Bridge Northumberland’s programme is delivered by a not-for-profit partnership of six voluntary community organisations. Northumberland County Council is the project lead and accountable body.
Partnership and local knowledge
Northumberland has uniquely challenging geography and patterns of economic diversity. While post-industrial structural unemployment has long existed in the towns of South East Northumberland, where half the county’s population live in 3% of the land area, economic inactivity in rural Northumberland is well above the UK norm.
Analysis of Bridge Northumberland participants indicates 40% lived in rural Northumberland outside the South East towns. The map illustrates the reach of the project from Allendale and Blanchland to Keilder and Cornhill-on-Tweed.
The partnership of voluntary sector organisations with local knowledge and connections, combined with a targeted communications and marketing strategy, has enabled Bridge Northumberland to reach beyond easy wins and meet targets across all segments of Northumberland’s community.
Overcoming multiple barriers; individual programmes and one-to-one support
For many people there are multiple barriers to gaining work or training – such as debt, mental health issues, physical health, disability, literacy, numeracy, addiction, past offending, and self-belief.
Bridge Northumberland helps address these multiple barriers. Every individual faces a different mix of obstacles, so one size does not fit all.
Bridge programmes are tailored to breaking down the barriers each individual may face. Participants have one-to-one support through an allocated Bridge Worker who helps form the right package and guide the participant through – it’s often ‘tough love’, confronting issues that have long been ignored.
Bridge Northumberland offers disability expertise through working with Azure Charitable Enterprises’ Employment Services. Their person-centred active support is available to participants who need additional support to identify and develop the skills and training needed for entry into the world of work.
The map illustrates the distribution of Bridge Northumberland participants to September 2022. Through its network of community-based, voluntary sector partnerships, Bridge has the agility to reach the parts of Northumberland where large public sector and commercial organisations struggle.
