John Taylor with (front) Adrian Hide of the county council's road safety team, home care worker Theresa Conkey and jobseeker Bryan Maun

Open door offers welcome to disabled people looking for work

Staffordshire county council is sweeping away much of the red tape that makes it difficult for disabled people to find work.

Council Leader John Taylor has signed the authority up to the Open Door Scheme.

It is a Local Employment Partnership (LEP) with Jobcentre Plus, and will make it easier for many people to find a suitable job by doing away with daunting bureaucracy.

John said: "One of the things that stops many people getting employment is the bureaucracy involved, and traditionally the county council has required people to deal with a lot of red tape. Open Door will get rid of that if we think we can match the right people to the right jobs."

The scheme means people will not automatically have to fill in complicated application forms and attend a formal interview.

John said: "Jobcentre Plus will help our managers to match up people with the right skills with available vacancies. If we can do this the formal recruitment process can be set aside and replaced with a six week on-the-job trial that can lead to permanent employment.

"It is good for people looking for employment, good for the county council and good for everyone in Staffordshire. There are areas where we struggle to recruit, and we do not help ourselves by giving potential employees so many hoops to jump through. It will mean people who want to work and come off benefits will be given a fair crack at showing what they can do."

The Open Door Scheme will carefully ensure that people are only offered job trials if they have the right skills or aptitude. A small number of jobs will be ring-fenced for people using the scheme.

Julie Carruthers Jobcentre Plus District Manager Staffordshire said: "The Open Door scheme is part of the overall Local Employment Agreement we have with Staffordshire County Council.  The aim of the partnership is to help disadvantaged jobseekers get in to work. Signing up to a LEP will give the Council access to people who are prepared and ready to work, and therefore perfect for the Open Door opportunities. The LEP and Open Door Scheme are good news for the local community. With the right training and help, people who have previously been on benefits can get back to work."

Eighteen-year-old Bryan Maun of Branston near Burton has cerebral Palsy. He said: "I have trouble walking and lifting, so I am limited in the types of jobs I can do. This is undoubtedly a positive scheme that would make me far more likely to think about applying for local authority work. I would love a frontline job that meant dealing directly with the public and feel I would have a lot to contribute."

Page Last Modified: 27/08/2008 14:41:16

Back to top