestershire portal is jointly supported by the LEP and the County Council.

Links to the portals:

Find out more about SignedUp Skills here

Topics

  • SignedUp
  • Skills Development