Funding launched to support employment in South Leeds

First round of funding launched to support employment and skills in South Leeds

The South Leeds Together programme has funding to support focused work with the target group of sex workers and is looking for projects to provide interventions which support them into alternative forms of employment.

Simon Betts, Rev Lindsey Pearson & Cllr Andrew Scopes

The funding, known as Community Led Local Development, uses European Structural and Investment Fund (ESIF) monies and is made up of both the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF). This call is specifically looking for ESF applications, which is the funding strand that supports projects that create employment and skills opportunities.

The call is inviting Expressions of Interest for projects delivering specific objectives around supporting sex workers into alternative employment. Full details of the calls are available on www.leedsCLLD.co.uk and the submission deadline is 12noon on Friday 2 November 2018.

Rev Lindsey Pearson, Chair of the ‘South Leeds Together’ Local Action Group said:

“Our strategy for the South Leeds Together programme has been developed to provide employment opportunities in some of our most deprived neighbourhoods. We want to work with those that are furthest from the job market and have prioritised supporting sex workers into alternative employment as one of those groups.

“We’d like organisations to come forward with innovative ideas to help us deliver our strategy, and over the next year we’ll be putting out calls for applications that we’ll assess for the funding.”

If you have any questions about the funding contact Brendan Tannam on Brendan.Tannam@leeds.gov.uk  or take a look at the website.

South Leeds Together is recieving up to £1.5m of funding through the European Union to help support innovation, businesses, skills and employment to improve local growth and create jobs. Further calls for projects with other groups will be issued in the coming weeks and months.