Businesses To Benefit From Euro Cash Boost

North East firms are set to benefit from a multi-million-pound pot of cash designed to boost skills and employment in the region.

The North East received a much-needed boost recently when it emerged that Gateshead College had secured an additional £6.4m of European funding for companies to upskill their workforce and get people into work.

The cash boost comes on the back of the successful delivery of Go>Grow, a project that has been managed by the college and a partnership of North East training providers since 2016.

Secured from the European Social Fund (ESF), the additional money will help local firms to develop and strengthen their workforce for free. It will also support individuals who are looking to get back into work, progress in their current job or start their own business.

Employers in Northumberland, Tyne & Wear and County Durham will be able to benefit from the fund, which will run until March 2019 and support sectors identified as crucial to the fortunes of the North East economy, such as engineering, digital and health and social care.

The cash boost comes after the college secured £15m of ESF funding to launch the Go>Grow programme in 2016. Since then the money has benefited almost 1,100 employers and 250 startup enterprises, while 12,000 individuals have gained new skills through additional training. It has helped more than 650 individuals into employment and over 600 people have progressed into further education or training. The fact that Gateshead College achieved these impressive outcomes was a key reason why the organisation was able to secure the most recent award of ESF funding.

Judith Doyle CBE, principal and chief executive at Gateshead College, said: “This is fantastic news for the local business community. The additional funding means we can support the expansion of dozens more companies, helping them to upskill their workforce so they can grow and become more competitive.

“On a wider scale, the fund will help key sectors to create employment opportunities, tackle vital skills shortages and generate more value for the regional economy. I’m also exceptionally proud of my team who have worked tirelessly to oversee the effective delivery of this fund, ensuring it meets the high standards we expect at Gateshead College.”

The Go>Grow funds have helped dozens of companies, including Team Valley-based CBC Health, IT firm Advantex and Durham County Council. Staff at Newcastle Gateshead Cultural Venues (NGCV), a partnership of 10 organisations operating 20 venues across Tyneside, have benefited from free business skills training, while Port of Tyne used the funding to help its staff strengthen working relationships across the business in management, team leader and supervisor roles.

Firms in Northumberland, too, have benefited from Go>Grow. More than 80 employees at Alnwickbased Arcinova, a pharmaceutical research and development specialist, completed advanced Microsoft Word and Excel training to secure highlevel IT skills in a move to boost productivity and performance levels.