Employment support funding must address regional inequalities that perpetuate ‘worklessness’, think tank says.
A new report by Localis, titled Guarantee of potential: place-based employment support within a new local policy ecosystem, urges the Government to provide place-based funding to improve employment outcomes and promote inclusive growth.
The report emphasizes that Government must provide ‘tailored support’ to communities or risk deepening geographical inequalities, in particular when it comes to the divide between the north and the south.
According to McLinden, devolution is considered a means of addressing unemployment and economic inequalities, but employment support quality could vary significantly across the UK if southern counties implement their new devolved powers first.
‘If funding formulas or political attention favours big cities, other areas could be overlooked in their unique needs for employment support’, he says.
As part of the report’s recommendations, McLinden has called on the Government to provide immediate multi-year funding for ‘employment support initatives’, whilst working to deliver a full place-based support plan that integrates healthcare resources and inclusive employment initiatives by 2030.
McLinden also advises local authorities to use ‘granular local data and lived-experience insight to identify priority groups and places’, enabling councils to ‘contextualise’ support strategies based on local need.
‘Without proper investment in local capacity, long-term funding certainty, and shared governance between Whitehall and localities, the potential to reduce worklessness risks becoming perpetually stunted’, added McLinden.
