AQW 3909/22-27

Ms Kellie Armstrong
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 30/09/2022
Answered On Date: 12/10/2022
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Communities whether she will provide redundancy support for all Community and Voluntary Sector organisations that have been supported to deliver services for her Department through the European Social Fund.

Answer:

My Department is responsible for providing a tailored redundancy support and advice service to employers and people being made redundant, including information about benefits and support to find jobs. This includes Community and Voluntary Sector organisations.

The Department’s Redundancy Service offers both virtual and face to face support to best meet the needs of both the employer and employees. A Redundancy Clinic Webcast has been developed, along with Redundancy Factsheets which help signpost employers and employees to useful information and sources of on-line support.

The Department’s Work Psychology Services (WPS) has also developed a Redundancy Support booklet to help people cope with the psychological and emotional impacts of redundancy. On-site Redundancy Clinics can also be arranged. Details of the Redundancy Service can be found at www.communities-ni.gov.uk/topics/finding-staff/redundancy-service

My Department also manages the JobApplyNI website. This is a recruitment and advertising platform which lists current job vacancies. The site is available for jobseekers 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Registering with JobApplyNI www.jobapplyni.com allows jobseekers to apply for vacancies directly to employers. Further support is available throughout the Department’s 35 Jobs and Benefits office network.