1 A growing number of TSIs are delivering volunteering towards employability projects and/or facing increasing numbers of volunteers looking for volunteering opportunities as a route to work. This workshop will be take an overview of the employability market then move into a highly participative discussion exploring some of the opportunities and tensions this places on TSIs. It will look at the competing pressures from referral partners, Job Centre Plus; Skills Development Scotland etc, who need short term opportunities for often hard to place clients; and volunteering placement providers who need committed and regular volunteers.

2 Volunteer Centre Edinburgh Brian Thompson Employability Service Manager

3 Global context Fewer jobs, employment migration and fewer funds to support job seekers

4 UK context Supply and demand Admin decreased by 2.4% Plant and machinery operators decreased by 3.9% Skilled trades decreased by 5%

5 UK context Welfare Reform Welfare Spending costs £220million per annum Total cuts on Welfare: £18billion by 2015 Universal Credit will launch in Oct 2013 Dumfries and Galloway Council North Lanarkshire Council West Dunbartonshire Council

6 UK context Get Britain Working Work Together Work Clubs Service Academies Work Experience Self Employment Is Work Together an opportunity for TSIs to fully integrate with JCP+?

7 The UK context is more people seeking work, less jobs, reducing state support and more qualified competition. The future demand will be for higher and lower level jobs therefore people will need levels of high skills for high wage jobs and basic functional skills for low jobs

8 Workforce Plus: an employability framework for Scotland The aim is for ‘Better Alignment of Scotland’s Employability Services’ (BASES) with five key objectives: Strategy to address local employability needs. data sharing effective assessment and referral Co-location of services. partnership approach

9 The Scottish context reflects the UK context and it is unclear how the devolution referendum will impact.

10 The Volunteer Centre Edinburgh Context Volunteer Centre Edinburgh identified an emerging market in volunteering and engaged with stakeholders to place itself as an important strand of a client’s journey to work.

11 Volunteer Centre Edinburgh City wide employability service Four local volunteering hubs in areas of high unemployment Mentoring service Voluntary Work Coach

12 What we have offered Since April 2008 City wide service has seen 1411 clients and moved 579 into volunteering The Voluntary Work Coach has seen 274 clients and moved 167 into volunteering The mentoring service provided services to 93 clients 104 people have moved into work

The future... The presentation demonstrates that the unemployment rate is not going to improve for four more years. Is this an opportunity for TIS to engage with the employability market and grow volunteering opportunities? What happens to socially worthwhile volunteering?