East Riding of Yorkshire Council leading the way on two Employability Wellbeing Service projects

East Riding of Yorkshire Council is leading on the delivery of two Employability Wellbeing Service projects alongside several partners following a combined £3 million of funding from the European Social Fund (ESF) and match funding from Hull City Council, Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust, Tigers Sport and Education Trust and Hull and East Yorkshire Mind.
East Riding of Yorkshire Council will work alongside its partners to deliver the two projects. Photo submittedEast Riding of Yorkshire Council will work alongside its partners to deliver the two projects. Photo submitted
East Riding of Yorkshire Council will work alongside its partners to deliver the two projects. Photo submitted

The Employability Wellbeing Service (A) project will provide support to over 900 individuals with mental health issues to support them to engage with or re-engage with the labour market, including those aged 16-25.

The project has two primary objectives:

○ To alleviate barriers to social inclusion and mobility caused by mental health impediments through engagement and managed interventions that offer better access to wraparound services and support.

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○ To assess employability and work readiness and to improve access to employment for job seekers, inactive and young people at risk of social exclusion affected by mental health obstacles through supported initiatives such as work experience placements, skills development and vocational training.

The council will work alongside partners from Hull City Council, Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust and Tigers Sport and Education Trust to deliver the Employability Wellbeing Service (A) project up to the end of 2023.

The Employability Wellbeing Service (B) project will provide training to over 450 employers and employees to assist them in managing people with mental health needs, offering support for businesses to engage in culture change around disclosure of mental health issues, and supporting employees and managers to have an increased awareness of how they can support staff and build a culture where health, wellbeing and neurodiversity is valued.

The project’s aims are:

○ To audit mental health, wellbeing and skills provision within the workplace and achieve measurable enhancements in skills and competences.

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○ To build SME mental health and wellbeing provision through training and development, promote positive culture change and introduce mechanisms to (re)assess policies and procedures.

These two complementary projects will run parallel with each other.

Councillor Jane Evison, portfolio holder for economic development and tourism at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said: “The subject of mental health is one most people have become accustomed to hearing more and more about over the previous few years and it is pleasing to see these projects providing much needed support to almost a thousand individuals suffering from mental health issues.

“It is also important for employers to engage in culture change when it comes to mental health issues and being aware of how they can become a support to any staff who are struggling. These projects will go a long way to help employees overcome mental health obstacles through supported initiatives, as well as helping businesses to assess their own current provisions through training and development.”

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Natalie Belt, Service Manager at Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust are thrilled to have been awarded funding from the European Social Fund in partnership with East Riding of Yorkshire Council to expand our existing employment support service and employability scheme, with an overall emphasis on improving health, wellbeing and lifestyle for young people and working age adults to enhance their work experience by being mentally and physically well and exploring opportunities to improve work-life balance for those seeking employment or new to employment. The aim is to work not only with people on a one to one basis, but to expand our offer into the workplace, providing a unique package of lifestyle support that will inevitably evidence an improvement in both mental and physical output of employees.”