Positive People
Community Fund Big Lottery and ESF Funded Contract, Building Better Opportunities
From the start Cornwall Marine Network (CMN) has been a key partner in the Community Fund, Building Better Opportunities contract across the South and East and Coast to Coast regions of Cornwall.
Led by Pluss, the Positive People Programme is made up of seven core partners: Cornwall Marine Network, Cornwall Neighbourhoods 4 Change, CHAOS, Active Plus, Addaction, Pentreath, and Lizard Pathways.
This partnership is providing support for Cornwall’s most socially excluded communities enabling them to enter and return to employment, education and training; helping over 1,300 individuals who are out of work to build their skills, confidence and motivation. This includes people with disabilities, mental health issues, ex-offenders, homeless people and people over 50. The programmes aim is to benefit local communities by reducing poverty and anti-social behaviour. It will also contribute to the growth of the local economy with employers having access to a pool of people with the relevant skills to meet their needs.
CMN’s role in the Positive People Programme is providing a wraparound employability service for participants, as well as working directly with businesses and employers across the region. Through its excellent relationship with all business sectors across Cornwall CMN has the expertise to understand the requirements and needs of SME employers; to act as a trusted broker for business whilst also understanding the needs and barriers faced by those furthest from the labour market.
The support provided by the CMN BBO Team has been wide and varied, drawing on their combined years of experience within employment support, community engagement, education, human resources and recruitment. As well as providing support for individuals to secure employment, volunteering, training and job search CMN is raising awareness of the programme to employers and helping SME’s and microbusinesses to see the benefits of recruiting a diverse workforce; outlining the positive impact this can have on the business and the individual. In addition, professional consolation has been sourced for businesses around aspects such as mental health in the work place and how to support an employed individual with a learning disability or difficulty sustaining employment.
Through working directly in the community the CMN BBO Team have made great connections with the full range of community support organisations and initiatives such as those delivering social prescribing projects, supported employment agencies and Konnect Cornwall, an organisation providing education, support, advice and guidance to offenders, victims of crime and to businesses. These connections have added real value to the BBO programme, introducing the other core partners to the additional support their clients may need.
