To ask the Minister for Communities how many placements for young people were created by businesses in South Antrim through the uptake of the JobStart Scheme.

Ms Hargey (The Minister for Communities)

Applications for funding for the Job Start scheme opened on 2 April 2021. Employers of all sizes, including those in the voluntary and community sector, can participate in the scheme. Applications are categorised by the Job Start team by council area. The South Antrim Assembly constituency takes in a large part of the Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council area. By 21 May, 33 employers with a base in the Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council area had applied for funding to offer Job Start opportunities. Some of those employers have sought funding for multiple jobs. My officials continue to assess applications and to carry out due diligence checks in order to ensure that young people who take part in the Job Start scheme will receive a quality job opportunity, along with the support that they need to develop occupational and employability skills that will help them to achieve sustained employment in future. My officials will continue to engage with a range of organisations to inform them about opportunities in the Job Start scheme. In addition, a multi-channel advertising campaign through different forms of media, including TV, radio, digital and social media, commenced on Monday 10 May 2021. That campaign will ensure that potential employers and young people are aware of the scheme and know where to access information on the nidirect and nibusinessinfo websites.

Ms Hargey

We are trying to use social media outputs, working through councils, in relation to economic development and job skills opportunities. As our social security offices begin to ease out of restrictions, there will be greater opportunities there. We are trying to provide information to the voluntary and community sectors, not just so that they can avail themselves of job placements but as a way of spreading the word about those opportunities. If there are additional and more specific things that we can be doing in certain areas, I am keen to explore those with departmental officials.

Ms Mullan

I thank the Minister for her response and for her commitment to creating opportunities for our young people, particularly in constituencies such as mine. Can she outline how many job opportunities in total will be created throughout the Job Start scheme?

Ms Hargey

Over 410 employers have applied to date, and 1,200 Job Start jobs have been applied for as part of that. To date, funding has been approved for 269 jobs as part of the scheme, and 68 of those jobs were advertised on JobCentre Online. Just over 1,000 additional opportunities are still outstanding for which young people can apply.

Mr O'Toole

The Job Start scheme is really important in getting young people into work. We know that they face a crisis coming out of COVID. It is also important that we do not forget about older workers, who will also have faced huge challenges through COVID-19. Many will be on furlough or will have lost their jobs. What specifically is the Department working on to enable older workers who face those challenges to get back into work?

Ms Hargey

To run alongside the Job Start scheme, we are looking at a similar scheme for older workers. We are in the middle of putting provisions in place to take that forward, and I am hopeful of making an announcement on that in the short time ahead.