CLOSED: Driving Business Investment in Skills in Oxfordshire - OC27S21P1841
Call to run a project which promotes improvements in the labour market relevance of skills provision through active engagement with relevant institutions and employers, particularly SMEs and Micro businesses.
This call is now closed. Please do not submit an application for this project call. The information provided below is for reference purposes only.
Details
The impact of the COVID-19 across the Oxfordshire economy has increased the need for businesses to invest in reskilling their workforce and adapt to the new market conditions created by the pandemic. Alongside this, EU transition provides additional challenges for businesses, and SMEs in particular, to forward plan and consider how their operations need to respond in the new economic landscape.
The pandemic has highlighted;
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disparities in and between sectors – with some – visitor economy for example seeing significantly higher job losses whilst other sectors (e.g. health and social care) struggling to recruit
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the visitor economy (encompassing tourism, hospitality, retail, arts and culture) is the most significantly affected by the lockdown measures introduced and the economic impact this has had, and may not recover to pre-COVID levels until 2022/23 at the earliest
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a business and cultural shift to developing enhanced online presence from customers and consumers which requires a differing skill set within the workforce and employees moving forward in order to respond to new market operating conditions
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young people are among the most impacted cohorts with apprenticeship levels which are available with employers still at 66% of the 2019 baseline by August, following contraction between March and May during the early part of the pandemic
Supporting more employers to better engage with the skills infrastructure, to upskill their current workforce and to better engage the future workforce will be a vital part of Oxfordshire’s economic recovery.
This Call seeks new and innovative approaches to engage and work with SMEs to invest in its workforce as part of wider business strategies to drive economic recovery and rebuild market share and resilience. This will include new tools for employers in navigating the skills system, understanding current qualifications in relevant sectors and build partnership to develop new skills pathways, ensuring alignment with the needs of businesses and the wider Oxfordshire economy including the rapidly growing science and technology sectors of the innovation ecosystem which is creating jobs in new industries.
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Location
The project must cover the Oxfordshire LEP area.
Value
Approximately £1,000,000 of ESF is available.
Deadlines
Full application deadline: 14 June 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 15 June 2021 + show all updates
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Driving Business Investment in Skills in Oxfordshire - OC27S21P1841 project call is now closed.
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First published.