Havering Works helps over 400 residents in successful first year
Havering Works, the employment and skills service run by Havering Council, has celebrated its first year, assisting more than 400 residents to overcome barriers to employment.
Funded by Havering Council, the Department for Work and Pensions, and a number of other sources, Havering Works aims to ensure Havering residents can find work and have the opportunity to benefit from local developments.
The service is client-centred, offering bespoke one-to-one support, including job searches, CV-building, interview preparation, and matching candidates to suitable opportunities for work, training or specialist organisations.
In addition, the employment and skills team has spearheaded a number of projects to support key priority residents and groups.
The Havering Works Assessment and Income project, an initiative helping Havering residents affected by the introduction of the benefits cap. In the last year, the project has helped 95 individuals, 34 of which have gone on to find employment and training opportunities.
The Havering Works Homelessness project has been running since April 2019 and has registered 67 homeless or rough sleeping residents, supporting them to find employment and move on with their lives. As a result of the project, 33 homeless individuals have now entered employment or training opportunities.
One recent success story is 29-year-old Troy Short, who was referred by the team to participate in the Building Futures programme, run by the Havering and Wates Residential 12 Estates regeneration joint venture, giving him the skills needed to complete the industry-standard Provisional Construction Skill Certification Scheme (CSCS) test. Troy, who was living in a homeless shelter at the time, now has a three-year apprenticeship with Kilnbridge Construction, which will culminate in a full-time job.
Councillor Damian White, Leader of Havering Council, said:
“It is heartening to see that Havering Works has helped so many people in such a short space of time. Helping residents to fulfil their full potential is at the heart of what the Council does, and this includes supporting them to improve their confidence and skills, and find work.”