WHILST these times prove to be difficult for all businesses in the county. I am proud to see two new programmes launched to help both businesses and the local community.

A few weeks back we saw the launch of the Careers Worcestershire helpline. With recent school closures due to the coronavirus pandemic, this has resulted in many young people leaving school with potentially no plan for what they want to do next.

This new helpline will help to address this by providing free qualified advice to any 16 to 24-year-olds in the county. This advice can be on the various college or sixth form options, apprenticeship vacancies and more.

This helpline is a fantastic tool to support our young people and I would encourage any readers with children to consider utilising this tool to ensure they are pursuing their career aspirations.

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The second programme, launched this week, is Worcestershire Jobs Match aimed at supporting businesses who are having to make changes to their workforce due to the pandemic.

This works by matching employers who are making staff redundant with other local employers who are experiencing increases in demand and require more staff. This will help provide people in the county with opportunities to continue working and earning.

Individuals can also use Worcestershire Jobs Match to contact the National Careers Service who can assist them with finding work.

These schemes are just some examples of how in Worcestershire we are working hard to support each other to keep Worcestershire as a great place to live and work.

These programmes will also be featured in the Worcestershire LEP’s informative podcast series, Making Connections. Learn more about these services and other relevant Worcestershire business news, on our website, wlep.co.uk/news/making-connections/

For more information on the Careers Worcestershire helpline, visit the website, .skills4worcestershire.co.uk/CareersWorcs

To get your business involved in the Worcestershire Jobs Match programme, visit the website, worcsjobs.co.uk