New £13.25m scheme promises to help people from disadvantaged groups into work

A new flagship Welsh Government programme, which will provide personalised support to people who are not currently in education, training or employment to find and stay in work has been launched by Economy Minister Vaughan Gething.

Wales is currently experiencing a near-record low rate of unemployment as the labour market bounces back from the initial shock of Brexit and the pandemic but some people still face difficulties securing work.

To help improve the employment chances for these people and to tackle rising economic inactivity rates, the Welsh Government is investing in what it describes as a new approach, “which puts power back into the hands of people so they can find the right support”.

Opportunities

The new ReAct+ programme builds on the success of the government’s current ReAct programme and will help people, particularly those from vulnerable groups, into sustainable work and help them take advantage of available job opportunities.

The new scheme is one of the commitments in the Welsh Government’s Employability and Skills Plan, which was launched earlier this year and which focuses on improving labour market outcomes for disabled people, Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic communities, women, and people with low skills.

Support on offer will include:

• Up to £1,500 to support training
• Up to £4,500 to help with childcare or other care costs
• £300 to help with travel costs to make training possible;
• Personal development support of £500 to help remove barriers to work – including mentoring support to increase personal confidence and resilience.
• Access to wage subsidies to help people gain a job and subsidies to training when you’re in a job.
• Employers taking part in ReAct+ will receive help towards the first year’s wages of new employees, as well as funding for job-related training.

Launching the new programme during a visit to a Working Wales centre in Newport, Economy Minister Vaughan Gething said: “We have a near-record low rate of unemployment in Wales, but we are not complacent.

“We want to do more to reduce the number of unemployed adults even further, eliminate the gap in economic inactivity, and help everyone, including those people who currently feel a long way from the labour market, to plan and build a successful future here in Wales.

“Empowering people to access tailored personalised budgets linked to skills development and the removal of other barriers to employment is really important if we are to achieve this goal.

“We recognise that barriers to employment can be diverse and varied. React+ will enable people to tailor their employment support and it will be as unique as the people we want to help into work.

“It will help them with the hurdles they need to overcome – whether that be help with childcare cost, travel costs, mentoring or skills support.

“By learning from and building on the success of previous programmes, we expect ReAct+ to help support thousands more people across Wales into work.

“It forms a key element of our plan for employability and skills, and will help us deliver on our ambitious Young Person’s Guarantee – which is designed to ensure no young person will be left behind as a result of the pandemic.”

For support to get you into work, people are encouraged to call 0800 028 4844 or search Working Wales ReAct+ to speak to a Working Wales adviser.