The Aim of the Engage Brighton & Hove Partnership is 'to provide a co-ordinated, professional approach to employer engagement in the City'.

"Being part of the Engage Partnership is proving to be really useful and effective. From just one employer lead from the Engage Team direct I am now setting up an entire training programme which will see many of our clients get into sustainable employment.

The Partnership also enables us to work more effectively with other local providers, for example by setting up a group for all local ESF and LSC funded contracts to ensure we're making best use of the funds in terms of provision and not duplicating efforts and wasting funds unnecessarily." Paulette Reynolds - CDG

 "Hi Claire, just wanted to say thank you to engage! I ran the CV Writing and Interview Skills workshop last Friday and it was a great success.  A4e, Working Links, RBLI, Employment Project and The Whitehawk Inn were attending and it was great to bring these together for Training and there is already interest for another one in the new year. So thank you, because Engage made it really easy for me to market this course to the right people.  Long may you continue."  Charlotte Eve - CK Futures 

In a City where there is high unemployment, many employers still experience difficulty when trying to recruit suitably skilled people.

Engaging with the priority groups enables businesses to access suitable employees from the local community. This creates a more diverse workforce and benefits both the local economy and the individual, whilst assisting the business to meet its Corporate Social Responsibility targets.

Individuals may find it difficult to access employment for various reasons so the organisations involved in employer engagement seek to address any issues and work closely with employers, offering advice and guidance, including relevant legislation information, whilst ensuring that the client has the necessary skills to carry out the position available.

The Engage Partnership has been set up for all organisations involved in employer engagement in the City and has over 17 member agencies. The group offers organisations the chance to network and gain a clear picture of what else is available locally as well as being kept up-to-date with new developments, legislation and opportunities. Referrals between organisations become simplified and the group is able to share best practice and create universal standards.

For more information, please contact Claire Mitchell (see 'Contact Us').

Paritas has now set up a similar service in West Sussex called Synchronise West Sussex.

For more information, please contact:

David Cain, Diversity Consultant, Paritas

Address: 25a Farncombe Road, Worthing, West Sussex, BN11 2AY

Tel. Office: 01903 204083

Fax: 01903 232014

Mobile: 07894 603813

E-mail: david.cain@westsussex.gov.uk