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Kickstart Scheme

The Kickstart Scheme provides funding to employers to create job placements for 16 to 24 year olds in receipt of Universal Credit Benefit. To support businesses and organisations to access the Kickstart scheme Business Sense Associates has become a Kickstart Gateway Organisation. Our service is free to use.

We will

• Apply to the Kickstart scheme on your behalf
• Check your job opportunity is eligible for the scheme and submit an application to DWP
• Work with you to help you provide the information required by DWP to successfully claim payments from the scheme
• Support you for the 6 months of the scheme

Additionally Business Sense Associates can offer services to help you to meet the jobsearch and training support requirements of the scheme. Costs for training vary, should you require them.

If you are creating opportunities for a young person with a disability or health condition we can signpost you to advice on how the Access to Work scheme can support you as well.

What is the Kickstart scheme?

The Kickstart scheme, you can create six-month job placements for young people aged 16-24 years who are on Universal Credit and are at risk of long-term unemployment.

The job placements you create should encourage workers to develop skills and experience that will be useful to them in the jobs they undertake after the job placement.

How does the Kickstart scheme work?

Funding will cover 100 per cent of the relevant National Minimum Wage for 25 hours a week along with associated National Insurance contributions and the employer's minimum automatic enrolment contributions. You will need to provide evidence of this expenditure to reclaim from the scheme.

A sum of £1,500 per job is also available for set-up costs, support and training

You'll get the funding if your application is successful. First you have to register with a Gateway Organisation such as ours before you do anything else.Though the scheme itself isn't an apprenticeship, young people can move onto an apprenticeship at any time during or after their placement.

Am I eligible?

Any business or organisation can apply for the funding, no matter the size, as long as the jobs that are being created are new.

They can't replace existing or planned vacancies, nor can they cause existing employees or contractors to lose or reduce their employment.

The roles that you create must be:

• A minimum of 25 hours per week, for six months
• Paid at least the National Minimum Wage for their age group, since April 2021 the rate is:
-23 and over Rate £8.91
-21-22 Year Old Rate £8.36
-18-20 Year Old Rate £6.56
-16-17 Year Old Rate £4.30
• Should not require people to undertake extensive training before they begin the job placement

What's more, each application should outline just how the placement will develop the young person's skills and experience, including:

• Support to look for long-term work, including career advice and setting goals
• Support with CV and interview preparations
• Support for the young person with basic skills, such as attendance, timekeeping and teamwork
• Once the placement has been created, it can be taken by someone else once the first applicant has completed their first six-month term

What you need to provide for the expression of interest

You will need:

• Companies House reference number or Charity Commission number (if applicable)
• Your organisation registered address and contact details
• Details of the job placements and their location
• Supporting information to show that the job placements are new jobs and meet the Kickstart Scheme criteria
• Information about the support the organisation can give to develop employability skills of young people

To apply free of charge please complete the following form: Application Form.

For queries please email kickstart@businesssenseassociates.com or tel 01792 310110 / 07950906985