Agenda item

Report from the Strategic Director of Adult Care, Housing and Public Health.

Recommendation:

That Cabinet note the proposed Employment Solutions targets and milestones for 2025-26.

At the Chair’s invitation the Cabinet Member for Transport, Jobs and the Local Economy introduced the report making the following points:

·       The Employment Solutions Service was created in October 2020, initially funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) programme.

·       Its primary goal was to support residents in accessing training and employment opportunities, improving financial circumstances, and broadening employment prospects.

·       The Inspire programme merged with the ESF, focusing on increasing residents' earnings capacity and opportunities.

• The ESF programme later merged with the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), running until March 2025.

·       In March 2025, the Council decided to allocate £718,000 per year to make the Employment Solutions Service a permanent fixture. This decision was crucial for providing long-term stability and security to the service, which had previously relied on national grants and funding schemes.

·       Since its inception in October 2020, the service had supported over 892 people in gaining employment and nearly 850 people in accessing training opportunities.

·       The report outlined the service's targets and milestones for the upcoming year, including the forecasted support from the Pathways to Work team.

The Chair invited members of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board (OSMB) to raise questions and queries on the points raised earlier.

Councillor Tinsley asked about the geographical spread of service uptake and whether it was more concentrated in Rotherham or evenly spread across the borough. The Employment Solutions Manager confirmed that while delivery tended to be Rotherham-centric, they did work in the wider boroughs, including Rotherham North, Maltby, and Dinnington, with a lot of delivery in community spaces.

Councillor Blackham referred to the additional information provided and asked whether the Employment Solutions Service would be managed separately or alongside the Economic Inactivity Trailblazer. He also inquired about the number of people in the team and the strategic governance group. The Employment Solutions Manager explained that the wider Trailblazer Program commitment was for four hundred job outcomes, with Employment Solutions aiming to deliver 144 job outcomes. They were recruiting twelve new members of staff, with the financial commitment for staffing being around £500,000.

Councillor Yasseen asked about the council's commitment of £718,000 per year and whether it includes existing funded activities or new funding. The Employment Solutions Manager clarified that the £718,000 was for the core team that previously delivered the INSPIRE and ESF programs, and the Pathways to Work Trailblazer was new, standalone funding.

In a follow-up question Councillor Yasseen inquired about the breakdown of outputs and the rationale for not including economically inactive individuals in the Individual Placement Support (IPS) program. The Employment Solutions Manager explained that the economically inactive cohort was targeted under Pathways to Work, and IPS was a niche program for customers in structured recovery from drugs and alcohol addiction, with referrals coming from the Rotherham Drugs and Alcohol Service.

Assurance was sought by Councillor Yasseen about targeted support for specific communities, such as the Roma-Slovakian community. The Employment Solutions Manager explained the programme provided scope to work locally and work was being undertaken with the Clifton Learning Partnership to help breakdown the barriers within those communities and build trust.

Councillor Allen noted a discrepancy in the numbers of registered individuals, those who gained employment, and those who gained training and asked if exit interviews were conducted when someone left the support process. The Employment Solutions Manager stated that exit interviews were conducted where possible, but customers often disengaged for various reasons, and maintaining contact could be challenging.

In a follow up question Councillor Allen asked how older people found out about the employment service and what support it offered them? The Employment Solutions Manager explained that the service was marketed through various channels, including community groups, job centres, and word of mouth. They also ran digital provision programs for older individuals to improve their digital skills.

Councillor A Carter asked if the internalisation of the service was due to unsuccessful applications for future grants and whether the service was deemed not successful enough to qualify for future grants. The Employment Solutions Manager stated that the core funding was awarded based on the success of previous contracts, and the numbers proved the success of those contracts.

In a supplementary question Councillor A Carter inquired if other areas in the country were receiving similar funding and why the government or funding sources might have decided not to invest further. The Assistant Chief Executive explained that the UKSPF was a time-bound fund and would be part of the proposed single settlement to the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority. The decision to bring forward the proposal for employment solutions was made as part of the last budget round.

Resolved: That the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board supported the recommendations that Cabinet: note the proposed Employment Solutions targets and milestones for 2025-26.