Could you provide a work trial placement?

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1 Could you provide a work trial placement? Is your business interested in supporting people who are looking for work? Are you committed to engaging with your community and developing local talent and skills? Could you provide our learners with a positive experience of the working world? If your answer to any of these questions is yes, then you may consider becoming a work trial provider. In this document: What is a work trial?... 1 Why are work trials important?... 2 Benefits to your business... 2 How to get involved... 3 Myth buster... 4 A guide to best practice... 6 Request further information... 8

2 What is a work trial? Work trials will enable learners to volunteer for placements in a work environment to gain vital new skills and work experience. The aim is to increase the employability of the people involved. We are looking for businesses to offer a variety of lengths of work trials for either our sector-based work academies or our traineeship programme. Sector-based work academies A sector based work academy (SBWA) is a government initiative aimed at getting people who are currently unemployed back into work. Hoople offer this programme in partnership with the Jobcentre. We are looking for businesses to offer one-day placements, to enable those working on the SBWA to develop their skills and knowledge within a work environment. Traineeships A traineeship is an education and training programme combined with work experience, which prepares young people to be work ready. Traineeships provide the essential work preparation, training, English and maths skills, and experience needed to secure an apprenticeship or employment. Hoople offer traineeships as part of our apprenticeship offering. We are looking for businesses to offer a four-week work trial before a learner starts their apprenticeship with you. This will allow the learner to get a taste of what being part of your organisation involves, and it allows us to make sure they are ready for the transition. Visit or call

3 Why are work trials important? It is vital that government, business, and voluntary and community sector organisations work together to support young people, especially those struggling to make the transition from school to work, to prepare for, find and sustain employment. Extended periods of unemployment, if experienced at an early age, can affect future employment prospects and lead to disadvantages, such as ill-health and poverty. The cost to society of this, both financially and socially, is huge. (Source: Department for Work and Pensions) Benefits to your business Providing work trial placements within your business will: Develop the supervisory and management skills of your existing workforce Be rewarding for staff and potentially increase motivation and job satisfaction Enhance your public profile by supporting your local community Open up access to a pool of hidden talent people who offer enthusiasm and a fresh perspective to your business Contribute to improving the preparedness and skills of people entering the local labour market In addition to the benefits above, many employers have found that offering work trials is an ideal way of raising the profile of career opportunities within their organisation and, in some cases, of dispelling unwarranted stereotypes. Visit or call

4 How to get involved The first step is to contact our Training and Education team (for contact details, please turn to page 8), who will arrange to have a conversation with you about what you could offer and provide all the information you need. Work trial placements should provide a real insight into a working environment. Any participating business should: Ensure the work trial complies with all relevant legislation Make sure the placement is relevant to those with little or no previous work experience Share information on participants with Hoople Provide traineeship participants with feedback at the end of their work trial, and ideally a written reference to support their job search activities Hoople will work in partnership with you to provide support to you, and the work trial participant, throughout the placement. Visit or call

5 Myth buster Might it affect productivity? Employers who have supported us with placements in the past have not found this to be the case. Having a new person in the team can often be a motivation to those around them. This is increased more so for the manager and buddy/ mentor who is supporting the learner. Will it take up a lot of time for me and my staff? There will need to be time invested at the beginning of the learner s time with you, but it depends on the length of the placement. If the learner is a part of the sector-based work academy, then they will likely be undertaking simple tasks which involve minimal training and explanation. If the placement is part of the traineeship then it is in your business interest to train the learner the same as any other employee, but their contribution should improve business efficiency in the long term. Are work trial placements covered by my insurance? Yes. The work placement will likely be covered by your Employer s Liability Insurance. However, it is good practice to let your insurer know that you have a work trial placement on your premises. Visit or call

6 Will I need to do a risk assessment? If you have fewer than five employees, you will not need to do a risk assessment. You also don t need to do a risk assessment if the learner is of a similar level of maturity and understanding to others already in the workplace. If this isn t the case, or if the learner has special educational needs or a disability then a risk assessment may be necessary. Can a disabled person do the same work placement we would offer to anyone else? Yes they can. Many employers are surprised by how much a disabled person is able to do, once given the support they need. Hoople would work with you to overcome any concerns you may have. Will my business face an equality/discrimination challenge if I don t employ the placement at the end? No. Work trials are intended to provide a learner with valuable work experience which forms part of their qualification with us, and to help them be more prepared for work in the future. Visit or call

7 A guide to best practice In order for work trials to be really useful, it is best that placements are treated the same way as any other employee as much as possible. However, due to their lack of work experience, participants may need additional support and coaching, and it s important that any business supporting a work trial has the resources to provide this. Induction It is essential that a thorough induction process introduces the participant to the workplace. This should cover the usual health and safety obligations but also basics in terms of the job role the learner will be undertaking. Below is a brief checklist to outline the bare minimum that the induction should cover: An introduction to colleagues An overview of your business and its core values A tour of the workplace Management and reporting arrangements Key duties and expectations Standard workplace practices such as dress code, health and safety procedures, work start/end time and break time arrangements Visit or call

8 Regular feedback Constructive and honest feedback will encourage participants to reflect on their performance and identify positives and negatives. This will also benefit you as the employer as this process encourages motivation and development. For traineeship participants, conducting an exit interview at the end of the work trial would allow both parties to reflect on the experience and lessons to be learnt. One major benefit for the participant would be for you as the business to provide a reference for the individual, allowing them to expand their CV and therefore increasing their chances of securing a permanent job in the future. Mentoring and buddying Many organisations who offer work trials assign learners a mentor or buddy. These people should be a first friend in the business and a constant point of contact for the participant. The idea of this is to help the participant settle in as quickly as possible and for both parties to benefit the most from the placement. The mentor/buddy would ideally be a good listener and an approachable person. Visit or call

9 Shadowing and job search support The goal of work trials is to give participants an insight in the business world and prepare them to enter it themselves. With this in mind, shadowing many members of the team for set periods of time is an ideal way to broaden their experience and give them a thorough overview of how the business operates. It will also give the participant a chance to discover how individuals progressed into their roles themselves. A business which supports a work trial should be aware that the participant will likely be applying for permanent job roles and should support the individual in this aim by helping them to prepare for interviews and answering any questions they may have. Request further information To find out more about sector based work academy and traineeship programmes, and how you can take on a work placement for your organisation, contact our friendly training team who will be very happy to help. Dawn Haymonds Business and Customer Service Lead dawn.haymonds@hoopleltd.co.uk Tel Visit or call