Kickstart

The Kickstart Scheme is a 6 month paid job with a local employer, funded by the Government. It provides a fully funded opportunity for young people to gain experience of working in some of Britain’s most exciting companies.

The Kickstart Scheme was announced by the Chancellor in the Summer and will offer hundreds of thousands of job opportunities over the next two years. A £2 billion pot is available to fully fund exciting positions with businesses across Britain.

Jobs from the Kickstart Scheme are open to 16-24 year olds, who are claiming Universal Credit and are at risk of long-term unemployment.

How to apply

You can apply for a Kickstart Scheme grant through ourselves, just send us a message through the contact below and we’ll get the ball rolling.

What you’ll get

You’ll get £1,500 funding per job. This should be spent on setup costs and supporting the young person to develop their employability skills.

For example:

  • Training and employability support (provided by you and Itec)
  • IT equipment and software
  • Uniform or Personal Protective Equipment

DWP may ask you for your records to show that you’ve spent the funding on setup costs and supporting the young person’s employability.

The funding covers:

Employers can pay a higher wage and for more hours but the funding will not cover this.

Job criteria

The jobs created with Kickstart Scheme funding must be new jobs. They must not:

  • Replace existing or planned vacancies
  • Cause existing employees, apprentices, or contractors to lose work or reduce their working hours

The jobs must:

For each job, you must help the young person become more employable. This could include:

  • Looking for long-term work, including career advice and setting goals
  • Support with curriculum vitae (CV) and interview preparations
  • Developing their skills in the workplace

What you need to provide

You will need:

  • Your Companies House reference number, Charity Commission number or Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator number, if you have one
  • Your organisation address and contact details
  • Details of the jobs and their location

How you will support young people to become more employable

Tell us:

  • What support will be offered (for example helping them with writing their CV and preparing for an interview)
  • When you will provide this support (for example halfway through their job or towards the end)
  • How many hours it will take
  • Who will provide the support (for example you may already have a pre-existing relationship with training providers)
  • How you will monitor this support
  • How the young person can provide feedback during their job and afterwards, and how this will be acted on

You get £1,500 funding per job for setup costs and support. If you someone else helps you do some of this, you’ll have to agree how you will share this money.

How the funding is calculated for each young person

The calculation is:

  • 25 hours each week at National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage (depending on their age at the end of the job*) multiplied by 26 weeks
  • National Insurance and workplace pension contributions are added to this amount
  • the £1,500 funding for setup costs is then added to this amount

 

Get in touch

Learner Jamie Hopkins at a construction workshop