April 2019

Author:Nils SchefflerUIA Expert

The USE-IT! project Journal N° 4

Project led by the City of Birmingham

URBANPOVERTY

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The USE-IT! project

Social deprived neighbourhoods – urban regeneration – poverty alleviation: Linking large capital investments with community skills and assets to combat urban poverty

Although Birmingham is a key economic hub, the reality of poverty and underemployment amongst indigenous and migrant populations is leading to increasing social, economic and environmental isolation. Therefore, the USE-IT! project seeks to identify and connect social, cultural and economic assets already existing in poor and migrant communities to major capital and infrastructure investments, in order to reduce displacement and maximise the economic and social benefits of urban development for marginalised residents. The building of a new hospital, local social enterprise structures and universities rich in cultural and creative capital will be relied upon to enable the population to self-empower in a sustainable way.

The model proposed will rely on Community Researchers, recruited among the local community and trained in research methods to identify local assets. Mechanisms will be tested in order to unlock the potential of poor communities and facilitate the creation of a matching skills service to enhance employment and encourage the spin-off of social enterprises that are socially innovative and resilient. The project will provide peer-to-peer support for communities, and act as change and innovation drivers to bring out bold and sustainable solutions.

As a result of the project, people in the communities will be supported to raise their aspirations and to access affordable educational and training opportunities. They will access job opportunities linked to the large investment projects planned for the area (macro-assets), and new businesses will be created and developed in the area by local people.

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Partnership:

• Birmingham City Council

• University of Birmingham - University

• Karis Neighbour Scheme - NGO

• Initiative for Social Entrepreneurs - Private Company

• Birmingham Voluntary Services Council - NGO

• Localise West Midlands - NGO

• Smethwick Church Action Network - NGO

• Co-operative Futures - NGO

• Birmingham City University - University

• Canal and River Trust - NGO

• Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust - Public Service Provider

• Father Hudson’s Care - NGO

• Health Exchange CIC - Private Company

• Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce

• Citizen Coaching CIC - Private Company

For further information

USE-IT! UIA website: www.uia-initiative.eu/en/uia-cities/birmingham

USE IT! Facebook: www.facebook.com/USEITUIA/; @USEITUIA

USE IT! Twitter: https://twitter.com/UseItUIA; @UseItUIA;

USE IT! Instagram: www.instagram.com/useituia; useituia

USE IT! YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCfZrYQBA87FsszE4JvhlZug/featured

USE-IT Zoom-in – The creation of social enterprises: Download

USE-IT Zoom-in – Jobs for overseas migrants: Download

USE-IT! 1st journal: Download

USE-IT! 2nd journal: Download

USE-IT! 3rd journal: Download

USE-IT! Social entrepreneurs programme: http://sohosen.org.uk/www.i-se.co.uk/news/use-it-social-entrepreneurs-programme/ www.i-se.co.uk/news/use-it-catalysing-social-change-in-birmingham/

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Table of Contents

1 Executive Summary 5

2 Interim results and further requirements for action 6

2.1 Identifyingandmappinglocalskillsandassets 7

2.2 Matchingjobskillsinthecommunitywithjobopportunities 9

2.3 Creatingacommunityofsocialenterprises 12

3 Conclusion 16

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1 Executive Summary

USE-IT! is a£3.13m (3,6 Mio. €) project byBirmingham City Council and one of the“Innovative Urban Actions” from the EuropeanCommission initiative. It tests new solutions combating urban poverty by linking larger capital investment projects (macro-assets) in deprived neighbourhoods with local community skills, talents and ideas (micro-assets).Itdoesallthatwiththeintentiontounlocksocialandeconomicinnovation and to improve the socio-economicsituationof thedeprived residents. Theprojectstrivestoincreasetheemploymentprospectsofthe residents and migrants by generating jobsandstimulatinglocaleconomy.

For an overview about theUSE-IT! project, thebackground,itsinnovativeapproach,mechanismand partnership as well as the challengesimplementing such an approach, take alook atthe previousjournalsoftheUSE-IT!project.

The 4th journal focuses on the presentationof interim results, lessons learnt and furtheractionsneededtoensurethelong-termsuccessof theproject. Because after 2 years of projectimplementation, the project has become well-rehearsed and new challenges only arise verysporadically.ResultsandthelegacyoftheUSE-IT!projectbecomeclearerandmorevisibleforthemainelements,whichare:

• Identifyingandmappinglocalskillsandassets(cf.2.1)

• Matchingjobskillsinthecommunitywithjobopportunities(cf.2.2)

• Creating a community of social enterprises(cf.2.3)

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2 Interim results and further requirements for action

The USE-IT! project consists of three mainelements:

• Identifying and mapping local ideas, skills and assets inthedeprivedneighbourhoodsofSandwell andWest Birmingham (Ladywood,Soho and Smethwick) through CommunityResearchers.

• Matching job skills in the communities with job opportunities in the deprivedneighbourhoods of Sandwell and WestBirmingham(Ladywood,SohoandSmethwick).

• Creating a community of social enterprisesinthe deprived neighbourhoods of SandwellandWestBirmingham(Ladywood,SohoandSmethwick) and embedding them in localmarketsandsupplychains.

Important for all these elementswere tomakethem known to the diverse target groups andexplainthebenefitsofthem.HeretheBrokerageand Communication Manager has been a keyprovidingtheUSE-IT!partnerswithprofessionalcommunication and promotion support. Forinstance,byproducingflyersforworkshopsandrecording results on videos and in socialmediapostsorbyco-producingeventswiththeUSE-IT!partnersandlivestreamingthemonFacebook.Inaddition, a series of films were produced topromote the project at USE-IT! events. Newlydeveloped social enterpriseswere supported intheirsocialmediapresence.

Currently a USE-IT! website is developed todocumentthelegacyofUSE-IT!,shareknowledgeand best practices and to function aslearningplatform.

Tosupporttheinternalcommunicationbetweenthe wide and diverse partnership a USE-IT!newsletter was launched, informing about thevarious activities and successes as well asupcomingevents.Inaddition,theyranaseriesofcommunication workshops to open up cross-partnershipcommunicationchannels.

The Use-IT! newsletter

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2.1 Identifying and mapping local skills and assetsMainapproachof“Identifyingandmappinglocalskills andassets”hasbeen todevelop researchandanalytical skills in the local communitiesofSandwell and West Birmingham throughaprogrammeofCommunityResearch.Twomainactivitieshavebeen:

• Skillsandlabourmarketsurveyreport;

• Community Researcher training and partnerprogramme, where local people have beentrainedandmentoredtoidentifylocalassetsand personal skills through interviews andsurveysconductedwiththelocalpopulation.

Interim results and lessons learnt

As outcome, over 60 Community Researcherswere trained and mentored, increasing theirconfidence, communication and social skills.These Community Researchers have conductedresearchwitharound175membersofthelocalcommunity.Inaddition,acommissioningmodelhas been developed, which allows accreditedCommunityResearcherstobelistedonanonlineplatform,andcommissionedbythewiderUSE-ITproject,theUniversityorotherinterestedpartiesforresearchtasks.

An important lesson learntwas that, if a largernumber of community researchers are to be

recruited, a good balance between therequirements for participation in the trainingprogramme(timecommitment)andtheresultingbenefits for the community researchers (i.e.personalmentoring)isneeded.Theexpectationstowards the community researchers to identifylocalassetsandpersonalskillsshouldalsonotbesettoohigh.

The Community Researchers are also a goodsource to get in touch and engage withcommunities that feel minority, when theybelongtotheseminoritygroups.

The USE-IT! framework

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Next steps and need for action

TosustainandsupporttheworkoftheCommunityResearchers itneedsongoingmentoring.Sofar,the mentoring has been financed through theUIA Initiative, which financial support ends in2019.Amore ‎self-sustainingmodelneedstobedeveloped i.e. through peer-to-peer support,whichisselectivelysupplementedbyprofessionalsupport i.e. from theUniversity of Birmingham(i.e.throughacourseattheUniversitytogetherwithenrolledstudents).

Thecommunityresearchersalsohavebroughtuptheideatoformaresearchco-operativeorsocialenterprise. To set up such a business, thestructuresandsupportservicesofthecommunityof social enterprises couldbeused (cf. 2.3), forexample for creating a business plan, to learnhowtorunabusiness,contractingissues,etc.

“Mentoring was not built into the bid, but turned out to be a key component to a successful Community Research programme.” Dr. Peter Lee and Dr. Sara Hassan, University of Birmingham

Progress made since last journal• There are now more than 60 community researchers working on a variety

of projects

• 2 community researchers have started their USE-IT! funded studentship for Masters in Urban Planning in the University of Birmingham

• A “Train the trainers” workshops was done to build the community researchers capacities

• A USE-IT! Community Day was organised

• A commissioning model was lunched, which allows accredited Community Researchers to be listed on an online platform, and commissioned by the wider USE-IT project, the University or other interested parties.

• Among the community researchers, discussions have started to form a co-operative of community researchers and to develop a business plan.

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2.2 Matching job skills in the community with job opportunities

The USE-IT! project aims to identify and trainlocal overseas migrants with relevant medicaland non-medical qualifications that could bematched with the jobs available in the NHS hospital, a major provider of health resourcesand employment in Greater Icknield. Themainactivitieshavebeen:

• Identifying local overseas migrant withrelevant health qualifications through localcommunity organisation, work clubs andword-to-mouth;

• Training of identified overseas migrants, inparticularthroughtheLearningWorks(aone-stop-shopforaccesstotraining,development

and employment opportunities within theSandwell and West Birmingham HospitalsNHSTrust),BrushstrokesCommunityproject,mentorsandpeersupport;

• Provision of personal services (languagetraining, support of accreditation process,work placements, hosting apprentice,jobplacements);

• Matching job opportunities with trainedpersonsthroughamatch-updatabase.

For further information about this approach,read the USE-IT Zoom-in – Jobs foroverseasmigrants.

Interim results and lessons learnt

Within two years, 208 individualswith relevantmedicalandnon-medicalqualificationareontheUSE-IT! clientsdatabase.143havebeen invited

tothefreetrainingforthelanguageexamIELTS(International English Language Testing System;passingitisaprerequisitetobeabletostartwith

Hanan, Doctor from Palestine

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the training to become a doctor or be able toworkintheNHS).15personshavestartedworkexperienceplacementsattheHospital.32areinpaid work in Health Care as an interimemploymentopportunity.6havebeeninvitedforplacement as General Practitioners in primarycaresettings.3haveaccepted.

It hadbeen feared that the surgeof applicantsexperiencedinyear1wouldleadtoadeclineinnumbersasUSE-IT!progressed.Butthishasnotbeen thecase.2-3newclients join the trainingprogrammeeveryweek.

Basedonthesegoodexperiencesandresultsthisapproachhasbeenshortlistedforthreenational

awards in the UK. The NHS Hospital Trust hasbeen approached by a TV production companywhowishtomakea40-minutedocumentaryfortheBBCbasedonsomeofthestoriesfromthisapproach. A local Member of Parliament andlocal councillors are also championing thisapproach,whichhashelpedbrokerrelationshipswith other hospital trusts and bring theprogrammetonationalattention.

The approach continues to expand: The BlackCountry sustainability and transformationpartnership – STP (that oversees all the healthtrusts in the Black Country) has set upa“FoundationFellowshipProgramme”.Itwillpayallthecostsforoverseasdoctorstryingtobecome

Progress made since last journalTheUSE-IT!approachtoidentifyandtrainlocaloverseasmigrantswithrelevantmedicaland non-medical qualifications that could bematchedwith the jobs available in theNHShospital:

• has been shortlisted for three national awards;

• is now being championed by a local MP plus local councillors which has helped broker relationships with other hospital trusts and bring the programme to national attention;

• is now working directly with four other hospital trusts – Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall, Birmingham Children’s Hospital as a mechanism for rolling out the USE-IT! programme.

2-3newclientsjoineveryweektheUSE-IT!trainingprogrammeforoverseasmigrants.

BlackCountrysustainabilityand transformationpartnershiphassetupa“FoundationFellowship Programme” which will pay all the costs for overseas doctor’s trying tobecomegeneralpractitioners.

USE-IT! is now working with Aston University to see if they can find alternativeemploymentpathwaysforprofessionswherethereisnotacurrentshortageintheNHS.

TheHospitalTrusthasbeenapproachedbyaTVproductioncompanywhowishtomakea40-minutedocumentaryfortheBBCbasedonsomeofthestoriesfromUSE-IT!.

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General Practitioners, as well as providingamentor,inreturnfortheDoctorscommittingtoa2-yearhonorarycontract intheBlackCountryoncetheyareinfullemployment.USE-IT!isalsoworking with four other hospital trusts asamechanismforrollingoutthisapproach.

Key for the success of this approach has beenthat the needed resourceswere already there!Allthepartnersrequiredtosetuptheemploymentpathwaysforthelocaloverseasmigrantsalreadyexisted.USE-IT!didnothaveto inventanythingnew. Instead, ithasbeen the roleofUSE-IT! tojoin these partners up, help them to worktogether and provide some initial additionalfunding. Key was setting up the partnershipbetween theNHShospitalTrustandsocial careproviderstohelpwiththerecruitmentofsocialcarestaff.Socialcareprovidersbenefit intermsof recruitment and retention. The hospitalbenefits from having a fully staffed service tohelp support successfulhospitaldischarge.Alsocrucial were the partnerships between thehospital and local specialist communityorganisationtobuildmoreeffectiveemploymentpathways that can engage traditional hard toreachorhardtoemploygroups.

An important lesson learnt is, if you want toworkwith large institution like theNHS tohelpunlock it as a local asset do not start with anexhaustivestrategy.Startwithspecificactivities,whichwilldelivermorequickly,willdemonstratequickersuccessesandwillbuild initial trustandconfidenceinanewwayofworking(inparticular

withregardstoseniormanagersandstaff).Withthis in place, the activities and partnership canorganicallygrowtotakeonotherchallengesandopportunitiesastheyarise.Inaddition,youhaveto be prepared to provide personal as wellemployment support to people arriving withoverseas health qualification because theirjourneys and life circumstances can be verydifferent. This can create an administrativechallenge,asanyprocessputinplacehastobeable to respond toand record journeysof suchvarietyandcomplexity.

To learn more about key success factors andlessons learnt of matching overseas migrantswith job vacancies in theNHS, read theUSE-ITZoom-in“Jobsforoverseasmigrants”.

Nevertheless,theapproachwasalsoconfrontedwith some challenges i.e. the financing of thelanguagetrainingtoensuretheiraffordabilityforthe clients. However, with the successes moredirect funding for this training is coming fromdifferent organisations. Another challenge isfinding appropriate interim employmentopportunitiesfortheclients(i.e.thatpayadecentwage, are still health related and are flexible)whiletheytaketheirlanguageexams.Here,theSocial Careproviders are important partners toprovide job opportunities. In the future, theFoundation Fellowship Programmeof theBlackCountrySTPwillhelptoaddressthis,too.Howingeneral the challenges were dealt with can befoundintherelevantchaptersofthe2ndand3rd USE-IT!journal.

Next steps and need for action

The role out of this USE-IT!model has alreadystarted.USE-IT!hasstartedhelpingotherhospitaltrustsintheBlackCountrytosetupthekindofcommunitypartnershipsneededforthisUSE-IT!modelandtoattractfurtherfundingfromHealth

Education England to finance the languagetraining. In addition, it is working with AstonUniversity,whorecentlyopenedanewSchoolofMedicine, to see if they can find alternativeemployment pathways for professions where

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there is not a current shortage in the NHS i.e.BiochemistsorLabTechnicians.

Anotherstep is toexpandtheUSE-IT!modeltoprovide employment opportunities for otherpriority groups as people with overseasconstructionskillsorpeoplewithhigherlevelITandfinancequalificationsforjobsintheNHS.

Despite the fact that the NHS Trusts recognisethatrecruitingfromlocalcommunitiesmightbecheaper(i.e.itcurrentlycostsabout£5ktorecruita nurse through USE-IT! and £31k to recruitanursefromAustralia)andleadstoamorestableworkforce than looking to fund overseasemploymentinitiatives,theyalsorecognisethatthe USE-IT! approach can take a longer time –particularly for clients with weaker languageskills.Thus, tosupport theroleoutevidenceofthecostsandbenefitsofthisapproachisneeded.For that, a company was hired to producea financial business case for other partners toinvestintheprogramme.

Further attention must be paid to a financialsupport scheme for overseas migrants. This isbecausethe livelihoodmustbefinancedduring

thetrainingandeducationphase(upto5years),like the training itself. This is particularlyimportantforpeoplewithfamilies.I.e.morepaidplacementscouldbeoffered.TheNHSTrustcouldretrain relevantmigrants i.e.asnurses for theirhospitalandpaytheirsalaryoveracertainperiodof their training. The funding could come fromthe funds that normally are used to recruitpersonnel from abroad (paying them forrelocation,findingahome,etc.).

Access to finance/loans for overseas migrantsmustalsobecreatedi.e.arevolvingfund.SincetheyhaveajobintheNHSinprospect,thisshouldbefeasible.

Also a sustainablefinancingmechanism for thelanguage courses and IELTS exam needs to bedeveloped and applied as the language is thebottleneck for the further forthcoming andtrainingoftheoverseasmigrants(cf.USE-IT!3rdjournal,p.20).

All the support activities could be combinedunder one regional umbrella programme foroverseas healthcare worker, based on theUSE-IT!experience.

2.3 Creating a community of social enterprisesTheUSE-IT!projectaimstosupportemploymentandthedevelopmentofsocio-economicactivitiesinthecommunitythroughsocialenterprisesandcooperatives, boosting “community services”through citizens and socially innovativeproducers; this linked in particular to the newhospitalandhousingdevelopments inthearea.Themainactivitieshavebeen:

• Raising the awareness and profile of socialenterprisewithinthecommunitiesinGreaterIcknield to activate locals to become socialandcommunityentrepreneurs;

• Provision of support and capacity buildingfor social entrepreneurs to solve local socialand economic issues by starting orgrowing social enterprises, cooperatives andcommunitybusinesses;

• Development of a Social Enterprise networkandOnlineNetworkingPlatform(SOHO)andsocialenterpriseconsortia.

For further information about this approach,readtheUSE-ITZoom-in–Thecreationofsocialenterprises and the relevant chaptersof the1st,2ndand3rdUSE-IT!journal.

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Interim results and lessons learnt

86 people have signed up as members of theSOHOnetwork.Around50%regularlyengageineventsandnetworkingmeetings.

Due to the awareness raising activities aboutsocialentrepreneurshipandthesocialenterprisestart-upprogrammes(FUSE)30socialenterpriseswere supported into existence. However, itshouldbenotedthatnotalloftheseorganisationswho have joined the social enterprise start-upprogrammesandreceivedsupportwillgoontoregister and remain in business. The types ofbusiness are very diverse from health/socialsupport, boat hotel, creative, food, to supportservicestowidows.Themajorityofthesesocialenterprisesarewomen-led.

Thesupportprovidedtoexistingsocialenterprises(themedworkshops, individual consultancyandopportunitiesfornetworking)hasbeenlessthanexpected, however the demand and supportrequired by the organisations has been morecomplex than initially thought.18organisationshavereceivedmentoringandcoaching.Forthis,

36mentorsareavailable inthedatabaseoftheSOHOnetwork.

To support the engagement and marketdevelopment of the social enterprises 4 socialenterprise consortia have been established. Sofar, they have developed 16 new productsandservices.

KeytoallthishasbeenthefunctionofUSE-IT!toact as broker: bringing together socialentrepreneurs, social enterprises and existingorganisationsandprovidingthemwithaccesstoexpertise,mentorsandbusinesscoachesaswellas access to new market opportunities supplychains and possible partner organisations.Because in social deprived neighbourhoods theoccurrence of entrepreneurial spirit is not verystrongly developed and they do not have theconnections to start and grow their socialbusinesses. Thus, the brokering and capacitybuildingtrainingisacrucialkey.

Bringingnewproductsandservicestothemarkethas been a challenge as the start-up social

SOHO Micro Fund event

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Progress made since last journalSOHO network

• holds regular meetings with guest speaker and time for networking;

• has 86 signed up members, 50 % regularly engaging in the activities;

• organised a pitching event with local social enterprises pitching for a £500 development grant;

• improved navigation on their website and access to downloadable resources.

Engagement and Market Development

• Further development of new products and services by the social enterprises;

• Pop-up markets, pop-up picnics, city drive, social enterprise festival and opportunities for awareness raising have taken place. These were used to support the market development of the new products and to promote formal and informal networking;

• Four out of the five social enterprise consortiums have been developed.

Social Enterprise Propeller

• Continuation of the FUSE start up programme;

• Promoting the interaction between new social enterprises with more established social entrepreneurs through the “New Start Stories” event;

• Organisation of themed workshops, individual consultancy and opportunities for networking to support the social enterprises;

• Promoting the availability of funding programmes to start-ups and supporting organisations to leverage their investments.

Business Mentors and Coaches Programme

• Mentoring and coaching has been provided to 18 organisations;

• Commissioning some training from local human rights organisation to improve the USE-IT! training offer to coaches and mentors;

• 36 mentors are now on the USE-IT! database.

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enterprisesneedtimetoscaleupandtogettoalevelwheretheyhavethecapacitytoengageinconsortiumwork and pitch for larger contractsandpiecesofwork.Alsoexista“grantmentality” that grantswill be available,which is oftennotthecase.

Tolearnmoreaboutkeysuccessfactors,lessonslearntandchallengesandhowtodealwiththem,creatingacommunityofsocialenterprises,readthe USE-IT Zoom-in “The creation of socialenterprises”andtherelevantchaptersofthe2nd

and3rdUSE-IT!journal.

Next steps and need for action

Afocusofthenextstepswillbethestrengtheningandfurtherdevelopmentofthesocialenterprisestart-ups and their consortia within the fivethemes of Built Environment, Food, Tourism,Retail and Health. This with a glance at futurebusiness opportunities (development of newproduct and services), especially in relation tomacro assets such as the upcomingCommonwealthGamesinBirmingham,thePortLoop development in Greater Icknield and thecomingofthehigh-speedtrainconnectionfromLondontoBirmingham.

The previous structures and activities werelargely financially supported by the USE-IT!project, financedby the EUUIA Initiative.Withtheendof theproject in 2019,new sourcesoffundingandsupportmustbefoundtocontinuethe established structures and activities. Thisparticularlywiththeaimtosupportthe

• emergence of further new social start-upsthrough the continuation of theFUSEprogramme;

• social enterprise start-ups to register thathavefinishedtheFUSEprogramme;

• existing social enterprises to become moresustainable,scaleupandaccessnewmarkets;

• development of new products and servicesandbringthemtomarketviatheconsortia.

For this, the number of mentors must also befurtherincreasedtobroadentheskillbase.Thismeansaswelltokeepmentorsonboardi.e.byorganisinganannualdinner/meetingformentorsor publicly reward them. In addition, formerparticipants of the FUSE programme might beacquiredtoactasmentors.

Anotherareaofactionisaccesstoemploymentthroughsocialenterprises.ThereisagrowinglistofsocialenterprisesacrossBirminghamwhoareinterested in providing work experienceplacements. It has to be continued to identifysocial enterprises willing to provide workexperienceplacementsand tofind localpeoplewhowanttohaveaworkexperienceandmatchthose with the social enterprises who couldprovideit.

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3 Conclusion

USE-IT! is, generally speaking, progressing wellandtheprojectisinthe“normal”implementationphase.WiththeofficialendoftheUSE-IT!projectapproaching - and with it the end of the UIAInitiative’s financial support - the focus of theUSE-IT! project is increasingly on how thesuccessfulapproachcanbecontinuedinthelongtermafter theUIApilotphaseandwithout theEUfunding.Self-sustainingstructuresaswellassupport and promotion programmes andmechanismfortheindividualcomponentsoftheUSE-IT!approachhavetobedevelopedaswellasthe “political back-up” for these has to beobtained in order to be able to continue theapproach. For some elements, solutions are inthe pipeline, for others these are yet to bedeveloped.ThelatteristhechallengeforthelastyearoftheUSE-IT!projectunderthe“patronage”oftheUIAInitiative.

To further progress with the single USE-IT!approachesnextimportantstepswillbe:

For the “Community researchers” todiscusswiththe University of Birmingham on their supportandinvolvementontheCommunityresearchlabbeyondDecember2019.

For “Bringing overseas migrants into jobs” helpingtheotherhospitaltrustsnowparticipatingtosetupthenecessarycommunitypartnerships,

toattractfurtherfundingfromHealthEducationEngland and to spread the provision of thelanguage training courses across the BlackCountry.Further,ithastobestarteddevelopingemploymentpathwaysforotherprofessionsthantheonefocusedonsofarandtheHospitalTrusttobesupportedtousethepartnershipmodeltoset up employment pathways for other groupsdisconnectedfromtheworkplace(schoolpupils,ex-offenders).

For “Creating a community of social enterprises” tocontinuewiththeFUSEprogrammeforstart-up organisations whilst supporting thoseorganisationsofpreviousprogrammes.Further,itneedsworkwiththesocialenterpriseconsortiumstodevelopnewproductsandservicesandbringthem tomarket. In addition, awareness raisingeventsandpopupmarketshavetocontinuetodevelop anddemonstratemarket opportunitiesforsocialenterprises.Existingsocialenterprisesneedfurthersupportsotheycanbecomemoresustainable, scale and access new markets. TosupportworkexperienceUSE-IT!hastocontinueto identify local organisations and socialenterprises willing to host and support localpeopleintothoseplacements.

Aboutthis,youwillbeinformedinthenextUSE-IT!journal.Staytuned!

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