Kickstart to employment
The Government’s Kickstart Scheme provided funding to create new jobs for 16 to 24 year olds on Universal Credit who are at risk of long term unemployment.
Alice House took part in this scheme and has given placements to 87 young people since April 2021. Each of these people were given a 25 hour per week, 6 month placement in a particular area of the Hospice. Placement holders all took part in a Workplace Skills course, provided by Orangebox Training and were mentored in their roles by Hospice staff.
Kickstart placements worked across the organisation, with roles in Communications, Maintenance, the Holistic Wellbeing Centre, Administration, Catering and Retail. As the first wave of placements drew towards the end of their 6 months, we were able to offer a mix of permanent and temporary contracts to 11 Kickstarts.
Seb now works as part of the Maintenance Team at Alice House:
“The Kickstart Scheme was a great way to get back into employment after losing my previous job through lockdown; I’ve learned a lot from Vince and Bert who I work alongside most of the time, which also helped me secure a permanent role at the Hospice and I’ve also met some great people so far here and it’s a job I thoroughly enjoy doing and just hope I can continue learning and progressing and getting better at.”
Rosie’s Kickstart role led to a permanent position in the Hospice’s Wellbeing Centre:
“Being employed under the Kickstart Scheme at our Wellbeing Centre was a great opportunity for learning. During this time, I had access to ongoing training and support – gaining qualifications in the field of Holistic Therapies – and was able to experience the variety of elements that are behind running a Holistic Centre. As well as this, the scheme provided the security of stable hours and income. I’m proud to say that I’m now employed at our Centre and continue to learn and grow here.”