ALL-AGE CAREERS PROVISION IN THE NORTH EAST COMBINED AUTHORITY REGION
dmh associates, led by Dr. Deirdre Hughes OBE, is delighted to be working on the above-mentioned project on behalf of the North East Combined Authority (North East CA).
Purpose of the commissioned project
The North East Combined Authority (North East CA) was formed on 7 May 2024 and is led by an Elected Mayor and Cabinet and covers the seven local authority areas of County Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland, South Tyneside and Sunderland.
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North East CA’s purpose is to champion the full potential of our region. Collaborating with partners and local authorities, to create a better way of life by connecting communities, giving people the skills to succeed, and improving wellbeing for all, so that the North East is recognised as an outstanding place to live, work, visit and invest. Investing in job creation, good work, and a skilled regional workforce lie at the heart of the North East Mayor’s manifesto commitments and through a Devolution Deal with government, more resources have been secured to invest in boosting skills and employment, alongside additional powers to influence skills, careers, and employment support policy. This is giving the region more freedom and flexibility to support people to develop their skills, find good work, and progress in employment, and help our businesses to develop, recruit and retain the skilled workforce they need to thrive.
Key regional challenges facing the region include:
- Exclusion from the labour market due to health conditions, caregiving, or low skills
- Limited access to essential skills and quality learning for young people
- High prevalence of insecure, low-paying jobs
- Barriers for women with caregiving responsibilities
- Labour and skills shortages impacting recruitment and growth
- Regional and demographic disparities in labour market outcomes.
‘New Deal for North East Workers’, a 5-year plan and enabler for the delivery of the Major’s Manifesto, the North East (NE) Local Growth Plan and the five missions set out in the Combined Authority’s Corporate Plan, making the North East the home of real opportunity, creating well-paid jobs, and improving wellbeing. Community-rooted all-age careers provision can help address these challenges and support the New Deal for North East Workers strategy.
The local and national careers and employability landscape continues to evolve. This is an exciting time focus on evidence-based policies and practices, alongside innovation and ideas for improvement of services to support young people and adults.
Task
- Build a strong evidence base to co-design an inclusive, all-age careers strategy in the North East, preparing for a pilot(s) of innovative policies and practices.
- Shape a cohesive, community-focused careers support system for young people and adults, aligned with Mayoral priorities, central government pathways, and local priorities and devolved programmes like Connect to Work and the Health, Employment, and Skills Trailblazer initiatives etc.
- Conduct interviews with senior stakeholders and lead consultations with policy advisers, employers, careers and employability specialists, community and third sector representatives to share insights and ideas and explore best practices in all-age careers provision.
- Develop recommendations for potential targeted pilot programmes, focusing on location, targeted cohorts, and/ or community-specific delivery, for future funding rounds.
- Identify potential investment opportunities for the pilot phase and design an evaluation methodology.
Oversight of the project
Michelle Rainbow, Head of Education, Schools & Careers and Anthea Pratt, Skills Programme Manager at the North East CA are jointly responsible for overseeing the contract management and delivery. If you have any queries contact: [email protected]
Start and Finish Dates
The project will start in mid-June 2025 and is expected to be completed by the end of September 2025.
Agreed outputs
These will include:
- An Interim Report: A progress report in plain English summarising initial findings from the literature review and stakeholder engagement.
- A Final Report: presented as a comprehensive document to provide:
- strategic recommendations for pilot phase based on analysis of review of literature review (regional, national, international), careers policies and practices.
- key insights from stakeholder interviews and consultations.
- Presentation: A summary of findings and recommendations to inform NECAs strategic discussions involving politicians and other key policymakers.
For further information contact:
Deirdre Hughes, Director dmh associates, North Shields Email: [email protected] Tel: 07533 545057