A ground-breaking new “jobs pledge” for West Yorkshire was signed on February 18 by Gill Farnsworth Jobcentre Plus Director for Yorkshire and the Humber and Michelle Manson Chief Executive of BEST.

The signing took place during a Jobcentre Plus partnership event at Brighouse, where over 70 organisations gathered to focus on how Local Employment Partnerships (LEP) can help support the most disadvantaged Jobcentre Plus customers to find employment and fulfil their potential.

LEP agreements are tailored to meet the needs of individual employers who sign up to a jobs pledge. They enable employers to tap into talent available within their local community often overlooked by traditional recruitment methods. This is West Yorkshire’s first LEP where a Training Provider has signed up to a commitment to offer guaranteed job interviews for Jobcentre Plus customers who are motivated and  ready to work.

 BEST deliver training programmes for long term unemployed adults and have recently expanded operations to embrace working with young people from 14 years upwards.

Announcing the partnership, Gill Farnsworth (pictured left on photograph with Michelle Manson) said:

“I am delighted to commit Jobcentre Plus to this very positive Local Employment Partnership agreement and am confident that together we can make a real difference. I am also delighted BEST are playing such a key role in the Partnership.

“LEPs in West Yorkshire will play a vital role in helping employers develop their workforce and tap into talent often overlooked in the past. Through our partnerships we will help more and more Jobcentre Plus customers who are ready to work to achieve their ambitions and progress in sustainable employment.

“We now have the opportunity to work together to meet what is a huge challenge and take advantage of our considerable untapped local potential. To make our joint commitment a reality we will need to ensure all our people understand the agreement. We will need them to work actively together at a local level to prepare the right Jobcentre Plus customers, arranging training or other support and to actively promote the opportunities being offered by Employers.”

Michelle Manson said:

"I am fortunate to work with such a fantastic team of people, in such a positive partnership, aimed at making a real difference to our community. All of our 259 workforce, like me, are local. There are many other local people with untapped skills and potential and helping them return to work will be good for them, their families, local employers and our whole community. Jobcentre Plus is making it easier for us to get the employees we want and working with them in partnership promises a very positive future."

If you want to know more about how Jobcentre Plus can help you find the right people for your vacancies or help you find the right job for you, check out the website at: www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk