As part of Cumberland Council’s Skills and Enterprise Programme, unemployed local residents joined up with Cumbria Wildlife Trust to learn about careers and taking part in activities in ecology, forestry, conservation and landscape management.
Participants gained practical skills in habitat improvement by planting coastal meadow plug plants, on a site near Whitehaven Harbour. These plants will provide a resource boost for local pollinators like bees and butterflies.
They then took part in woodland creation with Gary Waters and Zoe Pearson from Raise Community Forest at a farm near Pardshaw, developing skills in planting a variety of trees, native to the UK, to provide a natural shelterbelt in the landscape. They also heard about careers in Forestry.
They also met with Reagan Blacker of the Workington Nature Partnership, to learn about the ecology of the Harrington Nature Reserve and then teamed up with volunteers on site for more land management skills activities.
At the Cleator Moor Cycle path, they met with Andy Small and Simon Taylor two Sustrans Rangers who explained their work, their career journeys and showed various tools of the trade discussing safe use of tools and PPE.
The two days concluded with a visit to a Red Squirrel Monitoring station with the Cumbria Wildlife Trust.
Lizzy Benn Community Development Officer at Cumbria Wildlife Trust said:
“Having the group out on different sites over the two days has been very worthwhile. This project started with Red Squirrels, and it’s amazing to follow the different threads and think about all the possible careers that could be connected to helping our populations of reds thrive. From creating green networks to making pathways more accessible for people, there’s a variety of skills needed and plenty of opportunities to become involved. Hopefully the attendees got a flavour of outdoor work and skills and some of them will be inspired to take it further now.”
Anne Herbert, Programme participant said:
“I thoroughly enjoyed engaging with Cumbria Wildlife Skills Days. I had never thought of volunteering before, so it was a pleasant surprise, and I came away feeling quite fulfilled having achieved something positive. Planting field of wildflowers, planting trees, clearing footpaths and generally maintaining our environment are probably things we take for granted. It's not until you actually participate in these activities yourself that you really appreciate what goes into it and what would happen if these things were not to happen. For anyone considering volunteering or even considering a job working outdoors, I'd encourage them to go for it. It's more fun than you think and good for your physical and mental health too.”
This work was part of the Red Squirrel Recovery Network, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
The Skills and Enterprise Programme is managed by Cumberland Council and funded by Copeland Community Fund and Sellafield Ltd.
As part of the programme, local residents now have ‘additional’ support in place, when it comes to self-employment and supporting their business to grow.
A pilot programme, providing bespoke mentoring support, has been introduced to the wider programme as a way of increasing the number entrepreneurs, and young businesses to survive in early years of trading. The programme commenced 1 April 2024.
Partnership member, Cumbria Chamber of Commerce, has been appointed to deliver the activity. The Mentoring Programme will support a minimum of 50 businesses, including start-ups, over a sustained period (up to two years).
Lesley Robinson, Head of Business Support at Cumbria Chamber of Commerce said:
“We’re delighted to have successful bid to deliver this two-year mentoring programme for individuals in the area. From our experience we know the real value working with a mentor can offer to those at the very start of the self-employment journey or in those early years of trading.
“Working with a mentor provides a sounding board, a critical friend who provides ongoing, personalised guidance and removes the feelings of isolation experienced by many small business owners. Our team of mentors are ready and waiting to provide support and we’ll also be offering a great range of free training running alongside mentor support.”
A number of Business and Enterprise support activities have been delivered during the first 12 months of the current Skills and Enterprise programme. This has included: awareness raising activities about starting your own business; a triage service for unemployed individuals unsure of their next move; and personal development training enabling businesses to grow.
The introduction of mentoring support activities will add value to the existing programme providing customers with a supported pathway on their journey towards enterprise.
To find out more about the programme, contact Chris Cunliffe chris.cunliffe@cumberland.gov.uk or Carol Pugh carol.pugh@cumberland.gov.uk