Initiative aims to give people skills to help them find work

Firefighter training is at the heart of a new initiative, the Firebreak Course, tested out in south Essex.

It aims to give the jobless both confidence and practical skills that will prove useful in finding work.

Fifteen long-term unemployed people from Southend were put through their paces at Hawkwell fire station learning how to use ladders, hoses and breathing apparatus.

At the end of the day, the trainees were presented with certificates by the mayor of Southend, councillor Brian Kelly.

Mr Kelly said: “The course provided an excellent way of boosting confidence, teamwork and decision- making skills.”

The scheme is part of a major £23,000 six-month Community Gym project funded by the Department for Work and Pensions. The try-out runs until Monday, March 31.

It is being delivered by a partnership between Southend Council and community interest companies including the SeeJobGroup, Comfy Saddle and Cook4Life, as well as NHS Trainers, Legacy Leisure, and Essex Fire and Rescue Service, which ran the Firebreak course.

By the end of the project, 60 unemployed adults will have benefited from a range of activities, of which the Firebreak Course is just one.

Other activities include personal training from Legacy Leisure, one-to-one job hunting help from the SeeJobGroup, and advice on shopping economically and preparing healthy meals from Cook4Life.

The Community Gyms are based at St Luke’s Church, in Southend, and Trinity Family Centre, in Westcliff.

The project comes under the umbrella of the Streets Ahead programme.

The broad aim is to tackle the national Troubled Families Agenda, by working to improve aspirations, health, skills and opportunities for people trapped in a spiral of difficulties.

Councillor John Lamb, deputy leader of Southend Council, said: “This project was designed to develop life skills for the long-term unemployed to help prepare them for the world of work or training.

“It has proved to be positive, allowing us to help people who have long struggled to find work overcome their hurdles.”