Jude Robinson, PPC for Camborne, Redruth & Hayle introduced Employment Minister Rt Hon Jim Knight to Cornwall Neighbourhoods for Change (CN4C) - a local community organisation that has had fantastic success in getting people in Cornwall back to work.
Jim, who is also MP for Dorset South and Minister for the South West, listened to a presentation on the work of CN4C in the community and met members of the Board, representatives of tenants and residents associations and staff who help people back into work and training.
Amongst the people there were Beth Semmons, Chair of CN4C board and Tarn Lamb, Chief Executive.
Jude said: "It is always best to let people who know tell their experiences direct to government, so I was determined to make sure that Jim Knight met with this fantastic local organisation. CN4C has transformed the lives of many people living in our most disadvantaged communities."
Rt Hon Jim Knight MP said: "The work that CN4C do is inspiring and it was a very informative session. What I wanted was to take back to Westminster some key points to help me to improve the Department for Work and Pensions' support for organisations helping people back to work. CN4C certainly has lots of good ideas."
Many suggestions came forward from the representatives of CN4C, including making use of redundant portakabins from NHS and school sites to provide community meeting rooms, simplified paperwork for job seekers and more help for people setting up small business or social enterprises.
The presentation by CN4C revealed some shocking facts about people in Cornwall's poorer communities.
When the company starts to work on estates they find that as many as half of the children and young people have never been to the beach. Another startling fact is that half of the adults living in the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods have no qualifications.
The organisation runs courses designed to unlock the potential of people who are having difficulty getting back into employment, whether through disability, lack of qualifications or simply because they have been long term unemployed.
Cornwall Neighbourhoods for Change is a charity and a social enterprise which aims to transform the quality of life for people, places and communities by working with residents and partners to provide choices and opportunities for all.
We specifically target our work on the most disadvantaged individuals and communities in Cornwall, particularly working with residents of Cornwall’s long-neglected social housing estates where there is often a level of deprivation that is equivalent to that of England’s poorest inner city areas. We tackle disadvantage and discrimination by focussing our services on disadvantaged individuals and neighbourhoods and by making sure that these services are accessible and meet local needs. We offer a personalised service approach that combats discrimination against often stigmatised or disregarded communities of interest (e.g. lone parents, women, the elderly, children and young people, people with disabilities, the workless, ex-offenders, people with drug and alcohol problems, and members of Black and Minority Ethnic communities).
Our vision is to give choice, change and control to communities throughout Cornwall.
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