Date: 4 April 2008
A ministerial call for a new working group
bringing together local councils and businesses to help parents
back into work and children out of poverty has been welcomed by
Haringey organisation Working Links.
The announcement was made today by London
Child Poverty Ministers Beverley Hughes and Stephen Timms. The call
was made during a visit to children centre in South London, where
local government is currently working with other organisations to
help more parents into work.
The aim is to set up a London Child Poverty
Ministerial Working Group, which will look at how best to maximise
opportunities for parents to enter and stay in work, increase the
take up of existing childcare, and other support to help
parents enter work and ensure that all parents have access to
flexible work opportunities.
The move is welcomed by Working Links, whose
Families and Neighbourhood strand work in the community to help
children, young people and families. Since the specialist arm of
Working Links was set up last year it has initiated a number of
initiatives and helped almost 1,000 families.
A pilot scheme in East London, for example,
helped more than 650 families in its first two months. The Parent
Champion programme has been working in the heart of the local
community to support families in Tower Hamlets. In a bid to help
more children out of poverty and improve the financial stability of
families, the programme has been helping parents to take the first
steps back into education, training, volunteering or employment. It
also helps them to access mainstream services such as formal
childcare.
Working Links was set up initially to
address the issues facing long-term unemployed people, and since
then its role has steadily developed. Through its belief that
sustained employment is the route out of poverty, it has helped
change the lives of many people.
It provides independent advice through
personal advisers to help local people looking for work. Each
jobseeker is treated as an individual and tailored solutions are
developed for each person and community. As well as helping them
gain employment the organisation also lends support with other
issues they may face that contribute to them being unemployed such
as a lack of basic skills, poor health or no childcare provision.
They also offer continuous support to people once they are in work
to ensure that they manage the challenging transition from welfare
into work.
Ends
For further information please contact:
Charlotte Jackson, Regional Business Partner
Tel: 07966 801 165 or email:
charlotte.jackson@workinglinks.co.uk
Or Nicola Doughty, Press Officer
Tel: 07792 445512 or email: nicola.doughty@workinglinks.co.uk
Notes to editors
- Working Links was founded in 2000 and
operates in almost 100 locations across England, Scotland and
Wales. It is a unique organisation that delivers services to tackle
social exclusion and poverty by helping disadvantaged individuals
and communities.
- The organisation’s belief that employment is
the best route out of poverty has helped more than 95,000 people
back into the workplace, nationally, and over 25,000 in
London.
- It is a public-private-voluntary partnership
between the Government’s Shareholder Executive, Manpower, Capgemini
and Mission Australia. It delivers effective solutions by working
in partnership with organisations including the Learning and Skills
Council, Jobcentre Plus, Probation Service, One Parent Families and
Daycare Trust.
- Profit is not Working Links’ driving force.
Its shareholders endorse its social purpose and are interested in
how Working Links can create long term value, investing in the
quality of services and the communities where it
operates.
- Working Links helps and supports people who
face significant challenges and barriers such as those who have
been unemployed for a long time to former offenders, lone parents
and older workers. It also works with employers and the prison and
probation services to help prisoners in over 20 institutions.
- By helping the most vulnerable in society to
improve their skills and help them move into jobs with a future,
Working Links can create a greater sense of social inclusion. This
leads to better health, education, reduced crime and brighter
futures.