This project, run by Active Plus and supported by 17 businesses locally, aims to get over 18s who are unemployed work ready. They do this through a blend of personal support while ensuring they have the technical and employability skills to gain employment.
Karl Smith, Delivery Team Manager from Active Plus said of this year’s graduates: “The students from all the trade areas showed great maturity and got fully involved in all aspects of the delivery.
“Some students really enjoyed the team building tasks run by our Military Veterans, whilst others really got stuck in with the employability sessions led by our Employability Skills Coaches.
“A fantastic achievement by all, and what summed it all up was seeing their faces upon completion, while receiving their personal equipment. It looked like a reaction you may see Christmas morning.
“Thank you to all the staff and support staff who were involved to make this a real success and support the students moving forward in their lives. We look forward to working with Truro and Penwith College again.”
All of the graduates are enrolled in either Painting & Decorating, Carpentry or Automotive trade skills courses at levels 1-3 at Penwith College. Over a series of five workshops, they worked on a variety of different skills including CV and interview preparation, resilience building and teamwork.
In addition, each student was given a set of tools, relevant to their trade to help start them on their employment journey. The budget of £300 each was stretched even further due to the generosity of Jewson at Penzance, who were able to offer a discounted rate for the tools meaning that each student got an even better set of tools for the £300 budget.
This Who Dares Works project is funded by the National Lottery Community Fund and the European Union Social Fund.
Penwith College Programme Team Leader for Construction and Automotive Steve Piff added: “This is a great project for our mature learners to get involved in. There has been a significant transformation in the group as they realised the benefits they were getting from this project and the opportunities it unleashed. Our thanks also go to Jewson for giving us the tools at a discounted rate. The kits these young people have received today are phenomenal and pivotal in their future development.”
