CLOSED: Cheshire & Warrington COVID-19 Response –The Workforce (OC03S20P1796)
Call to run a project to deliver a range of employment and skills support across the Cheshire and Warrington LEP area in response to addressing Covid-19 recovery plans.
This call is now closed. Please do not submit an application for this call. The information provided on this page is for reference purposes only.
Details
This call brings together allocations for Cheshire and Warrington under Investment Priorities 2.1 and 2.2 into one “merged” call.
It is expected that one contract will be awarded under this call, or at most one for each Investment Priority, and so consortia or other partnership arrangements are strongly encouraged.
Traditionally Cheshire and Warrington has had more jobs than residents, but the impact of COVID-19 is changing that position. Skills provision is needed to add capacity and complement existing business support programmes for new start-ups and SMEs with high growth potential, including:
- leadership and management
- coaching and mentoring
- entrepreneurial skills
- how to develop markets, access supply chains and win tenders
- mentoring for individuals who have recently acquired new skills
Applicants must demonstrate how they will link with, complement, and where appropriate, build on the work already being done by existing projects in Cheshire and Warrington (including the Skills for Growth Accelerate project).
Activity should also link with the work already being undertaken by the Cheshire and Warrington Pledge Project which promotes career opportunities in key sectors to young people.
Further steps to build upon that work include:
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increasing capacity in Cheshire and Warrington SMEs to help them progress from showcasing their career opportunities to increasing the numbers of people actually recruited into those businesses
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linking with the support being developed under the Cheshire and Warrington IP1.1/1.2 call, in particular by raising the capacity of SMEs and helping them to be able to offer opportunities for newly unemployed people, 18 to 24 year olds, and people aged 50 or over
Activities under IP 2.2 should be focused on support to SME organisations as the primary target audience.
For more information, download the
Location
The project must cover the Cheshire & Warrington LEP area.
Value
Approximately £2m of ESF is available.
Deadlines
Full application deadline: 11 March 2021
Completion date
Projects must be financially completed (i.e. have a proposed Financial Completion Date) no later than 31st December 2023; however, the Managing Authority reserves the right to vary the maximum duration in exceptional circumstances.
Full Application Submission
To apply for funding under this call you will need to complete and submit your Full Application via the ECLAIMS IT System.
Please note: the ECLAIMS IT System can only be access from within the UK.
Full Applications submitted in the ECLAIMS IT System after the call closing date shown above and on the call specification will not be appraised.
If you do not already have access to the ECLAIMS IT system, please request an ‘ECLAIMS External Access Form’ by emailing E.CLAIMSSUPPORT@dwp.gov.uk
You will need to request an External Access Form for each person in your organisation who requires access.
It is your responsibility to ensure you request and activate your ECLAIMS access in sufficient time. We strongly advise that you obtain and activate your ECLAIMS access at least 2 weeks prior to the advertised call closure date, if not sooner.
You are also advised to read the details in the call specification in order to produce an application that complies with the requirements and meets the needs set out in the ESF Operational Programme.
All this information, the related guidance and the European Social Fund Operational Programme can be found from our homepage.
The published ESF Online Full Application Guidance also provides step-by-step advice on how to complete your Full Application using the ECLAIMS IT system. ESF Online Full Application Guidance.
Technical Support
If you encounter any technical difficulties completing or submitting your Full Application via the ECLAIMS IT system, please send an email to E.CLAIMSSUPPORT@dwp.gov.uk
The technical support operating hours are Monday to Friday, from 8am to 6pm and it is your responsibility to ensure you seek and technical advice in sufficient time to complete and submit your Full Application before the published call closure date.
The Managing Authority reserves the right to reject applications which are incomplete or not submitted in a timely and compliant way.
Contact details
If you have any questions about the Call Specification or ESF Online Full Application Guidance, please contact esf.2014-2020@dwp.gov.uk. This address should not be used to request technical support.
Last updated 12 March 2021 + show all updates
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Cheshire & Warrington COVID-19 Response –The Workforce (OC03S20P1796) project call is now closed.
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First published.