Figures show that thousands of Londoners were supported back into work during the pandemic through the job entry targeted support (JETS) programme, as London Councils launches a call for devolution.
The JETS programme was nationally launched in October 2020 to help ease employment troubles during Covid-19, delivering extra voluntary support to people with more than three months out of work.
An evaluation of the London section of the JETS programme found that, of the 41,000 people that started it, 18,000 successfully landed jobs.
Given the initial national target was for 22.5% of JETS programme participants to find work, performance in London significantly exceeded this – often between 150-200% higher than the target.
“This shows just what London boroughs can do at a local level when given powers…”
The success of the London leg of the JETS programme was put down to a range of factors, including providers introducing:
- In-work support to help in the first weeks of a job
- Enhanced wellbeing support
- Mentoring
- Face-to-face and hybrid options
Executive member for skills and economy at London Councils, Rokhsana Fiaz, said: “This shows just what London boroughs can do at a local level when given powers and resources. We are keen to work with government to replicate this success in further areas.”
The support delivered via JETS featured help with things like CV writing, interviewing, identifying transferable skills and more.
“Our commitment to tailoring employment support to the unique needs of Londoners proved to be a gamechanger,” added Fiaz, who is also the mayor of Newham.
“It's not just about helping people find jobs; it's about transforming lives, and I am confident that the success of JETS will serve as a model for future work programmes looking to combat unemployment effectively.”
Image credit: iStock
