Some 20 ESF providers met recently in Guildford for the latest TAEN 50+ Matters seminar, the third in the South East region, offered to frontline staff.  Our thanks go to Linda Marshall from the regional Jobcentre Plus for support, including hosting the seminar in their offices.

Our usual roster of speakers was enhanced by Bindya Dholiwar and Nick Matharu from A4e in Slough and by Ross McNally, who introduced the Silver Academy project.

A4e came to talk about their successful ROW – Recruitment of Older Workers project, a two-year project in the South East region running to December 2010 and one that has already achieved its targets.  For more information contact Bindya Dholiwar (BDholiwar@a4e.co.uk).

Ross McNally presented the Silver Academy project, a joint enterprise of South East Chambers of Commerce and University of Surrey.  The project offers free help for 50 pluses in the South East who are thinking of starting their own business. There are 100 places and the deadline for applications has been extended into October. For more information and contact details go to http://www.peopleproject.eu/silver-academy-project-8.

All participants on the day were from projects delivering ESF within Priority 1.  Participants fed back that 50+ clients make up between 20 to 50% of their client intake, many saying around 40%. And the trend is growing - most agreed they are seeing more older clients, especially in the self-referral category.

When discussing the labour market barriers of this group, some thought that customers’ lack of IT skills posed the biggest disadvantage.  One participant (male) suggested that women in the over-50 age group are much more receptive to learning new things, IT skills being one example.  He said some older male clients are wont to dig their heels in and declare that they’ve never needed to use a computer before and they have no intention of starting now!

With similarly ‘determined’ clients that ESF projects may have in their caseload, it is important to show what they can get from computers: demonstrating how IT skill can be used in their personal life or interests (information, sports, holidays, travel) before it is used for employment related purposes.

Another participant commented that the significance of online advertising for jobs can sometimes be overstated: jobs can be obtained through agencies, but more important is the need to stress the unadvertised job market, which accounts for circa 25 per cent of vacancies – a source that could be particularly pertinent to older people.

Peter Pearson’s presentation about Job Clubs excited a lot of interest and some participants felt inspired to look at introducing this type of support in their provision.  Peter runs a Job Club for managers and professionals in Berkshire and he was able to offer suggestions about what to offer in this format. It is worth reminding ourselves (and clients too) that the experience older people have acquired, and their lifetime of learning, can be a powerful source of mutual support that older clients really appreciate.

Also, the coalition Government is intent on supporting Work Clubs.  (A toolkit is currently being developed by the Department for Work and Pensions; for more information go to http://www.dwp.gov.uk/adviser/updates/work-clubs/. The Work Club toolkit will also be listed on 50+ Works (www.50plusworks.com).