Who to speak to / Contact details:	@Nicola March @Solange Barbosa Dos Reis
Link to SharePoint for marketing collateral and further information:	Internships

 

Growth Works with Skills will provide 200 -50% match funded high quality internships with employers, each for a minimum of 16 hours and maximum of 30 hours per week and lasting for 13 weeks. Interns are paid a minimum of the national living wage for those 21 and over and national living wage for those that are under 21. The programme is designed to give those further from the labour market and currently not in employment or training and with the right to work in the UK, more options to remove barriers and enable better futures for themselves.

 

Placements will be primarily focusing on the region’s growth and priority sectors: health and social care, construction, educational/ professional, Agri-tech, manufacturing, logistics, IT /digital and life sciences. Offering where possible, alternative methods of gaining work without traditional CV/ interview: including assessment task-based recruitment aimed at looking at skills such as: teamwork, leadership, communication, and problem solving etc.

 

Participants

Growth Works with Skills will open new opportunities and support participants to improve their prospects of sustaining long term work by gaining real world experience of work, skills & knowledge.

For individuals interested in our internships - Start shaping your future today with a paid internship:

Our internships help you get ahead in your career by opening doors to new opportunities, giving you hands-on experience, important knowledge, and skills you can use anywhere. Our internships are here to help you succeed in today's job world, you'll boost your confidence, and motivation, all whilst earning a wage for over 3 months, and gain great references for future jobs. Discover all the great things about doing our internships:

 

Make Industry Connections: helping you meet important people in the field you're interested in. These connections could lead to future job opportunities.

Get Hands-On Experience: and learn by doing real tasks in a real work setting. This shows employers that you're capable and increases your chances of getting a job.

Show Off Your Skills: and let you use what you've learned in education in a real job. This makes your CV look better and makes you more attractive to employers.

Boost Confidence: By facing challenges in a supportive setting and become more confident in what you can do. This helps you take on bigger roles and responsibilities in the future.

Improve Communication: by interacting with coworkers, clients, and others, helping you to explain your ideas better, work well as part of a team, and make good connections.

Explore Different Careers: by let you try out different tasks and see what you like best. Helping you to figure out what you want to do in the future and find what you're good at.

Earn Digital Badges: for the skills and experience gained during your internship, to show off what you have learned and done to future employers.

Gain Guidance and Signposting: if you need help or advice while doing your internship and after your internship ends, as you move on to new roles.

To find out more: Internships for individuals (growthworkswithskills.com)

 

Eligibility Criteria:

Participants that are not in employment or training and with the right to work in the UK, 19+ (16-19 if NEET) and:

• Have barriers to work,
• Have a lack of work experience.
• Are moving from Education to work.
• Have recently been made redundant.
• Have disabilities including Neuro Diverse
• Are long term unemployed.
• Are parents returning to work.
• Are economic inactive.
• Are NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training).
• Are aged 50+.
• Are Care leavers.
• Members of the Armed Forces community.
• Are Ex- offenders.
• Are Survivors of Domestic violence and abuse.
• Are those with previous substance misuse.
• Come from areas of multiple deprivation including central and north-east areas of Peterborough, north and eastern areas of Cambridge, northern Fenland (Wisbech) and the Oxmoor area of Huntingdon.

 

Interns will also be able to obtain “digital badges” around the skills and experience that they have gained whilst undertaking their internship. This will be provided by Region of Learning and help demonstrate their skills and experience gained to future employers.

All applicants will need to complete an Expression of Interest to be submitted to CPCA: Internships for individuals (growthworkswithskills.com), however, employers will make decisions about who they recruit as an intern.

At the start of each internship, Participants are asked complete a short starter survey to score themselves in several areas such as motivation and confidence etc.  These will be followed up by other regular quick feedback surveys by CPCA and reviews by employers on their progress. Intern in work support /signposting will be provided where required including further support if the Intern is not remaining in work after the internship ends.

Employers- Start shaping the future of your Organisation today!

Industry research shows that having interns as part of your recruitment pipeline is a brilliant way to find new hidden talent. 72% of interns secure employment offers where they do their internships; a massive advantage with employers racing to hire and retain high-quality people and build future employee pipelines. 

 

There are numerous benefits for the organisations that offer internships including but not exhaustive of:

Talent Discovery: Uncover and discover fresh talent through innovative recruitment methods, revolutionizing the way you find your next star employees.

Financial Support: Access match funding opportunities to recruit interns, opening doors to talent acquisition that may have seemed out of reach otherwise.

Infusion of Energy: Inject a burst of new energy into your workplace, fostering an environment of creativity and growth while building a pipeline of potential future employees.

Innovative Thinking: Embrace the influx of fresh ideas and unique perspectives brought by interns, igniting creativity, and driving productivity and innovation to new heights.

Mentorship Opportunities: we can provide support to enable your organisation to mentor not only interns however, also to your existing staff, nurturing leadership skills and fostering a culture of continuous learning and development within your organisation.

Expert Support: Gain access to invaluable resources such as our Training Needs Analysis (TNA) and personalized guidance from our Skills Brokers and the Growth Hub, empowering you to seize growth opportunities and propel your business forward.

To find out more: Internships for employers (growthworkswithskills.com)

 

Pilot and Employer Consultation

The Internships programme is due to be officially launched in the Spring/ Summer of 2024 starting with the pilot. There has been a consultation with 30 employers and stakeholders such as provision providers, Local authority Partners and key departments within CPCA. This ensures the programme is aligned with Key priorities and ensure that it adds value and maximum impact for all.

 

Organisations will need to evidence that they align with CPCA‘s core values, they are financially viable, can demonstrate corporate social responsibility and pass stringent due diligence checks. Organisations that join us in the consultation process, may (once passed the due diligence checks) be selected to be an internship provider. This will give organisations the opportunity to: employ an Intern before the programme is officially launched, take advantage of the benefits of employing an Intern sooner, whilst informing developments and improvements.

 

To apply: Organisations must complete and submit our Training Needs Analysis (TNA), designed to help identify gaps in skills and knowledge within the organisation, followed by a discussion with a Skills Broker to determine if internships are the right solution, and signpost to alternatives where they are not. The TNA input guides our conversations regarding organisational needs and the support we can offer to achieve current and future goals. Employers should allow 15-20 minutes to complete the TNA fully. You can access it electronically via the website or by using the link provided: https://forms.office.com/e/4cv4z74h4F

Employers will be expected to provide an appropriate induction for all interns and to provide/ pay for any equipment that the intern will need to carry out the role, as well as reasonable adjustments where necessary and any business expenses etc. Access to work signposting will be provided where applicable.

 

A review after the first week will be completed between the employer and the intern, followed by regular reviews of progress, and an exit review. CPCA will provide the documents for this which will be returned to CPCA once completed. If the intern is unable to remain at the organisation, appropriate references will also be supplied. Regular “catch-ups” with the employer will be carried out by the Growth Works with Skills, these will be recorded and completed on the Action plan, with further support and signposting where required.

 

Destination and Job Outcome tracking will be collected to evidence the impact of the programme, this will be gained from the participant exit survey and the employer. Participants will be tracked for 6 months after the end of the internship. Good quality case studies will be obtained from participants and employers to measure the impact of the project and further promote the Internships for marketing purposes.