adult employability programmes

Adult Employability Programmes

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Adult Employability Programmes (Supporting Evidence 2)

GCA P&E aim to ensure that the participants we engage with have a better knowledge and awareness about the effects that substance

misuse has on their physical and mental health, emotional wellbeing, relationships, future achievements and employment.’

Partner Organisation

GCA Programme Outline Target Group

Jobs Business Glasgow (JBG): Employability Fund Groups

Three week alcohol and drug programme focusing on harm reduction and workplace policies. This links to the promotion of safer choices and future aspirations.

Adults aged 16-25 years

GCA P&E have extensive experience of delivering bespoke, innovative and evidence based alcohol and drug programmes to adults (aged 16-65) who are clients of pre employability and employability providers in Glasgow. We have developed and delivered a range of issue based development programmes citywide working in close partnership with a number of organisations and groups including but not exclusive of: Jobs Business Glasgow (JBG), Rangers Football Club (RFC), Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH), Celtic Football Club (CFC), Toryglen Community Base, Govanhill Community Development Trust (GCDT), SWAMP Creative Media Project, Tomorrows People, City Building and Clyde College. Due to this experience and extensive evaluation we have been able to gain an understanding that there are a range of difficult and varied challenges and barriers to employment that people face. We aim to respond to these challenges by taking a ‘whole person’ approach to our interventions and aim to encourage positive life choices, increase health and wellbeing, increase awareness of achievements and employment aspirations.

‘Employability refers to the combination of factors and processes which enable people to progress towards, move into, or stay in employment and to move on within the workplace’ EMPLOYABILITY SCOTLAND

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Jobs Business Glasgow (JBG): Connect 2 , Connect 3 and Move On

Two week alcohol and drug awareness programme with a focus on harm reduction and workplace policies. This links to the promotion of safer choices and future aspirations


City Building: Young Apprentices

Half day alcohol and drug programme with a focus on harm reduction and workplace policies. This links to the promotion of safer choices and health and safety at work.

Apprentices 16+ years

Tomorrows People: Employability Group

Three week drug and alcohol and drug programme with a focus on harm reduction and workplace policies. This links to the promotion of safer choices and future aspirations.


SWAMP (South West Arts Media Project): Employability Group

Three week alcohol and drug programme with a focus on harm reduction and challenging attitudes. This links to the promotion of safer choices and future aspirations.


Jobs Business Glasgow (JBG): Adult Training Courses

Half day alcohol programme with a focus on harm reduction, exploring attitudes and workplace polices. This links to the promotion of safer choices and health and safety at work


Toryglen Community Base: First Steps Course

Alcohol programme with a focus on harm reduction and exploring attitudes. This links to the promotion of safer choices and confidence building


Rangers Football Club (RFC) and Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH): Get Active

Two week alcohol and drug programme with a focus on harm reduction and exploring attitudes towards alcohol and drugs. This links to positive mental health, confidence building and future aspirations


Celtic Football Club (CFC): Gateway to Health

Three week programme exploring alcohol, drugs and resilience. This links to positive mental health, confidence building and future aspirations


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To demonstrate the programmes we have developed and delivered to employability groups we have selected a sample year. Within this sample year GCA P&E delivered 114 employability programmes to 900 participants (Male: 57%, Female: 43%) Participant Age Range From the sample year the participants were within the following age ranges. Table A.1 base 838

Aims and Objectives All of our programmes have the following overall aims and objectives which are the rational of our work.

Age Number Percentage

5-15 125 15%

16-19 477 56%

20-24 91 11%

25-39 85 10%

40-59 61 7%

60 + 2 1%

Overall Aim: • To use alcohol and drug Prevention and Education to explore the links

between alcohol and drug use/misuse and future employment while challenging attitudes and social norms around alcohol and drugs with a focus on harm reduction.

Objectives:

• To provide a programme for adults focusing on alcohol and drugs information as part of pre employability and/or employability programmes

• To use alcohol and drug P&E interventions to improve health and well-being

• To increase knowledge and raise knowledge and awareness of alcohol and drug issues

• To explore the physical, social and emotional effects of alcohol and drug use/ misuse in the workplace, in the wider community and on aspirations at an appropriate level.

• To increase confidence in the participants by increasing their knowledge of alcohol and drugs to promote and encourage safer choices.

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SHORT TERM OUTCOMES CORE ELEMENT Increased knowledge of alcohol units, recommended limits and when alcohol should be avoided altogether

11/12: Harm Reduction

Encouraged participants to explore their own or others alcohol/ drug use

5: Brief Intervention Approaches

Increased knowledge of the consequences/risks of alcohol consumption and/or drug use

11/12: Harm Reduction

Increased knowledge of workplace policy on alcohol and drugs

10: Workplace Alcohol & Drug policies

Increased knowledge of how alcohol/ drug use/ misuse can effect employment and future aspirations

10: Workplace Alcohol & Drug policies

Increased confidence in themselves (in relation to safer choices)

1:Protective & Resilience

Increased skills to reduce/delay the onset of alcohol consumption and/or drug use

1; Protective & Resilience 11/12 Harm Reduction

Methods We ensure the wellbeing of participants remains a priority at all times, our methods for working with employability groups are as follows:

• Flexibility: Each programme is tailored to the needs of the particular group.

• Employability Toolkit: We have developed a toolkit of interventions and tools to use with employability groups to gain insight and respond to the range of needs while increasing awareness of health and well-being. We continuously develop, adapt and evaluate this to ensure the toolkit provides effective and practical resources for the staff team. Examples of activities include: activities that encourage participants to explore alcohol and drugs and the effects on employability, wider community and future aspirations - Barriers Poster, Alcohol Bingo, Higher and Lower (units), Street Names Quiz, Drug Matching, Drugs Quiz, Ranking and Categories, Cannabis Wheel, Risky Behaviour Cards and Message in a Bottle (Attitudes). We also use activities that focus on confidence building such as ‘The Protective Shield’ which looks at achievements and aspirations and future employment.

• Programme : we ensure a programmed approach, with at least 3 sessions per programme where possible. However due to the nature of employability groups sometimes we are only deliver one off or a two week intervention. We consistently remain flexible to the needs and availability of the group

• Skilled Staff: Delivering issue based interventions requires a considered approach applied by skilled and experienced staff. Specific training and support needs for staff are closely monitored to ensure staff are have the most up to date and relevant information.

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• Evaluation: we have developed a range of evaluation techniques and tools which are tailored to the nature of each group. This includes a move away from more traditional evaluation and moving towards using creative and media approaches. However, again not all participants are comfortable with the use of these approaches, so this is tailored on an individual and group basis.

Example of Tailored Approach: Literacy Within a GRFW group during week 1 many of the participants displayed severe literacy difficulties and as a result they were disengaged with the activities. The facilitator used her innovative and flexible approach to adapt each activity within the programme to ensure that these barrier were removed. This included using visual interactive and discussion based resources to remove any literacy barriers. Using this approach the facilitator successfully reengaged this group. ‘JBG would like to express appreciation and gratitude for the hard work and effort GCA P&E has put in to the group of young people on the Employability Fund stage 2 course. It had been a very challenging group however, GCA P&E tailored the delivery and materials to suit the group. The feedback from the clients were very positive and they have all really enjoyed the input and delivery’ (JBG Partner Evaluation Comment)

Qualitative Example: Protective Shield ‘Many of the participants were finding it difficult to think about achievements to draw in the what achievements you are proud of section, however we supported the group to think about what they had done in the past and they came up with some of the most amazing achievements we have ever heard! Some of the participants had travelled the world taking part in the Para Olympic games, some had won certificates in their work placement amongst other achievements. The group really enjoyed this activity and spent a lot of time on it and we really enjoyed hearing about all of their achievements’ (GCA P&E Staff Member)

Innovative Practice: Govanhill Community Development Trust Roma Employability Group Working in partnership with the GCDT and a translator we developed, adapted and delivered the GRFW Programme to suit the needs and requirements of the Roma Employability Group. Clyde College Introduction to Employment Group Working in partnership with Clyde college we developed, adapted and delivered alcohol and drugs information as part of a pre employability programme for students with additional support for learning needs.

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Evaluations Comments from Employability Programmes

The programme has made me think about … ‘My thoughts on how I can live a better life’

‘Drinking habits’

‘My alcohol intake’

‘I took about 15 vallies a day ….. I might not have been here today’

‘How much damage these things can do to you’

The most important thing about the programme was… ‘I am better informed about different drugs’

‘The stuff that I could and could not have been involved in’

‘Learning about units’

‘I learned that I did not know as much about drugs as I thought’

‘It was well delivered and very informative’

‘The session was interesting and enjoyable’

Evaluation: Media Approaches We are aware of the power of social media and how media approaches can enhance evaluation. We have used tablets to capture on video participants evaluations of the programme. We have found this method engages participants who may have been resistant to complete traditional written evaluation

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adult employability programmes

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