The NAC Group has agreed to sponsor research into the training and employability support that is currently being delivered under the title of ‘World Class Skills in Walker’.

Working with its partners Nissan and Building Futures East, the NAC Group has implemented this training scheme in Walker – a disadvantaged area in the east end of Newcastle upon Tyne that has been badly affected by the run-down of traditional manufacturing jobs.

Now, the partners are hoping to learn from their experience of delivering the training, and apply the lessons to develop their approach to the Government’s new Work Programme. CLES Consulting has been commissioned to interview key stakeholders and hold a focus group with young beneficiaries of the scheme. It will be important to understand how effective private/public/third sector partnerships can be at delivering positive outcomes for people in disadvantaged areas. The findings will be presented to the partners in the form of a case study.

Paul Robson, MD of the NAC Group, said

“This is a great example of the private sector working with local third sector bodies so that, together, we can find ways of engaging the long term unemployed and matching them to apprenticeship and other opportunities.”