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Education, Training and Employment
This page covers Education, Training and Employment issues for homeless people. Many Homeless Link members run training and employment services or collaborate with other providers of these services. For many people, training and employment are the key to moving on from homelessness, both in providing a positive outlet for their energies and time and in providing the financial resources to become independent. Many homeless people have limited or no skills or qualifications. Some will be able to engage in training and employment straight away, while others will benefit from engaging first in education, training and pre-employability services.
What's New?
- Findings from our Survey of Needs and Provision related to young people , including the proportion of homelessness provision specifically for young people.
- See the new section on Education, Training and Employment on our Good Practice handbooks microsite.
- young people: /policyandinfo/research/mapping/topical/youngpeople
Education and Training
Education and training can be crucial to helping homeless and formerly homeless people equip themselves with the skills they need to find work. Helping homeless people access education and training is a key aim of Homeless Link's regional development work under the "places of change" agenda.
Crisis has published a report Homeless people and learning & skills participation, barriers and progression and a summary, Missed opportunities: The case for investment in learning and skills for homeless people.
click here for our Employment and Employability briefing
Employment, Employability and Pre-employability
- Read our briefing on Employment and Employability
Off the Streets and into Work (OSW) has published a conference paper Improving Homeless People's Access to Construction Jobs from the successful Re:Building conference in which Homeless Link was a partner.
Self Development through learning
The Certificate in Self-development through learning and the Certificate in Supporting the Development Needs of Vulnerable People aim to help homelessness sector staff and clients develop a learning relationship to help move clients forward in their lives. See our briefing.
Pre-Employability
For many people who have been out of the labour market for some time and may have chaotic lifestyles, pre-employability schemes, also known as meaningful occupation and activities are a necessary first step. There is rarely a clear line between employment and employability schemes and those aimed at pre-employability, meaningful occupation and activies.
Ready to Work is the key programme of Business Action on Homelessness (BAOH), part of Business in the Community. It helps people to deal with the issues that may have resulted in, or from, them having been out of the workforce for some time. Read about BAOH's partnership work with Homeless Link member Shekinah Mission.
Employing Service Users
- ThamesReach has a project called GROW (Giving Real Opportunities for Work), which aims to have 10 per cent of the organisation's workforce made up of former rough sleepers by the end of 2007.
Further Resources
- Homeless Link member OSW (Off the Streets and Into Work) provides training and employment services to people who are homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless, across London. OSW website. In 2005 OSW published a report No Home No Job, which looked at the link between unemployment and homelessness. A summary is also available.
- OSW's Transitional Spaces Project, provides financial incentives for homeless people to get into work and settled housing and operates in London and Tyneside.
- Research published in June 2006 by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation looked at the experiences of People in low-paid informal work
Search for other resources on Education, Training and Employment
See our Qualifications and Training pages for information about homelessness sector workforce development.