Social Capitalism
We understand this term to mean all the ways in which people can access vocational training and employment to increase household earnings, from getting a job, starting a career, to starting a small business, to launching a social enterprise or by joining an established one.
- Personal Development Courses
- CV Workshops
- Job Clubs
- Winning Job Interviews
- Work Readiness Programme - Pre-employment Training
- Job Fairs and Employment Access Days
- Self-Employment and Social Enterprise Establishment and Training
- Music Mentoring & the Access to Industry Course
- Writing Mentoring – Access to Industry Course
- Household Income Audit
Personal Development Courses
Many people face personal and family problems, language barriers and lack the confidence to take advantage of the many opportunities available. Progressive funders are concerned with helping individuals to gain confidence, develop their potential and get involved with creative and self improvement activities, particularly for people with English as a second language. Personal development courses are varied and wide-ranging, depending on their aims and objectives and J-go can help your organisation run personal development courses, which are original, creative and practical.
We work in partnership with accredited personal development trainers who are able to bring the latest techniques and methods to personal development training. Our courses are empowering, fun and productive for the individuals involved and many who attend a personal development course then move on to a pre-employment course, creating progressive outcomes for both the individual and your organisation.
CV Workshops
Having a good, up-to-date CV, which promotes your unique skills, interests and experience is a first step to gaining employment. A good CV can increase an individual’s confidence and help to identify routes to employment. The J-go way of CV production also seeks to discover ‘hidden skills and experience’. Many individuals have undertaken voluntary work, are members of a hobby or interest group, have child-care responsibilities or have been involved in a tenants association or local community group.
All this experience is valuable and can be can be included within a well written CV. Our CV Workshops can include up to 10 participants and are run as an all-day session. At the end of the day all participants will have created a well written CV, as a result of an individual interview, group discussion and learning and through using the extensive J-go library of pro-forma designs, ideas and suggestions. The CV workshop needs to be delivered in an ICT suite, either locally to your location or at our own premises in Mile End, London, E3. We can provide local transport from your location if required. The CV Workshops are all day events and can be provided on weekends.
Job Clubs
Getting a job can require personal determination, perseverance and luck and knock–backs can be hard to take. This is particularly the case if you also need to overcome personal barriers, such as poor English, lack of qualifications or confidence, to compete in the jobs market.
J-go has a sympathetic, determined approach to supporting individuals to gain access to employment, be it young people searching for there first job, migrants looking to transfer their skills, or older people seeking to return to work. The concept has also worked with employed people seeking to enhance their job seeking skills to find more productive employment in a different field of employment. J-go understands that individuals, even the most motivated, need support, advice and encouragement to succeed. J-go’s Job Clubs provide this.
Each club is composed of six people and led by a J-go employment advisor. Individuals sign up to a contract of support services and undertake to take part in the Job Club activities. The Job Clubs work through collective effort and support. Each participant is required to ‘report back’ to their fellow Job Club members, on completing application or undertaking an interview. In this way the effort, experience and lessons leant, benefit everyone in the Job Club and the stress, disappointments and set-backs are also shared as positive leaning experience.
Using the J-go method, it is common (and the intended outcome) for all members of a Job Club to gain employment, within the same period, as individuals gain confidence and encouragement from each other. J-go Job Clubs can be undertaken over periods from six weeks to six months and are an ideal follow up for individuals who have attended a CV Workshop. The product can be purchased as a stand–alone intervention or as a plug-in to an existing pre-employment or training programme.
Winning Job Interviews
40 minutes can change a life! The job interview is the end game for the employment seeker. All the personal preparation, CV writing, application form filling and research undertaken by the applicant, is put to the test and the stakes are high. Of course people are nervous and forgetful on the day and very often do not do themselves justice. J-go uses video feedback, creative role play, mentoring examples and common sense to prepare individuals for winning job interviews.
J-go is experienced in using video feedback and the technique can be very effective. Three mock interviews are recorded, one by a mentor and the other two by the participant. The results are viewed and discussed and the participant leaves the course with a video which can be used again and again. The technique really helps individuals overcome their inhibitions, allows them to see how they are presenting themselves and with the help of the mentor, leads to fast improvements in body language, confidence and presentation.
The session can be delivered at your location (we bring all necessary equipment) and can be used as a ‘plug-in’ to a larger event or as a stand alone intervention available as a half or full day session for up to 15 participants.
Work Readiness Programme - Pre-employment Training
Many grant funders are primarily concerned with helping unemployed people gain enter to employment, vocational training or further education. This is particularly the case with ‘NEETS’ (people Not in Employment, Education or Training), who are usually young people. Another crucial target is mature unemployed people with English as a second language.
J-go can offer a complete programme package incorporating the individual services above; Personal Development, CV writing, Winning Job Interviews and Job Clubs, as an extended training course designed to help unemployed people get back into work. Our proven ‘team based’ approach is designed to give individuals the confidence and discipline they need to succeed in their search for work and can include short vocational courses to enhance employment prospects.
We can offer long term pre-employment training courses from six weeks to six months. We design our courses as team based efforts, where individuals can draw support and encouragement from others and together overcome their personal barriers to fulfil their potential. Previous clients include the Home Office and local authorities including LB’s Enfield and Tower Hamlets.
Job Fairs and Employment Access Days
London is an enormous city with opportunities for jobs and careers around every corner. However, it can be easy for Individuals to believe that they are unable to access these opportunities. Help to turn things around by organising a job fair or employment access day in your locality. Many local job fairs and employment access days are thin affairs with the only the Statutory services, Police, Army, Navy and Fire Brigade represented. We do things differently by researching the local market, helping you build contacts and connections with local employers and training providers. Your organisation can bring employment opportunities to your area and help individuals to help themselves, by putting on an event like this.
J-go can help you to target local and regional employers who are looking for staff to make your event relevant for job seekers. We also undertake Christmas Job Fairs (in November) to target temporary job opportunities in London’s retail trade. This can be combined with work-experience placements and first time employment opportunities for young people. We can offer a complete package, including access to prominent venues for job fairs; catering up to a 1,000 people on the day, or help you mount an event in your own choice of premises.
Self-Employment and Social Enterprise Establishment and Training
Most large regeneration initiatives include the promotion of self-enterprise and social enterprise as part of their solutions package. Encouraging individuals to set up in business is a heavy responsibility. 75% of UK small businesses start-ups go bankrupt with five years. Social Enterprise is no different, without a sound, well-researched business proposal any enterprise is vulnerable to failure.
J-go can advise on set-up, including the new CIC (Community Interest Companies), market research, business planning and the statutory administration for Companies House, the Charity Commission and Inland Revenue. We offer one or two day courses, enterprise support contracts and can, if required, programme a complete enterprise start-up package for up to 20 individuals.
Our approach to self-employment and social enterprise is practical and based on years of experience and proven track record. We can help you to avoid obvious pitfalls and provide guidance to make your business planning effective. The best social enterprise start-ups are based on local knowledge and thorough research and use skills you already have, adapted to the market opportunity.
Music Mentoring & the Access to Industry Course
Music inspires the young. Through writing and singing lyrics many young people feel as if they have put their message across successfully. Young people, male and female, from different backgrounds and cultures commonly share an interest in music, whether that is through singing, Rap, MC, music productions, dance or a number of them combined together. Music making can attract ‘hard to reach’ participants and focus their energy creatively, but the key to creating a successful outcome is quality of delivery.
Many regeneration and community programmes included ‘Music Making’ as a youth activity. However, some of these initiatives consist of no more than a cupboard full of equipment and a youth worker with an interest in music. J-go’s approach is different.
J-go delivers our ‘Music Mentoring & the Access to Industry Course’ in partnership with the Fluent Music Project. Fluent Music’s lead tutors; Wayne George (AKA DJ D. LUX) and Sam Singh (DJ One Samurai from BBC Radio One) have the advantage of both being actively involved in the urban music industry with excellent links to top-class professionals, working alongside artist such as Sway, Kano, Soundboy Ent, Leathal B, Heartless Crew and The Streets, to name a few. The project uses this advantage and connection when delivering training, mentoring, work experience and careers advice on gaining access to the music industry.
Fluent Music Project are based in adjoining railway arches to J-go, in a purpose built music and multi-media studio, set within Mile End Park, in the East End of London. The studio can cater for up to 10 participants in a fully equipped, up-to-date, bespoke designed, digital music studio, a video editing facility and fully disabled accessible toilet and kitchen facilities, complete with an Ofsted registered crèche.
J-go and Fluent Music have a track record in delivering music making courses for all types of young people. All J-go and Fluent Music staff are CRB checked and are all used to demonstrating the value of consequence, good team work and respect by example. Transport from your location can be provided (by minibus with MIDAS qualified drivers) and the sessions can be delivered to your requirements from a one day taster course to an extended, vocational related, accredited course lasting six weeks.
Writing Mentoring – Access to Industry Course
J-go offers a generic introduction to vocational writing, written skills development and an introduction to a wide spectrum of vocational opportunities, which are dependent upon developing good writing skills. Writing Mentoring is available for participants aged 14 plus in the expectation that this is the age that a young person starts to consider their vocational future and develop enthusiasm to pursue a subject seriously.
Writing Mentoring provides opportunities for young people in disadvantaged circumstances who can demonstrate application and latent ability in writing skills. The course seeks to identify young, potential high achievers who have lacked the opportunity, focus and encouragement to nurture their talent and assists these deprived young people to break barriers and discover and target future vocational ambitions to match their interest and skills. Our definition of ‘vocational writing’ opportunities includes; journalism, copy writing, editing, story writing, poetry, script writing, song writing, speech writing, sign writing, report writing, public relations, web content and novel and short story writing.
The course provides advice on a broad spectrum of potential vocations, all of which demand creative writing skills. The course can be extended to offer participants who demonstrate application and commitment, further training, vocational discipline and an opportunity to get their work published.The course can be delivered at your location or (with transport provided) at our training centre in Mile End, London E3. Each course can cater from up to 10 participants.
Household Income Audit
Low income households need to take advantage of every saving that can be found and ensure that they are claiming all the benefits to which they are entitled. This practical initiative can be delivered as a group workshop or as a personal visit to individual’s homes over a period of time. Our expert advisors are up-to-date and familiar with all welfare benefit information and can help individuals to claim all of their entailments.
However, this course does more! The concept of our ‘Household Audit’ is to examine both the income and expenditure of an individual household and provide advice and active help to maximise both accounts, bespoke to the individual circumstances. The course offers ICT access training and how to; use e-Government services, compare product prices, save money through e-finance and use web-based consumer information and support groups. The audit undertakes an analysis of a household’s benefit eligibility and actively helps individuals to apply for benefits under claimed.
The course can be offered as a one off session for up to 10 participants at your location or (with transport provided) at our training centre in Mile End, London E3. We can also offer an estate-wide initiative, which can run over three to six months.