A project led by Cumbria Council in partnership with three charities has helped over 500 Cumbrians facing complex barriers into employment.
The Building Better Opportunities My Future project, funded by the European Social Fund and The National Lottery Community Fund, is set to close in June and is celebrating its success as a result.
People across Barrow and South Lakeland have benefitted from the scheme – which supports people aged 18 years and over find jobs and training – since 2017.
It was led by Cumbria Council for Voluntary Service in partnership with three charitable organisations – Right2Work, Women’s Community Matters and Cumbria Addictions Advice And Solutions (CADAS).
In February, the project hosted its final stakeholder events at the Abbey House Hotel in Barrow and Castle Green Hotel in Kendal, to share learning from its final evaluation undertaken by Adam Pearson and Emma Slater from PS Research and to commemorate the success of the project.
Cumbria CVS’ Chair Mike Taylor, CEO David Allen and operations manager Alison Phillips opened the events and praised the work undertaken by the partnership, reflecting on the challenges, and discussed continuation funding through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
PS Research presented statistics demonstrating the continued need for the project, outlined the challenges faced by project participants and the partnership alike, and highlighted useful learning.
Lord Lieutenant Claire Hensman drew the Barrow event to a close with a speech highlighting the importance of securing funding to allow the project to continue to help local people address complex barriers to unemployment.
BBO My Future Project manager Natalia Wealleans-Turner said the project had made a quantifiable impact locally and that an independent calculation in 2021 showed that every £1 invested in the project has yielded an indicative social return on investment of £3.37.
She added: “The project doesn’t just aim to help people into employment, we also help them to improve their mental health well-being, confidence and autonomy, which in turn helps them become more employment ready.”
She explained that the project delivered a range of activities to support participants to improve skills, reduce social isolation and to meet new people and try new things.
Activities included weekly cooking on a budget sessions, Llama walking and photography workshops.
