LoveLocalJobs, the job board aiming to increase the employability of young people, has agreed a partnership with insurance provider Hastings Direct to expand its programme.

The job board has this year worked with Brighton and Hove students, aged 13 to 15, to encourage them to re-engage with education and help expand their career prospects, in partnership with social enterprise Humanutopia.

Job board founder and chief executive Gary Peters announced the new partnership yesterday at Recruiter’s Investing in Talent Awards, where his company was a finalist in the Most Effective Employability Strategy category. 

He told Recruiter this three-year partnership with Hastings Direct would allow the programme to be extended to young people in East Sussex and Leicestershire. 

They are planning to help 720 young people over the three years. They will be provided with inspiring conferences, leadership training and work experience, leveraging the experience of Hastings Direct staff. The first event will take place on 24 November.

Peters said Hastings Direct was “going in with sleeves rolled up and telling them [the young people] what they are able to do, rather than what they can not do”.

He said the programme was not just about helping the young people become more employable, “it’s helping them tackle the barrier to the world of work: engagement”.

Peters is also talking to local government about other partnerships to target every young person in the UK.

For more on LoveLocalJobs, see the October issue of Recruiter, out next week. 

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