By Erica Watts, Head of Employment, Kills and Inclusion, Sovereign Network Group (SNG)

There are not many circumstances outside the registered social landlord sector where the person who manages, sold you or part-owns your home also offers support with budgeting, upskilling, CV building, job-seeking and career improvement.

But as Head of Employment and Skills for Sovereign Network Group (SNG), at least some of this support falls within my remit. SNG prides itself as an organisation on ‘striving to provide quality, affordable homes in happy, successful places.’ And with 84,000 homes across the South and South-West of England, London and Hertfordshire, we have incredible reach and with that, incredible opportunities to invest for the long-term, creating great places to live, working with customers and partners to support them in realising their potential.

The employability team plays a huge part in supporting SNG to recognise and value the position it holds as a social landlord, homebuilder and community investment provider, as we do not just offer people bricks and mortar – in fact, as an employability professional in this role I have the chance to offer real opportunities to people, helping them to realise their full financial and career aspirations.

The privileged position of being with our residents on their life journey, means that we can also be there when they need us, whatever stage they might be at. In fact, sometimes people don’t yet realise that they do need us until crisis is upon them and that is where the first of our challenges arrives.

Times are tough across England

There is no escaping the fact that financial circumstances in many homes across Britain remain difficult. In 2023, 13 per cent of households were considered fuel poor, but for those living in social housing this rose to nearly one in four homes going without heating during winter months due to rising costs. Similarly, approximately 20 per cent of households faced food insecurity in 2023-24, but this rose to an estimated 45 per cent of those in receipt of Universal Credit.

Those who rent their home from a council or a housing association are still far more likely to be out of work, or in low paid and insecure employment. Furthermore, statistics show that even those who are in work are still struggling financially. In 2022-23, 63% of children and working-age adults in poverty were living in families where at least one adult was working.

Focusing on the traditional model of ‘any job, better job, career’ often isn’t working, as many remain stuck with the ‘any job’ drain of long hours, low rates of pay and minimal opportunities, let alone having the chance to retrain, upskill or change career path.

At SNG we’re taking a bold approach – providing a customer-centred triage to try and identify the needs of our residents as early as possible, so that we can act proactively when working with groups that we know are likely to need support, but are less likely to ask for it. If this sounds complicated, that’s because it is. There is a distinct challenge in providing help without being paternalistic or overbearing, but this is why tracking information between departments – where relevant – means that we are aware when the first steps that are needed are in fact to support an immediate need, to help customers heat their homes, provide food or sometimes, both.

A foot in the metaphorical door

After that need has been met, this ‘in’ gives us an advantage in terms of building a meaningful relationship with our residents, using tools that other employment services can not and do not have at their disposal. Because we are able to take a longer-term view and support the whole household, taking the time needed to provide support for as long and often as is needed – we can add an additional coaching and empowerment focus.

Our driver is not profit or contract outcomes – or where we do have contracts they align to our values – so we can in fact ensure support is in place to help our residents gain skills and access work, but then also progress into better work thereafter. We don’t profess to have a perfect solution, but because we can offer support flexibly and, where appropriate remotely, which is free and supported with grants where required we are a welcome resource to many people, in a way that interactions that other providers of employment support are not able to offer.

With this advantage in mind we have taken a diversified approach, working closely with those who progress into paid work to ensure that opportunities for progression and upskilling are available, especially where people aspire to change sector or career.

Our emphasis on in-work coaching for those in employment, teaching brokerage skills so that people feel comfortable reaching for higher paid positions and developing opportunities and access to professional, career jobs in growth industries are all part of the toolkit that we offer.

For industries like care, security, retail etc…. the hours combined with lack of progression can prevent people from accessing better work because they have neither the time nor the funds to retrain, but the partnerships that we are able to leverage due to our size and influence offer opportunities as yet to be imagined.  

Employment support services, as with every industry, need to think more radically to create sustained change and long-term opportunities. This is why SNG are working in partnership with HACT on our ‘Green Employment Pathway’. Running until September 2026, the project will enable residents, with a focus on those living in social housing (circa 6%) in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP), to access advice, guidance, vocational training, and sustainable work and career options within Green Skills and emerging green roles and organisations.

This two-year project will support residents across BCP through a cross-sector partnership. It focuses on how collaboration in the social housing sector and beyond can provide innovation and opportunity with a focus on  green skills, training and jobs in local communities that simultaneously help reach the sector’s Net Zero goals.

The project will deliver employment support focused on green industries in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP), but we also want to use it as an opportunity to develop long-term, productive  connections with employers in the area. Ideally, this pilot project will bridge the gap between the training and paid opportunities currently available, while improving all of our knowledge and understanding of what ‘green’ really means.

Currently, green jobs are well understood to be a growth area with a significant skills gap, but the term is still vague. The UK government website defines green skills as “the knowledge, abilities, values and attitudes needed to live in, develop and support a society which reduces the impact of human activity on the environment,” but several definitions focus on technical skills to support net zero targets. Still others are broader, encompassing enabling functions within green organisations or focusing on softer skills and abilities, such as engagement and consultation. Some definitions are practical, focused on retrofitting homes, and training for activities such a heat pump and solar panel installation, and maintaining access to alternative power sources, all of which, of course, is also relevant to SNG on a wider level.

Although the lack of consistency in definition makes it challenging to accurately assess demand, requirements and skills gaps – it also brings an opportunity. As housebuilders, landlords, employers and community investment providers, I believe social landlords have a key role to play in supporting future job creation and ensuring that those positions and career paths are accessible both for those living in our communities and to those employed by SNG.

We want to use this project with BCP and associated industry partners as an opportunity to improve people’s awareness of green skills, green career paths and the options available to them and, crucially, to provide the practical employability support that could make these dreams a reality.

Finally, we want to use this project as an opportunity for wider sector learning and to develop partnerships and routeways that can provide real opportunities for people in the future. If you are an organisation that would like to find out more, think you can support the outcomes of our programme or would just like to be part of the conversation, please get in touch!

References

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2023/oct/29/fuel-poverty-in-uk-hit-one-in-four-in-social-housing-last-winter

https://foodfoundation.org.uk/press-release/families-stuck-food-insecurity-are-buying-less-fruit-and-veg-uks-health-divide-widens#:~:text=The%20Food%20Foundation%20data%20shows,Credit%20reported%20experiencing%20food%20insecurity

https://www.health.org.uk/evidence-hub/money-and-resources/poverty/in-work-poverty-trends#:~:text=In%2Dwork%20poverty%20trends%20*%2063%%20of%20children,13%%20in%202012/13%20and%209%%20in%201996/97

https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2023/11/07/what-is-a-green-job-everything-you-need-to-know/

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