Monday November 9th 2020
Midlothian Council is to offer up to 30 young people job placements of no less than six months at £10.04 per hour as part of the government’s Kickstart scheme.
The council will also support third sector partners to place up to 30 more young people in areas such as early learning and community care.
Midlothian Council’s Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Councillor Russell Imrie said: “The career opportunities of our young people have been significantly impacted by the COVID pandemic.
“By participating in the Kickstart scheme and as Midlothian’s largest employer, we are increasing the life chances of our young people by providing the opportunity to gain new skills and knowledge vital for their future success while earning money to inject back into the local economy.”
To qualify for the scheme the young person must be:
– aged between 16-24
– claiming universal credit
The Kickstart Scheme is a £2 billion fund, announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak in July 2020, with the aim of creating hundreds of thousands of high quality 6-month work placements for young people who have lost jobs and opportunities because of coronavirus.
The young people will be offered a placement of a minimum of 25 hours a week for six months. They will be paid £10.04 an hour.
Placements will not require extensive training beforehand and young people will also learn vital skills such as writing a CV, how to prepare for an interview and other career advice.
All employers in Midlothian can take part in the scheme. The minimum number of placements is 30 and small organisations which have fewer places available than that figure can partner with other similar employers to make up the total number.
Employers will get £1,500 funding per job placement for setup costs and to support the young person develop their employability skills. The fund will also pay 100% of the relevant National Minimum Wage (or the national living wage depending on the age of the participant) for 25 hours a week for a total of 6 months; associated employer National Insurance contributions; and employer minimum automatic pension enrolment contributions.
The council will now identify services with placement opportunities and it will give more information about how to apply in coming weeks.
Find out more about the scheme
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