Run by industry magazine Inside Housing, the awards shine a spotlight on the exceptional work going on across the country’s housing sector – from tackling homelessness to pioneering new technology.
Northwards won the ‘Resident employment and training award (<15,000 homes)’ for the success of yes. Originally established by Northwards and Manchester City Council in 2013, yes (Your Employment Service) is a community interest company that helps north Manchester residents find jobs, launch businesses and take advantage of training opportunities. The social enterprise was created as a subsidiary of Northwards to encourage, inspire and equip local people and help minimise the impact of welfare reform on our tenants.
The yes team help people in some of the most challenging areas of Manchester. In the 2019 Index of Multiple Deprivation results, over 13% of the homes Northwards manages are within the bottom 1% most deprived areas nationally. Over 66% of our homes fall within the bottom 10%.
Despite these challenges, yes has achieved some amazing results. Over the last seven years, yes has grown to run three centres in Newton Heath, Higher Blackley and Collyhurst. In 2018/19, they supported 235 people into employment, training or volunteering, 20% of whom had been out of work for over two years. The three centres had nearly 20,000 visits between them with over 1,100 new clients registering. Using the HACT social value calculator, for every £1 spent, yes generated £38 in social value.
The last two years in particular have seen yes spearhead some life-changing initiatives. Working alongside partners like Prosper Associates and UnLtd, yes has helped local start-up businesses get off the ground by running bespoke courses and a small grants programme.
Such examples include Althea, Kathy and Stuart – you can watch each of them explain how yes helped them launch their own companies below:
And by partnering with Procure Plus, yes and Northwards have created a construction training academy in Collyhurst, right in the heart of the proposed Northern Gateway area. With funding from the Department for Education, ‘The Cube’ supports those furthest away from employment into opportunities created within Manchester’s booming construction industry.
Despite the pandemic, yes continues to help clients with dedicated support, offering one-to-one appointments in person or over the phone. More and more opportunities are publicised through yesmanchester.co.uk. The Cube continues to produce qualified students landing jobs with local employers. And preparations are being made for another start-up business course, launching in January 2021.
Sheila Sturgeon, CEO of yes said: “The pandemic means that the need for yes to support individuals and communities is greater than ever.
“Whenever there is a recession of any description, the people who are hurt the most are the people that haven’t been able to get the agility to switch careers at the flick of a switch, that need to update their skills.
“yes will be at the centre of helping our communities cope with, and recover from, the difficulties we’re going to face.”
Apply now for Financial support for your business.
Grants and other financial support are available for businesses that have been impacted by COVID-19.
Find out if you are eligible and how to apply here:
There are also other business support schemes available.
Consultation regarding the first phase of new development in Collyhurst Village began 16th September 2020 and runs until 16th October 2020. A copy of the leaflet has been sent to every home in Collyhurst.
Consultation is all online via a virtual exhibition, but copies of material can be posted out to tenants who can’t access online content.
You can comment too via the website (https://www.collyhurst-regeneration.co.uk/) which went live from 16th September.
An online information and support event is being held on 18th August to help small organisations apply. To register for this event, click here.