JETS comes to a flying finish

Unprecedented. Unparalleled. Unbeatable.

Job Entry Targeted Support (JETS) officially launched on Monday 5th October 2020. A time that saw hundreds of thousands of people displaced from work by the Covid pandemic, facing health and social challenges never experienced in peace times. Its aim was simple, albeit mammoth: get unemployed people affected by the pandemic back to work quickly.

As an existing provider of the Department for Work and Pensions’

Work and Health Programme, Ingeus was one of a handful of trusted providers with the expertise, scale, and connections to effect meaningful change in the tumultuous UK labour market through this new service.

Amanda Newell, Head of Delivery at JETS said: “JETS enabled Ingeus to do what it does best, enabling better lives by putting local people in local jobs. To do that in the height of a pandemic demanded new solutions, new technology, and new expertise. Its success is testament to the incredible teams who delivered it and the resilient, purposeful jobseekers who embraced it.”

JETS by name, JETS by nature… it was a challenge we responded to in type: mobilising quickly, professionally, and with people’s wellbeing always at the heart of our services. It worked incredibly well, in incredible times.

JETS has been heralded as the most successful employability programme to date, and its legacy will last long beyond the completion of services in April 2023.

A fast-moving back-towork action plan

JETS provided employability support including CV writing, job searching, interview technique, reviewing transferable skills, and confidence building to jobseekers receiving benefits and actively searching for work. [Continued on page 2]

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Referred through the Jobcentre Plus network, participants were typically newly unemployed and received support for up to six months from a dedicated Ingeus employment coach, with access to thousands of online resources, and an army of health specialists and partner organisations. It offered tailored, flexible support for people facing unfamiliar territory.

“I really feel empowered after being on the JETS programme. I felt listened to at every stage, they delivered empathetic help from the first telephone call. Now I’m back in work, contented and truly grateful for the support from JETS.”

Marlo, JETS customer

Of equal merit was JETS’ sector-based approach, supporting employers and responding quickly to local need by upskilling and pivoting jobseekers into available jobs – many of which they may never have considered.

“I took Groundwork London’s JETS programme over in 2021 and there were elements that required additional support from Ingeus. From this partnership we have been one of the top performers in London. Alongside this partnership our Employment Liaison Officer has an excellent working relationship with Ingeus’ Employee Account Manager. This collaboration has led to excellent job outcomes with Zara (pan London). Overall our partnership with Ingeus has been a complete success!” Nicky Bhatoey-Turnball, Employment and Skills Programme Manager, Groundwork.

Integral to the government’s Jobs Plan, JETS was backed by a £238 million state investment, co-financed by the European Social Fund. It was administered by the Department of Work and Pensions and devolved regional authorities as a separate strand of the Work and Health Programme. Ingeus delivered JETS in the North West, Greater Manchester, and Central London, and supported other prime providers Reed in Partnership and Shaw Trust in the North East and West Midlands respectively.

Ingeus supported more than 65,000 people throughout the service lifetime, and helped more than 35,000 people find work.

Supporting people through the unprecedented cost of living crisis

A critical part of Ingeus JETS was the Money Management Service. The Money Management team provided invaluable help and guidance to help people during the cost-of-living crisis. Most recently, they launched bespoke support for care leavers, during a time when 89% of care leavers have encountered challenges when trying to access financial education support and only 33% receiving support “when they needed it” (MyBnk research). The team created a presentation and webinar on ‘Financial Education for Care Leavers - Money Management’, which people can access for free