The project, which launched this September, consists of seven very ambitious mothers aged between 21 and 39 years of age.
The project was developed in response to a review highlighting the large number of lone parents the Charities had funded who either did not complete training courses or had lost contact. The funding awarded to lone parents included childcare, usually the largest portion of any grant, but we wanted to know if we should or could be doing more to support lone parents.
In order to address the problems one of our Grants Officers, Leah Haynes, consulted organisations that have extensive experience of working with lone parents. A key addition to the Charities’ grant giving was to offer non-financial support in assisting lone parents in reaching their goals. One of the organisations consulted was Dress for Success, a global organisation offering clothing, motivational and mentoring support to women returning to work. Pauline Murphy, the Transitions Programme Manager, was delighted to take part at the project induction day held at the Charities’ Office in Notting Hill.
The project supports the participants in achieving a nationally recognised qualification, finds work placements, offers childcare funding, weekly one to one sessions, group sessions and assistance in applying for paid employment. Leah undertook A1 Assessor Training provided by Advice UK in order to assess the lone parents for their NVQs ensuring regular contact could be maintained.
The participants attend work placements in both not-for profit organisations and local statutory organisations such as, NOVA New Opportunities, Nucleus Legal Advice, Connexions Centre, Dalgarno Neighbourhood Trust and Open Age. They attend two days a week whilst working towards an NVQ.
ILeah found that some of the local organisations in Kensington were looking to expand their own advice and guidance capacity because of the current national agenda for employability and tackling worklessness. After meeting with Liz Carboni, Training and Assessment Manager of Advice UK, Leah identified the Advice and Guidance NVQ as one of the most flexible qualifications to have. This was because of the demand for advice and guidance and the variety of different jobs the participants could apply for.
The project is anticipated to take up to 15 months to complete and the Charities hope to gain a better understanding of what challenges lone parents face. Leah believes there is still a stigma attached to lone parents and lshe look sforward to demonstrating that they are just as capable of entering and sustaining employment as is any other group.