South West Wales District

External relations

The External Relations team supports the district in a variety of ways:

• Internal Communications – Keeping people up to date with and engaged in, key Jobcentre Plus developments, establishing and maintaining effective communication throughout the organisation.
• External Relations – Development of Jobcentre Plus working relationships and joint delivery arrangements with employers, partners, stakeholders and opinion formers, and with local and regional media.
• Marketing – Marketing campaigns, brand management, advertising, PR, campaign evaluation, printed and audio-visual materials within a co-ordinated national framework.

We hope you find this information useful. If you have any comments or suggestions to improve our site please do not hesitate to contact us.
If you wish to discuss our work in more detail or the initiatives we are involved in please contact Jon.Smith@jobcentreplus.gsi.gov.uk

Contact details

Partnership working

We work in partnership with five local authorities including:

• Ceredigion
• Pembrokeshire
• Carmathenshire
• Swansea
• Neath Port Talbot.

Childcare Partnerships

Childcare Partnership Managers were introduced in all Jobcentre Plus Districts in 2003.

The main focus of the Childcare Partnership Manager is to provide much needed expertise on childcare issues – childcare provision and childcare workforce opportunities and represent Jobcentre Plus at a strategic level with all three local Early Years Development Childcare Partnerships in West Wales.

Since taking up post the Childcare Partnership Manager has:

• made staff aware about local childcare provision and employment opportunities in the childcare sector
• informed childcare partners organisations about the childcare barriers to work our customers report
• with the help of partner organisations prepare an Industrial Occupational Knowledge training course in Childcare for Jobcentre Plus staff
• co-ordinate childcare awareness events with partner organisation
• create more effective working with local childcare partners and ensuring regular two-way communication.

Early Years Development Childcare Partnerships

Our Early Years Development Childcare Partnerships in West Wales are:

Minaeron
Aberaeron
Ceredigion
Phone 01545 570881

Spilman Street
Carmarthen
Carmarthenshire
Phone 01267 234567

Winch Lane
Haverfordwest
Pembrokeshire
Phone 01437 776316

Progress2Work

Progress2Work (P2W) is a national programme to help unemployed people with previous drug misuse problems into work. This initiative reflects the wider approach to helping those who are disadvantaged in the labour market.

£40 Million for P2W is being used to:

• Provide additional help for unemployed people disadvantaged by previous drug misuse. The aim is to offer support to unemployed people with a history of drug misuse to enable them to take up or remain in employment and / or government-funded employment measures such as New Deals with the help of a P2W Provider.
• Improve the capacity of Jobcentre Plus staff to identify and refer, to appropriate provision, clients whose history of drug misuse has put them at a disadvantage within the labour market.
• Offer assessment to help identify the clients’ job goals, where this is appropriate, and the impact that the clients’ drug misuse is having on them.
• Give an in-depth assessment to help identify the client’s lifestyle, training and job goals, and the impact that their previous drug misuse may have on their achieving them.
• Offer specialist help, support and guidance to engage the client, explore their options and prepare them for a suitable route into paid employment – including self-employment – where it is the most appropriate route.

• Support the client to engage and remain in Mainstream / New Deal Jobcentre Plus provision, minimising drop-out and relapse into drug misuse. Where appropriate, referrals are made to additional specialist provision such as health, accommodation, etc.

Our partners in South West Wales running the P2W programme for us are in West Wales, TRAC and in Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Turning Point.

TRAC

Betws Park Workshops
Park Street
Ammanford
Carmarthenshire
SA18 2ET
Phone 01269 591583

Turning Point

228 High Street
Swansea
SA1 1NY
Phone 01792 642759

Cardigan and South Ceredigion Regeneration Project

Following the closure of the Dewhirst plant in Cardigan with the loss of 325 jobs and a further 200 redundancies by the Ministry of Defence at Aberporth, there was a united response from some of the major public funded bodies and a number of other organisations working in the area. The close working between Jobcentre Plus, Welsh Assembly Government, Ceredigion Council, WDA, ELWa, and Wales Tourist Board has meant the regeneration plans could move forward.

Across a wide range of fronts, from tourism to broadband and town improvement, to housing initiatives to cycling and walking, there has been a range of exciting developments. The revitalisation of Cardigan Castle, the introduction of broadband technology, the creation of a world-leading technology park at Parc Aberporth are all linked to our partnerships in the Cardigan and South Ceredigion Regeneration Plan.

For further information on the Regeneration Plan, please contact Ruth Davies, Cardigan and South Ceredigion Regeneration Officer on 01239 615 806.

Want2Work

Want 2 Work was designed jointly between the Welsh Assembly Government and Jobcentre Plus to engage with the economically inactive population and more specifically with people claiming health related benefits. Unique to Wales, the project is targeted in four Local Authority areas; Merthyr Tydfil, Cardiff, Port Talbot and Denbighshire. Designed as a three-year project ending in March 2008, Want 2 Work is funded through Objective 1 and Objective 3 funding streams with substantial support from ELWA. Want 2 Work is consistent with the government’s objectives of extending support to those who need help the most and the Welsh Assemblies Health Challenge Wales Initiative.
Over the four pilot areas, 1395 people have been engaged onto the project and 281 people helped into employment.

Contracted partners

We are currently reviewing our provision network and a revised list will be incorporated by late May 2006.

Labour Market Information

Summary data – 2006

• total population – 719683
• working age population – 406306
• number claiming working age benefits – 96949

Employment breakdown

• Agriculture and Fishing – 6.9%
• Energy and Water – 1.3%
• Manufacturing – 10.0%
• Construction – 9.2%
• Distribution, Hotels and Restaurants – 21.7%
• Transport and Communications – 5.1%
• Banking, Finance and Insurance – 7.7%
• Public Administration, Education and Health – 32.0%
• Other Services – 6.0%