This new scheme to help young people into work and to spur Britain’s economic revival, Kickstart has been launched by the Treasury.
Employers can use the Kickstart Scheme to create new 6-month job placements for young people who are currently on Universal Credit and at risk of long-term unemployment. The job placements should support the participants to develop the skills and experience they need to find work after completing the scheme.
Funding is available for 100% of the relevant National Minimum Wage for 25 hours a week, plus associated employer National Insurance contributions and employer minimum automatic enrolment contributions. There is also £1,500 per job placement available for setup costs, support and training.
Funding is available following a successful application process. Applications must be for a minimum of 30 job placements. If you are unable to offer this many job placements, you can partner with other organisations to reach the minimum number. To help smaller businesses, organisations offering fewer than 30 placements will be asked to make a bid through an intermediary, such as a local authority or Chamber of Commerce, who will then bid for 30 or more placements as a combined bid from several businesses. This will make the process easier and less labour intensive to apply for these smaller companies who only want to hire one or two Kickstarters.
If you are a representative applying on behalf of a group of employers, you can get £300 of funding to support with the associated administrative costs of bringing together these employers.
Kickstart is not an apprenticeship, but participants may move on to an apprenticeship at any time during, or after their job placement.
The Kickstart Scheme is available in England, Scotland and Wales.
Mr Sunak said: ‘This isn’t just about kickstarting our country’s economy – it is an opportunity to kickstart the careers of thousands of young people who could otherwise be left behind as a result of the pandemic.’ He explained that the aim is to give these young people the opportunity to build their skills in the workplace and to gain experience to improve their chances of finding long-term work. Businesses of all sizes looking to create quality jobs for young people can apply and there is no cap on the number of places. Household names including Tesco have already pledged to offer Kickstart jobs.
The scheme, which will be delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will initially be open until December 2021, with the option of being extended.
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