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Kickstart provides wages for porter recruits

  • Post category:Kickstart

TRS Training is an approved Kickstart Gateway which means we can help employers access funding for wages and training of new recruits. We have teamed up with the British Association of Removers to raise awareness of using Kickstart to recruit new porters

TRS and BAR raising awareness of Kickstart

The Government’s Kickstart scheme covers the costs of wages, training and other associated employment expenses when firms create a new role for a young person. 

TRS Training is working with the British Association of Removers to raise awareness of the opportunity for removals firms to recruit porters through Kickstart. 

The Kickstart Scheme meets the cost of paying a young person, aged 16-24, for 25 hours a week. The funding lasts for six months. But employers can top up weekly hours, or indeed keep the recruits on after six months! The initiative aims to create jobs or at least excellent work experience opportunities for young people. There is also ÂŁ1500 to invest in supporting each Kickstart recruit. For example, the funding can go towards things like uniform, travel and training.

Removals companies have an ideal opportunity to use the available funding to support the recruitment of new porters and drivers mates who can go on to train as LGV drivers. At the end of six months, many firms will decide to keep on these Kickstart recruits. Indeed TRS Training can help you develop their skills further through apprenticeships like LGV, Warehousing or Traffic Office. Funding is also available for these apprenticeships.

Working with a Kickstart Gateway

Businesses with more than 30 positions available for Kickstart recruits can obtain funding directly. Firms with between 1 and 29 places must partner with a Kickstart Gateway. In other words, an organisation who has been approved to deliver Kickstart funding and services. TRS Training recently won approval to operate as Kickstart Gateway. We are already working with dozens of businesses, helping them participate in the programme. 

Launching Kickstart

To launch Kickstart in your business, you need to create new opportunities. It’s important to note Kickstart recruits can’t replace existing staff or fill vacancies that you were already advertising. Also, the Kickstart positions you create should not affect your agreements with contractors. 

You can select the young people to recruit into your Kickstart vacancies. TRS Training has many years’ experience in the field of recruitment, so we will help you with this process. One thing to note, the recruits are likely to have little work experience, so the positions you create for them should not require a high level of skills.  

At the end of the six months, there is no obligation to continue to employ your Kickstart trainees although of course, this would be the best result! Together we will have given them valuable work experience, employability skills and helped them get on the right footing for work.

Kickstart provides opportunity for employers to recover and expand

Together with support from TRS Training Ltd, there is funding available that can go towards specific training for your recruits. As an example, the British Association of Removers provides specialist skills, for instance in piano removals or packing of goods

Whilst they are at work in your organisation, the Government will pay the young person the national minimum wage for their age. Likewise, employer NI contributions and automatic enrolment contributions are also covered. 

Kevin Birch, director with TRS, said:

“This is one of the best opportunities the logistics industry has ever had to attract young new talent. In these challenging times, the scheme gives employers the financial boost to recover and expand by recruiting more staff. Meanwhile, young people will experience what it is like to work in the removals industry, and many will progress into permanent positions.” If your business has new vacancies and you would like to access support for wages and training, please email kickstart@trstraining.net or call Kevin Birch on 01744 809010 or 07788 120 608