Jamila Robertson is a tech entrepreneur and the founder of Slapp.
Much has been said about the Kickstart scheme. It was slow to find its feet but, by its end, many were calling for an extension. And that’s no surprise. The Kickstart scheme in less than two years provided over 130,000 jobs for young people, with everyone from the EFL and TechNation, to Bloomberg and the British Chamber of Commerce getting in on the action. Most significantly, it enabled smaller companies and sole traders – through the use of local councils, banks and small business gateways – to build their teams, whilst providing invaluable experience to out of work young people on Universal Credit.
As a Kickstart employer myself, I can vouch for the benefits of the scheme for both employers and employees. It sparked entrepreneurial spirit and up or re-skilled job seekers; provided employers with staff – which they are currently in desperate need of – was subsidised by the Department for Work and Pensions, so allowing companies to grow and fill employment gaps whilst being cost neutral for the taxpayer, and was most likely to result in people coming off Universal Credit within six months.
You are unlikely to be surprised by the wealth of talent going to waste on Universal Credit, from UCL graduates to social media whizz kids desperate to get into the jobs market and highly capable of transforming and reinvigorating SMEs.
Small business owners lauded Kickstart as “the stepping stone” they needed to grow their businesses and a “low risk” way to hire. Having travelled up and down the country in the last six months speaking to local businesses, I’ve found that the recurring concern they have is staff. Quite simply, its absence is stunting growth. I spoke to one small business owner recently who had had to turn down £250,000 worth of business this year simply because he didn’t have the staff.
And whilst the Government has done a tremendous job on unemployment, bringing figures down to record lows, the fact remains that there are still 1.26 million job vacancies.
So what is the solution?
As always, it comes back to our incredible, untapped pool of talent lying in wait on Universal Credit. There are 1.4 million people on Universal Credit currently looking for work. Thanks to the Kickstart scheme, the number of under 24 year olds – who the scheme targeted – now looking for work, has decreased by 10 per cent year on year. In October 2020, this was the largest group on Universal Credit, in October 2022 it was the smallest. It is impossible not to attribute this to the success of the Kickstart scheme. The data can’t be ignored.
Conversely, the median age of people on Universal Credit has increased from 35 to 37 since October 2020, with 35-65+ year olds now the largest growing group out of work – a 1% year on year increase.
Much is said about the Grey Resignation – and how Over 50s don’t want to work. But 760,000 50-64 year olds (over half of those looking) are actively seeking, or willing to work. So it’s right that we should dust off a hugely successful Conservative pandemic policy and get back to doing what we do best – helping people into work.
It is time for a return of the Kickstart scheme, but I propose a Fresh Start scheme for those over 50, on low incomes, or unemployed, specifically partnering them with SMEs and Startups, who are desperately in need of the staff and are able to provide the skills at no extra cost to the taxpayer.
The beauty of the Kickstart scheme was that it was primarily cost neutral. Those on it would be receiving much of the same money being on Universal Credit, but the chances were that in six months of being on the scheme they would be back into the jobs market; and I have seen this first hand. Over half of my Kickstarters went onto year long internships, or entry level roles at bigger firms and the other started her own business. With 80 per cent of the 2030 workforce already in the jobs market, it is vital that we up or reskill the talent we already have.
There has been talk of an expansion of the Restart scheme for over 50s, but we need to invigorate the jobscape with speed and a tried and tested success story. Partnering the over 50s with startups and SMEs is the simplest and fastest way to solve the staff shortages felt across the country, empower those on low or no incomes to generate wealth, and support small business owners, who are the innovators and growth drivers at a time we all need it most.
Much as during the winter of 2020, we need our Conservative government to do what it does best: provide a path to prosperity and empower people to get back to work, by offering them a Fresh Start in Startups and SMEs.
Jamila Robertson is a tech entrepreneur and the founder of Slapp.
Much has been said about the Kickstart scheme. It was slow to find its feet but, by its end, many were calling for an extension. And that’s no surprise. The Kickstart scheme in less than two years provided over 130,000 jobs for young people, with everyone from the EFL and TechNation, to Bloomberg and the British Chamber of Commerce getting in on the action. Most significantly, it enabled smaller companies and sole traders – through the use of local councils, banks and small business gateways – to build their teams, whilst providing invaluable experience to out of work young people on Universal Credit.
As a Kickstart employer myself, I can vouch for the benefits of the scheme for both employers and employees. It sparked entrepreneurial spirit and up or re-skilled job seekers; provided employers with staff – which they are currently in desperate need of – was subsidised by the Department for Work and Pensions, so allowing companies to grow and fill employment gaps whilst being cost neutral for the taxpayer, and was most likely to result in people coming off Universal Credit within six months.
You are unlikely to be surprised by the wealth of talent going to waste on Universal Credit, from UCL graduates to social media whizz kids desperate to get into the jobs market and highly capable of transforming and reinvigorating SMEs.
Small business owners lauded Kickstart as “the stepping stone” they needed to grow their businesses and a “low risk” way to hire. Having travelled up and down the country in the last six months speaking to local businesses, I’ve found that the recurring concern they have is staff. Quite simply, its absence is stunting growth. I spoke to one small business owner recently who had had to turn down £250,000 worth of business this year simply because he didn’t have the staff.
And whilst the Government has done a tremendous job on unemployment, bringing figures down to record lows, the fact remains that there are still 1.26 million job vacancies.
So what is the solution?
As always, it comes back to our incredible, untapped pool of talent lying in wait on Universal Credit. There are 1.4 million people on Universal Credit currently looking for work. Thanks to the Kickstart scheme, the number of under 24 year olds – who the scheme targeted – now looking for work, has decreased by 10 per cent year on year. In October 2020, this was the largest group on Universal Credit, in October 2022 it was the smallest. It is impossible not to attribute this to the success of the Kickstart scheme. The data can’t be ignored.
Conversely, the median age of people on Universal Credit has increased from 35 to 37 since October 2020, with 35-65+ year olds now the largest growing group out of work – a 1% year on year increase.
Much is said about the Grey Resignation – and how Over 50s don’t want to work. But 760,000 50-64 year olds (over half of those looking) are actively seeking, or willing to work. So it’s right that we should dust off a hugely successful Conservative pandemic policy and get back to doing what we do best – helping people into work.
It is time for a return of the Kickstart scheme, but I propose a Fresh Start scheme for those over 50, on low incomes, or unemployed, specifically partnering them with SMEs and Startups, who are desperately in need of the staff and are able to provide the skills at no extra cost to the taxpayer.
The beauty of the Kickstart scheme was that it was primarily cost neutral. Those on it would be receiving much of the same money being on Universal Credit, but the chances were that in six months of being on the scheme they would be back into the jobs market; and I have seen this first hand. Over half of my Kickstarters went onto year long internships, or entry level roles at bigger firms and the other started her own business. With 80 per cent of the 2030 workforce already in the jobs market, it is vital that we up or reskill the talent we already have.
There has been talk of an expansion of the Restart scheme for over 50s, but we need to invigorate the jobscape with speed and a tried and tested success story. Partnering the over 50s with startups and SMEs is the simplest and fastest way to solve the staff shortages felt across the country, empower those on low or no incomes to generate wealth, and support small business owners, who are the innovators and growth drivers at a time we all need it most.
Much as during the winter of 2020, we need our Conservative government to do what it does best: provide a path to prosperity and empower people to get back to work, by offering them a Fresh Start in Startups and SMEs.